By Late Night
First-time director Drew Goddard steps up to the plate in a big way with the sci-fi/government conspiracy/slasher horror/monster movie mashup, The Cabin in the Woods (opening April 13).  Goddard is the writer of the thoroughly entertaining sci-fi/monster movie Cloverfield (2008), but he is better known by his work for the small screen, as a writer/producer for Lost, Alias and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

It is no accident that many visionary directors write their own material.  And it’s readily apparent from this short clip that Goddard can build interest and suspense with just a few words:

If the early reviews are a sign (91% on Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer), it appears Cabin will be a must-see for horror fans.  From Peter Debruge’s review in Variety:

 Designed as a response to the recent torture-porn strain of horror cinema, “Cabin” feels less like the final nail in that trend’s coffin than the start of something new: a smarter, more self-aware kind of chiller that still delivers the scares.

Backed up on this production by his co-writer, producer and long-time collaborator Joss Whedon, Drew Goddard seems to be in the right place at the right time.  Will he turn out to be a visionary?  So far, he appears to be off to a good start.

In all honesty, this movie was way off my radar until recently, mostly due to the uninspiring title and deceptively clever poster art.  Not until I took the time to look up and view the trailer was I even lightly interested in it, because it seemed like yet another stupid teens-in-the-woods slasher cash-in.  The trailer deftly kills that notion, capitalizing on the line “You think you know the story…”:

Okay, I admit it – I don’t know the story… but now I want to see it!