Must Be Something in the Water…

There is a difference between a good movie and an enjoyable movie. I feel that many modern moviegoers cannot separate the two. This is why people say Transformers was a good movie. Was it entertaining? To some, sure. Was it a good, quality film? Not by any definition of the word. I am starting this review this way because Eli Roth’s first feature film Cabin Fever is not a good movie. It is entertaining as hell, though. I love everything about this movie. I think it is scary, hilarious, gruesome. It has it all, including a naked Power Ranger! How can you NOT love this movie?

The film is about a group of five friends who just finished their finals and are on their way to a cabin in the woods for a week of drinking, hunting, and fucking. Their plans are quickly halted when they contract a deadly flesh-eating virus from a vagabond in the woods. With a busted vehicle, they are forced to do whatever they can to try to survive. I won’t go into many details, because honestly, that’s about all there is to it. It’s not a deep film. There are no underlying subtexts. It’s just plain ol’ bloody fun.

There are many scenes worth mentioning from this film. Some hilarious, some downright disturbing. The shaving scene is always the first to come to mind. I actually cringed, which is very difficult for a movie to accomplish. It made me want to cover my eyes. There is also a mutual masturbation scene that takes an unfounded fear of many guys to an entirely new level. The scene that completely sold me on this movie was the joke of an ending. No kidding. Roth ended his first horror film with a completely ludicrous yet hilarious joke. I loved him for this.

I still remember the first weekend this film came out. A close friend of mine wanted to go see Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle. I painfully agreed. That’s right. I went see Charlie’s Angels over Cabin Fever. Andrew chose to see the latter the same night, but luckily he didn’t mind going see it again the next day with me. What a good friend, right? The only reason I wanted to see this film in the first place was because Boy Meets World was my favorite television show. I was very happy to see Rider Strong getting work. I went for Shawn Hunter, but left with a whole lot more (mono from Andrew).

(Editor’s Note: Rodney, I hate to own you with my embarrassingly great memory, because even though your closing sentiments give me a boner, it was “28 Days Later” that I saw the night you guys went to see “CA: Full Throttle.” I first saw “Cabin Fever” at the 12pm feature with Rob Guillory. I remember this because everytime they used the “N-Word” I looked out of the corner of my eye at him before laughing. I saw it again with you guys the next day when I had started dating Kayla. It rained as we were leaving the theatre. We didn’t have umbrellas. And you’re welcome for the mono! –andrew’s lame memory.)