Directed by Eli Roth, who has since gone on to do Hostel (and Hostel II) and who is now working on the latest Stephen King adaptation Cell, Cabin Fever begins with the classic horror premise of a group of fresh faced college students heading off to a cabin in the woods. After dealing with the somewhat odd locals at a store nearby, things go pearshaped pretty quickly when one of the group stumbles upon a hermit in the woods with a particularly nasty flesh-eating virus, who asks for help.
This is the "monster" that I like so much in this film. A simple, particularly gory and horrifying virus that quickly leads to bloody open sores/wounds and the coughing and spluttering of blood everywhere imaginable. Given the rise of AIDS, Ebola, SARS and bird flu in recent years and the general climate of fear and mistrust in the world, this is truly a 21st century villain.
The reaction of our heroes to this menace is equally interesting - from violent opposition to helping the infected to trying to help them as much as possible, at the risk of infection.
The main characters for the most part aren't that sympathetic - the character I liked the most was easily the biggest dick of all of them but seemed a lot more real than his broad brushstrokes companions.
When they arrive at the cabin, he wanders off with a rifle, prompting this exchange:
Karen: Bert, what the hell is that?
Bert: Huh? Oh, I'm gonna go shoot some squirrels.
Paul: Why would you wanna kill squirrels?
Bert: 'cause they're gay.
Karen: Bert, don't be a fucking retard.
Bert: I'm kidding. I don't care if they're gay or straight, I'll kill 'em either way.
Ultimately, the characters don't matter too much - they're strong enough to carry your interest in the story, believable enough to understand why they do what they do (although there are still moments of "why would they do that?" - which is always easier to think from the comfort of the couch than if you were actually in that situation) and have strong enough dialogue to let you know that you are watching something more than a few notches above your standard young-pretty-people-in-the-woods horror flick.
Throw in wild dogs and scary redneck/hillbillies and you have a cracking tale with enough visceral shocks to make David Cronenberg happy.
Let's not forget also that this is a pretty funny film - there's a line early in the film (at the store) that has a great pay off right at the end.
(And let's not forget Pancakes!!!! :)
Here's the trailer - 4.5 cushions.
