Whedon's genre-jolting 'Cabin' logs scares, laughs

You know right away that "The Cabin in the Woods" won't be your regular, run-of-the-kill horror movie about stupid, lusty young people trapped in the boonies by malevolent forces.

Nosiree. These lusty young people are smart. They read philosophy. Text books. They won't be the kind of people who run off to the woods and make some very poor choices they live (and die) to regret.

Oops.

Actually, they do run off into the woods and make poor choices.

But that's long after "The Cabin in the Woods" opens with a bizarre sequence set in some supersecret, high-tech underground facility where two technicians (Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford) talk glibly about world markets, crack tasteless jokes and act as if they're in a movie that has nothing to do with either woods or cabins.

But it does, and it won't be spoiling anything to say that "Cabin in the Woods" closely resembles a violent merger of "The Truman Show" and "Evil Dead," with a few other iconic horror films tossed in.

This flawed but highly ambitious thriller, the directorial debut of "Cloverfield" writer Drew Goddard, flips genre conventions and reminds us of a time when horror films didn't just ply us with cheap shocks, but subverted our expectations with mettle-testing experiences that replicate something fresh and original.

Because "The Cabin in the Woods" depends so heavily on the element of surprise, it would be irresponsible to reveal the plot or many of the details of what happens.

Be assured that if you watch the audaciously inventive "Cabin," you will never know what's coming around the bend, or what's waiting behind the door.

Written by Goddard and genre king Joss Whedon (mostly known for TV's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"), "Cabin" introduces us to super jock Curt (a pre-"Thor" Chris Hemsworth), the salubrious Dana (Kristen Connolly), the enticing Jules (Anna Hutchison), the nerdy Holden (Jesse Williams) and the humorous, philosophizing pothead Marty (Fran Kranz).

They're off to spend some time communing with nature in a dilapidated old cabin. But we already know something isn't quite right the moment a bird of prey turns to toast when it hits an invisible electrified wall. (TV commercials and trailers show this, so it's not exactly a spoiler.)

It's the first of many "Wow! What was that?" moments.

Once the friends settle in, Holden notices the mirror in his room is a two-way glass that enables him to see Dana, who is unaware that he can see her. Does he watch? Or tell her?

Meanwhile, back at the underground bunker, the employees get all excited about placing bets on the poor friends' demises, but worried that a mysterious boss, The Director, would not approve.

"If they don't transgress," Jenkins' Sitterson says of the friends in the cabin, "they can't be harmed."

But that's before Dana finds an old diary and reads magical incantations from it. Now, all bets are on.

"The Cabin in the Woods" has become the stuff of fanboy legend since distributor MGM went bankrupt and the horror film sat around gathering dust for two years. Finally, it arrives at area theaters, and, unbelievably, it was worth the wait.

Still, it would have been a stronger experience had the main characters possessed personalities deeper than a stereotypical mud puddle. We would have invested more in their plights had the characters been as fleshed-out as they are flesh-removed.

Although the friends supposedly are MENSA material, Goddard's and Whedon's dialogue still makes them sound like escapees from a teen beach romantic comedy.

"This is awesome!" Curt says.

"It sounds awesome!" Dana says.

"I'm sure it's awesome!" Marty says.

"Cabin in the Woods" may not be as awesome as its dialogue, but it's still an amazing, tidy little thriller that, like its Escher-like movie poster, gleefully turns the horror genre upside down.

“The Cabin in the Woods”

★ ★ ★ ½

Starring: Kristen Connolly, Chris Hemsworth, Fran Kranz, Jesse Williams, Anna Hutchison, Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford

Directed by: Drew Goddard

Other: A Lionsgate Films release. Rated R for drug use, language, nudity, sexual situations and extreme violence. 95 minutes