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31 for 31 Part 15: Cabin in the Woods
A movie that makes fun of horror tropes while delivering a message
There are plenty of horror movies in which the main characters plan to spend the weekend vacationing in a cabin. The group is eventually attacked by zombies, demons, crazy rednecks, or some horrible atrocity. Ultimately, the final girl triumphs (with maybe a couple of other survivors). But what if these stories were made by design, orchestrated by a cabal of people to make sure the world doesn’t end? What if every horror movie we ever saw existed in the same world, and the world depended on at least one of those events going to plan?
This is the basic plot of Cabin in the Woods. Five friends go on a road trip to spend the weekend in a secluded cabin. Each member of the group represents a stereotypical character in a slasher movie. First, there is Dana (Kristen Connely), a.k.a. the Virgin. Next is Curt (Chris Hemsworth), the Athlete. Curt dates Jules (Anna Hutchinson), a.k.a the Whore. The stoner Marty (Fran Kranz)is the Fool. And finally, there is Holden (Jesse Williams), who represents the Scholar.
At first, everything seems to be going well, and the group of friends act nothing like typical stereotypes; Curt is not only a Jock but is an academic, for example. However, the people control the action pump in drugs and spike their drinks to cause them to act out of…