Review of Cabin Fever (2003) by Sahil C — 18 Nov 2009

What can be said. Eli Roth is pretty much one of the greatest NEW horror directors around. This movie cemented him despite only being his first flick. Next came Hostel and we got a look at his special sensibilities and got a great movie (that gets WAY too much hate). Next came Hostel 2, which was sub par compared to the first two but was still a fun movie. Next is his upcoming Sci Fi epic which I can't wait to see. But of these movies Cabin Fever stands out.

First let's just talk the movie out. The plot is pretty basic horror movie stuff. A group of kids go out on their own and are killed off. What makes the story unique however is that they aren't attacked by a serial killer or mad man but a virus that eats you alive. Very unique in it's own right. Another thing is that we have a story where there are friends who want to stay alive but their inability to work together just tears them apart and ultimately leads to their demise (a theme used in the original Romero Zombie Trilogy). The story as a whole is really quite solid.

Another thing that this movie should be commended for is the blend of comedy and horror. The comedy isn't overbearing at all and actually helps us to like the characters more in the beginning. It also should be said that all of the homages are really great pluses for horror fans (the Dawn Of The Dead shot and the Evil Dead shot are the stand outs for me). There are several but they aren't obvious and that just adds to the experience for me.

The acting is really great for such a low budget horror flick. The gore is there (and tons of it). The cinematography is brilliant and the music is great (there are homages in there as well). And the writing is quite good. Overall the movie is quite a brilliant little piece of horror cinema that is quite a stand out for a debut flick. It's a must see in my opinion.