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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Redefining the genre? No, but a treat for horror buffs., January 28, 2004
One of the things that makes Cabin Fever a genuinely fun outing for horror fans is the cast and crew's obvious enthusiasm for what they're doing. Even without viewing the entertaining (if rather short on substance) "Making of" featurette, you can easily tell that the film was a labor of love with a game cast. While the extras don't shed much light on the film's progress from unsellable script to most-hyped horror film of 2003-- which would undoubtedly have made for a fascinating story-- the movie is (almost) enough of a delight to make up for it.Cabin Fever takes pretty much every convention of "classic" drive-in horror films of the 70's, and manages to make them look new again. Curmudgeons may say that it's nothing more than a Scream-esque parody of horror movie chestnuts, but the approach is really quite different. Instead of self-conscious winks to the audience, the walking cliches of Cabin Fever seem to enjoy playing their roles to the hilt, with performances that are as much tribute as spoof. One of the most entertaining aspects of the film is that the lead characters, each a counterpart of a 70's-horror staple, are almost uniformly unlikable. Instead of counting on us to hope that the smug hipster, the ice queen, and the obnoxious jock manage to escape the killer's clutches, we can finally enjoy seeing them get what we thought they deserved all along. I mean, did anyone REALLY identify with any of those too-good-to-be-true high school superstars? Cabin Fever won't have you leaving the nightlight on, although it does boast some solid shocks. It might be a bit of a letdown for fans of gore, but for my part I'm thankful that the more intensely violent moments were off-camera. Otherwise it might have been too dificult to watch. The most striking thing about the film is its big-budget look. The directing is confident, the performances are strong, the effects are convincing, and the photography is excellent (unlike most of its ancestors). The DVD transfer's color is glorious, and the sound really fills a room. It belies its independent origins every step of the way, right down to the Angelo Badalamenti score (the composer's hilarious account of his involvement with the film is one of the featurette's high points). In most ways, the pricey DVD release doesn't disappoint. Most highly recommended to horror fans with a sense of humor. Note: the DVD also includes several short claymation features by director Roth that star a fruitbasket of British rockers who spend most of their time causing mayhem and squirting their own juices over everything in sight. A pleasant enough addition, but they aren't really anything to get excited about. Other features include the clever-yet-useless "Chickvision" option, and a short called "Pancakes" that shows just how much fun the creators were having with their project. Although when the subject grows up, he just might sue them for defamation of character.... The five(!) commentary tracks could probably have been boiled down into just one or two, but their easygoing tone adds to feeling of good-natured fun that went into the production.
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11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
NOT an effective homage, not scary, not funny, don't bother, January 27, 2004
By A Customer
My review title really says it all. With the exception of strong performances by Rider Strong, Cerina Vincent and Guisseppe Andrews, Cabin Fever is a resounding failure - both critically, as even enjoyable jaw-clenching horror fare and as a successful homage. The term "homage" (I'll be tempted to contract a flesh-eating virus myself if I have to hear this word ONE MORE TIME) is dreadfully overused here - by the DVD's director, the cast, the producers and everyone seemingly involved with this drek. Done well, a film homage successfully captures the styles of a genre and the creative sensibilities of people associated with a particular film or films and combines it with a unique sense of a filmmaker's vision. Done poorly - as in the case of "Cabin Fever" - and "homage" can be synonymous with a total absence of originality and an inability to blend someone else's style with your own. That's what happens here and unfortunately it just goes on and on and on. Writer/Director Roth has no particular vision or style of his OWN to bring to the homage party - no real grasp on what he wanted HIS film - homage or not - to be stylistically by the last reel. Neither particularly scary, nor funny, "Cabin Fever's" greatest weakness is, in this age of increasingly sophisticated movie-going audiences, its mess of a storyline. The overall concept is painfully simple and fine actually as far as the genre goes - but Roth manages to overcomplicate things - forgoing building real tension and jeopardy through character development (I mean - seriously - that's all that's left with these rehashes that can make them even remotely fresh, right?) his characters in lieu of throwing in one too many go-nowhere B-stories and horror-film-of-yore references, leaving the characters with nothing to do but stumble from disjointed scene to disjointed scene vomiting blood. As mentioned earlier, Strong, Vincent and Andrews (who's underused) do manage solid performances despite having far little to work with. The DVD's self-congratulatory tone and over-reliance on genre-dropping references (as if to dissuade the passionate horror viewer that they really, really did see something special) are maddening. For all of his passion - and so-called experiences making home-made horror movies, Roth shows a stunning lack of comprehensive ability...especially perplexing since he bemoans the near demise of good horror films in the early 1990's. Hmm...Mr. Roth...ever think that it was this kind of careless filmmaking that was the cause? Just a thought. It appears Roth's passion for horror films has outstripped his ability to effectively make them and despite his luck at being let loose in a movie-making candy store (just who financed this thing and approved him as director, I ask?!!), what he really needs is a good screenwriting class and more time - much more time - with his dad's video camera.
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another entertaining one that's pretty underrated, December 30, 2004
After seeing "Wrong Turn", I didn't have any doubts about seeing "Cabin Fever". One of the primary reasons I saw "Wrong Turn" was because I was familiar with, and liked most of the actors (or actresses) in the movie, and that was a similar with this movie. James DeBello (Detroit Rock City, 100 Girls) has been hilarious in every movie I've seen him in, and Ryder Strong was on Boy Meets World, so you gotta love him. The other actors I wasn't that familiar with, but I decided to see the movie anyway, and let me tell you I'm glad I saw this one.
"Cabin Fever" is about a group of five friends (3 guys, 2 girls), who have just graduated from school, and now are going to the mountains for a camping trip in a cabin. However when they get there, there is a deadly virus on the loose, which is being contracted by a hobo who lives out in the woods. Bert (James DeBello) is the first to come into contact with the hobo, when he accidentally shoots him with a bee-bee gun, thinking he's a school. The hobo then trys to get Bert to help him, but Bert runs away. The Hobo then interrupts a bon-fire the group is having, and is accidentally set on fire, which for some sick twisted reason is very funny. Some way or another, his dead body ends up getting into the water system, and those anyone who drinks the water becomes infected. The girls both end being the first two to get it. When they find out that the disease is within them, Jordan Ladd (who was one of the pot smockers in "Super Troopers") then goes into hiding. It's pretty funny. Well as you may expect the disease eventually infects all of them (except Jordan Ladd). There's also some crazy group of rednecks running around (which seems to be the staple in horror movies right now) who are trying to kill the kids in the cabin. I don't want to spoil the plot if you haven't seen it, which is why I left a lot of holes. Please trust me there's a lot of good in this movie, and none of these reviews do it justice, it's another you need to see before writing off.
With a very likable and funny cast, and interesting (but totally unrealistic) storyline, and plenty of jokes and wild rednecks running around to entertain you, you should definitely check this movie out if you haven't seen it. Don't let others opinions sway yours, form your own. Especially if you liked other movies or shows the cast has been in, you'll like this one.
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