Cabin Fever (2002)

   

Produced & Directed by: Eli Roth

Written by: Eli Roth & Randy Pearlstein

Starring:

Rider Strong .... Paul
Jordan Ladd .... Karen
James DeBello .... Bert
Cerina Vincent .... Marcy
Joey Kern .... Jeff
Giuseppe Andrews .... Deputy Winston
Hal Courtney .... Tommy


Release Dates:
(Toronto Film Festival: September 14, 2002; October 4, 2002 (Sitges Film Festival) (Spain); January 31, 2003 (Gerardmer Film Festival) (France);March 9, 2003 (South by Southwest Film Festival); May 31, 2003 (Seattle International Film Festival); June 13, 2003 (IFB Los Angeles Film Festival); July 20, 2003 (Auckland International Film Festival) (New Zealand); August 9, 2003 (Frankfurt Fantasy Filmfest) (Germany); August 15, 2003 (Hamburg Fantasy Filmfest) (Germany)

 

Rating:

 

After exams at a college a bunch of students led by a guy named Paul (Rider Strong) go to a cabin for a vacation.
While they are on their way there they stop at a corner store run by a weird gang of rednecks along with a young mentally disturbed boy named Dennis (Matthew Helms) is sitting on the front porch and bites Paul on the hand who greets him.
Then when they arrive there someone by the name of Bert (James DeBello) decides to go hunting for squirrels with a rifle and accidentally shoots a hermit (Arie Verveen) who is badly infected but still alive from the shot.
Bert takes off and decides to keep his encounter with the hermit a secret but later on the hermit pays a visit to the cabin and says he needs a doctor but everyone freaks out as he tries to stow away in their truck and he gets burned to death as one of them lights him on fire.
Then one by one they get the virus when they drink the water there and struggle to stay alive while they're stranded there.

 

A well done low budgeter. It was very much like Blair Witch Project, Friday the 13th, Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Night of the Living Dead all into one film and this is the one!
There is an impressive beginning with a hunter and discovering his slaughtered dog along with him catching this virus.
Next up your every day college kids enjoying time off for the summer encountering an autistic boy who bites people at a corner store as well as weirdos owning it. We spot a nice scene with Paul sitting next to a child named Dennis and trying to interact with him. This boy looked good just acting silent and then knew how to have fast reactions by biting his hand which looked quite creepy.
Then good excitement with them swimming and enjoying themselves along with a goofball who is trying to shoot squirrels with a pelletgun. I mean you do run into those kinds of wankers since most of them are more cool so we have to have to odd uncool one of the bunch. We have a few goofy shots on this character Bert trying to shoot squirrels in a forest with a B.B. gun.
Then experiencing this dude who is infected with the virus as well as the rest freaking out thinking he is attacking him when he really is trying to get some help which seems disturbing enough that these kids were being nasty by trying to get rid of him.
Both Paul and Karen really looked good by acting off well with one another while sun tanning on a dock of a lakeside which looked nicely romantic.
There's lots of tense moments about survivial when one by one they get infected and having no choice but to leave one of them in a shack so they won't catch it as well as being stalked by a vicious dog too along with a partying cop and many locals who are plain nasty too and no one is to trust. All of them were great by behaving menacingly withan infected hermit by beating him and screaming wildly at him outside near their vehicle which really keeps you occupied on what the hell's going to happen to him.
We spot a real corny discussion between a toked out Deputy Winston and Paul together of what is going on as it looks very comedic but yet fits the scene totally.
There are good shots on Paul's hand rubbing against Karen's body and then a great shocked reaction on him after he spots some gruesome infected scars on her legs.
There's great shots on Dennis doing martial arts performances while coming up to Bert and then biting him as he shows a nice and slow painful reaction to this and just tripping out well.
There's a good chasing scene with the vehicles between Bert and the rednecks with the shooting etc.
Nice camera shots on Jeff entering the cabin and crying , then laughing that he survived this incident and going outside to the front porch as you know something will happen to him that this timing looked perfect for it.
A nice shot on the sherrif's and deputies piling up the bodies and burning them almost looking similar to Night of the Living Dead.
Plus there's also a pool of water infected and you imagine to yourself that you don't want to fall in there and catch it but next thing that happens is just that along with many other suspenseful moments including a group of people chasing after someone who has this disease and may have got one of their other family members catching it. That is intimidating enough.
Bottom line is to check this film out by all means, it is so psyched as we have outrageous teens, a goofy deputy and nasty rednecks!

The acting is good. We have some familiar faces like former TV Boy Meets World heart throb Rider Strong (Paul) as he really shines in this film as a smart, outgoing and charming one bringing all of this to life. He brings on a ton of great energy. Was great by showing exhaustion by his sickness and trying to run for help nearly getting himself killed wherever he goes too. He proves to be a worthy character actor and can be well remembered for his role in this film.
Jordan Ladd
(Karen) certainly had the nice beautiful looks like her mother as well as knowing how to play one of those healthy girl next door type of performance. She was very charming with everything that she did in the film and also knew on how to really react well to the disease she was getting by changing her attitude big time. Reacted well when she feels sick to this disease looking like a total basket case and later on shows nice attitude after how she's being treated by being locked away somewhere near a shack.
Plus we also have a performance by James DeBello (Bert) as the drip Bert who played a similar role in the motion picture comedy Detroit Rock City and shows excellent paranoid and freaked out attitude to his part. He really knew on how to act incredibly outrageous with his part in the film by being loud, aggressive and overly hyperactive. He was a perfect key role to the film as one of those jerk off types who lack intelligence.
Joey Kern (Jeff) seemed to have portrayed a nice cocky type of behavior and coming across perfectly with his role onto the film. He acted very sharp with his performance and really bringing alot of it to life.
A good supporting actor who stood out was
Giuseppe Andrews (Deputy Winston) playing a dorky deputy which makes you wonder if he is for real or not. He definetely knew how to talk like he was stoned all the time in which he brings some descent humor into his role and making his part a bit uplifting but at the same time untrustworthy too. He was another perfect key role to the story.
Supporting actor Hal Courtney (Tommy) played a perfect redneck owner of a corner store in the middle of nowhere as he was perfectly nasty. He had the right looks too as one of those eccentric types and knew on how to come across that way by making his role a little freaky like.
He really showed his stuff by his evil actions during this moment as it makes you quiver and wanting to get away from him as fast as you can.

Cerina Vincent exposes her breasts during a sex scene in bed and another breast shot washing herself in the bathroom much later in the film

A German Shepherd's body is cut open
There are body pieces during a campfire tale at a bowling alley as well as others being butchered.
A corpse is lying in a lake
People are coughing out blood and there are gruesome scar marks on people's bodies as well as their skin eventually being torn off.
There's some bloody gunshots on a few rednecks
A body is cut up

We have terrific dark music by the likes of composer Angelo Badalamenti and Nathan Barr as they show very versatile moments during different scene's of the film.

We also get songtracks from artists such as David Hess in which we hear "The Road Leads to Nowhere" is song originally from Last House on the Left in which is playing in a vehicle while stopping by at a corner store. That song leaves the film a good touch.

[first lines]
The Hermit: Hey, boy. Hey, boy. Hey, boy. Unn? C'mon, boy. Hey. Hey. Hey, fella.

Jeff: Hey, dipshit, what the fuck?
Bert: What are you, fuckin' Smokey the Clown now?
Jeff: Don't you mean 'Smokey the Bear?'

[Bert leaves the cabin with a rifle]
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.

Paul: All the employees were held at gunpoint, and then after they had been gagged and beaten, they were tied to chairs. They were set in a circle, so that way, everybody was forced to watch everybody else. And then the robber, this sick maniac, he goes and finds one of those little ball-peen hammers, and then one by one, he smashed the backs of their heads open with the hammer. Everyone had to watch their friends die, knowing that they'd soon be next. The guy doesn't stop there. He goes and he breaks out the fire axe. The alarm goes off; he doesn't give a shit. He hacked off all their limbs.

Marcy: That's not funny, Bert.
Bert: Yes it is, you fuckin slut.

Deputy Winston: Looks like you guys were doing some pretty good partying, huh?
Paul: Yeah, you know, we were drinking and then this guy came along and tried to break into the cabin. We had no choice but to get rough. I feel awful, but he was going crazy. He smashed into our car, and then he wouldn't come out, so... we had to hit him. We hurt him. We were terrified. We didn't know what to do. That's why we went to look for help...
Deputy Winston: Hey, man, I told you... I'm gonna make a report. Don't worry about it. He ain't gonna come back. Looks like you guys scared him away pretty good. I ain't gonna let him ruin your fun.
Paul: Thank you. My friend's inside right now and she's pretty freaked out. She wants to go home. We all kind of do.
Deputy Winston: A lady friend, huh? I bet you like to party.

Karen: Paul? Is everything okay?
Deputy Winston: Howdy, ma'am. Everything's Fine. Just go back inside, have yourself a big 40... just party.
Karen: Umm... Okay.
Deputy Winston: Oh, Daddy, why are you talking about leaving? You've got to stay and party.
Paul: That's why we came here in the first place.
Deputy Winston: I'm telling you, this is a major party town.
Paul: Really? Are you kidding me?
Deputy Winston: You know what it's like when you go to a new town and you're the new guy? All the girls see you walking down the street. They don't know you've got five pounds of dingaling meat. They're looking for no commitment. You understand what I'm saying? I've heard that theory before. This is that town. It's like when I go party up at Wambusau. My cousin goes to school there. When I party at Wambusau, I know I'm gonna get pussy. Plus the girls there don't know I'm a deputy. So I know they're gonna party hard with me. Believe me, man, they do.
Paul: That's too bad, I bet you ruled this town before you had a badge.
Deputy Winston: Yeah, but a badge makes you grow up quick.

Jeff: I don't want any of us getting sick, but you two fuckin' fuckers insist on touching her, now she's bleeding all over both you guys! So you two can fuckin rot, but not me, no fuckin way not me!
[Jeff runs off carrying beer]

Tommy: There's some kids in a cabin. They got a disease. They just gave it to Dennis.
Fenster: We'll need "The Kit."

Dennis: Pancakes. Pancakes!
Bert: No pancakes.
Dennis: PANCAKES!
Bert: No pancakes!

Bert: God damn it! What pancakes, you fuck?

Tommy: You bein' sick, that's your problem. Now Dennis is sick, that's my problem. And if I get sick, that's Lucille's problem. So we gotta stop the problem. We gotta stop the problem *right* now!
[shouts]
Tommy: Fenster, rifle!

Bert: Goodnight, fucker.

[Jeff walks around the cabin after everyone dies]
Jeff: [yelling] I made it! I made it! I knew I'd make it! I fucking made it!