The Cabin in the Woods (2012)
85%RT Audience Score: 74%
Awards & Nominations: 20 wins & 34 nominations
The Cabin in the Woods is an astonishing meta-feat, capable of being funny, strange, and scary — frequently all at the same time
The Cabin in the Woods is the perfect movie for horror fans who also love a good laugh. It’s like the filmmakers took all the horror movie clichés and put them in a blender with some witty dialogue and a dash of self-awareness. The result is a wonderfully weird and horrifying movie that will keep you on the edge of your seat and laughing at the same time. The cast is fantastic, the script is clever, and the structure is well-done. It’s definitely a must-watch for Halloween!
Production Company(ies)
Universal Pictures, Studio Canal, Working Title Films,
Distributor
Lionsgate Films
Release Type
Streaming, Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Coquihalla Canyon Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for strong bloody horror violence and gore, language, drug use and some sexuality/nudity
Year of Release
2012
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital Datasat SDDS Dolby Surround 7.1
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Aspect ratio:2.40 : 1
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Runtime:1h 35m
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Language(s):English, Japanese
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Apr 13, 2012 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 18, 2012
Genre(s)
Horror
Keyword(s)
starring Kristen Connolly, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchison, Fran Kranz, Jesse Williams, Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford, directed by Drew Goddard, written by Joss Whedon, Drew Goddard, horror, R rating, Lionsgate Films, box office gross $42.0M, reviewed by Deborah Ross, Eric Kohn, Bruce Diones, David Rooney, Jake Wilson, Christopher Kelly, Kristy Strouse, Taylor Baker, Jason Adams, Richard Propes, Brent McKnight, Fiona Underhill, meta, parody, slasher, monster, horror comedy, backwoods zombies, scientists, manipulation, gore, drug use, strong horror violence, language, some sexuality/nudity, strong bloody violence, English, Datasat, SDDS, Dolby Digital, Joss Whedon as producer
Worldwide gross: $70,055,998
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $90,317,904
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,069
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 9,849,281
US/Canada gross: $42,073,277
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $54,241,896
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,035
US/Canada opening weekend: $14,743,614
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $19,007,827
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 685
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $30,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $38,676,733
Production budget ranking: 982
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $20,827,421
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $30,813,750
ROI to date (est.): 52%
ROI ranking: 1,138
Chris Hemsworth – Curt
Anna Hutchison – Jules
Fran Kranz – Marty
Jesse Williams – Holden
Richard Jenkins – Sitterson
Bradley Whitford – Hadley
Drew Goddard – Director
Joss Whedon – Producer, Writer
Director(s)
Drew Goddard
Writer(s)
Joss Whedon, Drew Goddard
Producer(s)
Joss Whedon
Film Festivals
South by Southwest
Awards & Nominations
20 wins & 34 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (289) | Top Critics (73) | Fresh (265) | Rotten (24)
This is, I know, a self-aware film: its clichés are parodies of horror clichés generally, but to subvert a form, it should, first and foremost, work as an entertainment, and it most surely does not.
August 31, 2018
Deborah Ross
The Spectator
TOP CRITIC
Ranks among one of the most wryly self-aware works of American pop culture entertainment in years.
September 27, 2015 | Rating: B+
Eric Kohn
indieWire
TOP CRITIC
The filmmakers are less interested in providing a slow buildup to their frights than in splattering the clichés of the form in funny, spirited ways.
October 6, 2014
Bruce Diones
New Yorker
TOP CRITIC
In order to subvert any popular form, entertainment first has to work on its own terms. Goddard and Whedon are too busy geeking out to bother with those requirements.
October 6, 2014
David Rooney
Hollywood Reporter
TOP CRITIC
It sounds like the oldest horror story in the book but from the first scene of The Cabin in the Woods it’s clear that the director, Drew Goddard, and his co-writer, Joss Whedon, are bent on turning the formula upside down.
October 6, 2014 | Rating: 3.5/5
Jake Wilson
Sydney Morning Herald
TOP CRITIC
The setup is intriguing but the balance feels off. Goddard and Whedon overplay the winking postmodernism.
October 6, 2014 | Rating: 2/5
Christopher Kelly
Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com
TOP CRITIC
While being “like” so many others, it’s unlike anything you’ll see. It’s weird, hilarious, and actually scary- The Cabin in the Woods has it all.
October 14, 2021
Kristy Strouse
Wonderfully Weird and Horrifying
Episode 12: Away We Go
September 1, 2021 | Rating: 86/100
Taylor Baker
Drink in the Movies
Could I possibly be fair and balanced talking about this movie when it was created in a lab by awesome scientists (that is, scientists of awesomeness) out of everything I love most to be The Perfect Movie For Me? I cannot.
July 6, 2021
Jason Adams
My New Plaid Pants
The cast is far stronger than one usually finds in this type of film.
September 4, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/4.0
Richard Propes
TheIndependentCritic.com
It functions as horror, comedy, and as a deconstructionist essay on genre filmmaking. Remarkably clever, more hilarious than I expected, and gory enough to sate horror fanatics of all varieties,
July 12, 2020 | Rating: A
Brent McKnight
The Last Thing I See
It features a fantastic cast, a witty and clever script and is very well structured. This film is one of THE best horror movies and should definitely be included in your annual Halloween viewing line-up.
July 12, 2020
Fiona Underhill
JumpCut Online…
Plot
Five teenagers head off for a weekend at a secluded cabin in the woods. They arrive to find they are quite isolated with no means of communicating with the outside world. When the cellar door flings itself open, they of course go down to investigate. They find an odd assortment of relics and curios, but when one of the women, Dana, reads from a book, she awakens a family of deadly zombie killers. However, there’s far more going on than meets the eye.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The cast of The Cabin in the Woods includes Chris Hemsworth, who would go on to become a major star in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Thor.
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