Cabin Fever (BD)

It is surprising to see that a movie like “Cabin Fever” has ended up so high on so many all-time top horror-movie lists. In fact, many critics have hailed it as one of the scariest movies of all time. I realize that experiencing a horror movie in terms of its “scary” attributes is rather a subjective exercise. However, in recent times, words like “gory” and “scary” have been frequently misused in the press and studio releases, all for marketing reasons. When I saw that “Cabin Fever” had been rated highly and endorsed by renowned critics and directors (as noted on the disc cover of this Blu-ray release), I was fully prepared to be terrified on my first viewing. However, the movie did not scare me as I had been expecting; nonetheless, I enjoyed it as a comedy satire.

The story begins when a group of five teenagers--Paul (Rider Strong), Bert (James DeBello), Karen (Jordan Ladd), Marcy (Cerina Vincent), and Jeff (Joey Kern)--decide to camp out in an empty cabin deep in the wilderness. Soon after, they come in contact with a hermit (Arie Verveen), who is apparently infected with a deadly virus that results in panic within the group. The ensuing encounter with the hermit causes the engine of their truck to be inoperable, requiring the entire group to deal with the situation. A few of them venture out looking for help. Meanwhile, a member of the group gets infected with the virus, and thereafter it is a struggle to stay virus-free. Along the way, the group has encounters with the police and local community as they try to find help and a way out of the wilderness.

“Cabin Fever” was produced on a limited budget of $1.5 million and managed to earn about $30 million at the box office, thereby making it the biggest hit for Lionsgate in 2002. One of the reasons, why “Cabin Fever” works to some extent is partly due to its limited budget. The director, Eli Roth, exercises restraint in using excessive gore, CGI, and unnecessary violence due to budget constraints. From the onset, it is clear that the director has spent more time with his crew in designing various aspects of the makeup used in the film. Likewise, the violence and gory elements were mainly utilized in the final act, although it was evident throughout the film but never overwhelming or forced on the viewer. Roth brings in a promising premise of containment of natural water reservoirs, and its inevitable consumption by the human population. In this aspect, the movie tries to highlight a genuine issue that may well befall a particular town or city. The isolation factor in the form of a desolate cabin in the woods works really well for the movie, too.

Given these positive qualities, the movie still falls short on a number of other levels. Between the initial and latter parts of the middle act, there is not much happening. Even before the teenagers come in contact with the virus, it seems like they are waiting for something to happen. During this time, the writers, Eli Roth and Randy Pearlstein, could have properly developed the characters. Instead, they end up showing them as a bunch of stereotypical teenagers mixing sex, alcohol, and drugs with a fair amount of stupidity. With its underdeveloped characters, the movie feels like a TV series episode rather than a full-length feature film.

The actions taken by the teenagers as an act of desperation to save themselves from the deadly virus are unbelievably stupid. In one scene, after the group realizes the virus has spread to one of its members, Marcy decides to take a shower amidst all the commotion. Not only does she take a bath, but she also finds time to shave her legs. Later, as Marcy and Paul realize, they are the only possible surviving members of their group, they decide to have sex that is forcibly acted; its presence can only be justified as promiscuous teenage sex. I don’t understand why the writers were deliberately trying to make these characters play dumb to the entire situation except as parody.

In another scene, when Bert drives out to a neighboring town looking for a doctor, he again ends up running into the crazy kid. The kid gets infected as a result of biting Bert, but instead of taking the kid to a doctor, his father decides that it is time for some action. He and the rest of his family members go out on a shooting spree. As if dealing with the virus were not enough, Roth injects an unnecessary diversion into the story with this element. Finally, all of this leads to a climax that turns out to be contrived, with a predictable ending.

“Cabin Fever” tries to juggle too many things with limited success. The effort can be seen as an homage to horror movies such as “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (1974), “Cujo” (1981), and “The Blair Witch Project” (1999). It also tackles a valid concern for water contamination with its environmental commentary. On the political side, it attempts to showcase an incompetent police force. Lastly, the entire movie is basically a collection of satirical/comical events, depending on how you look at it. However, the filmmakers’ presentation of these various aspects never quite adds up to a cohesive whole.

I haven’t seen any other films by Eli Roth, but this movie is probably a fair indication of his talent behind the camera. He understands the importance of working within a definite budget, which is a great business quality to have. Unfortunately, his writing is a bit uneven and amateurish. Maybe if he had confined his role only to that of director and let his writers do their part, we might have seen a more refined storyline and more developed characters coming from this team. But, then, that is not a guarantee.

Video:
The 1080p transfer is presented in a 2.24:1 aspect ratio, encoded in an AVC format that averages in the high 20 Mpbs. The colors are bright, vibrant, and clear throughout. The outdoor scenes really shine during the daytime, especially the clear blue sky. The inherent contrast and brightness is appropriately balanced. In addition, the scenery around the cabin is rendered beautifully. The blacks appear to be solid during the night. The clean transfer does not give the movie the typically gritty look we expect from a horror title like this. I suspect some DNR was applied, as I did not detect any signs of film grain. Having said this, the detail and sharpness is remarkably improved over the DVD edition. Likewise, the skin tones are true and lifelike. Overall, this is a top-notch transfer from Lionsgate.

Audio:
Falling in the same tradition as their earlier catalog releases, Lionsgate has included a terrific 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track. There are plenty of scenes in which the rear channels kick in to a good effect. The bass is heavy and deep and is noticeably evident during the gunshots and chase scenes. The dialogue gets a boost in this lossless track as well. The end result is an immersive audio experience. Also provided is the option to view the movie with English or Spanish subtitles.

Extras:
First, we get a long featurette on the film called “Beneath the Skin: The Making of Cabin Fever.” Here, the director and producers talk about their motivation for making the film and the films that influenced “Cabin Fever,” plus propmasters talk about makeup techniques used in the film. In addition, the actors pour out their thoughts about the director, makeup, and various scenes from the movie.

Up next, we get a new commentary track with director Eli Roth and various crew members. Roth provides detailed analyses of various shots with special makeup techniques and changes made to the unrated cut of the film. Other crew members recollect their thoughts and experiences surrounding the production of the film in 2002.

Following this extra, we get a collection of five short episodes about a fictional band called “The Rotten Fruit.”  These episode are “Battle of the Bands” (5:20 minutes), “Snackster” (3:35 minutes), “Room Service” (3:18 minutes), “Episode 2” (2:50 minutes), and “Episode 4” (3 minutes).  All the episodes are developed using crudely drawn characters that have been animated using a stop-motion technique, similar to the “South Park” series.

We also get a short segment called “Pancakes” (4x3, 1:30 min) showing a kid practicing Kung-Fu.

The extras conclude with the director’s behind-the scenes photos and an original theatrical trailer.

Parting Thoughts:
“Cabin Fever” is another teenage gore fest with no real purpose. The movie does a couple of things right, but the weak script and poor characterizations and acting result in a product that fails to distinguish itself from its peers in the horror genre. However, depending on how you feel about the horror elements in this film, you might experience something totally different. For some, it can be a comedy or a satire or a political commentary. I found it to be a comedy more than anything else. In this aspect, I find “Cabin Fever” a middling entertaining film. The technical qualities of this Blu-ray edition from Lionsgate make it a winner, though, with its excellent audio/ video attributes.