Cabin In The Woods: The Ultimate RI Movie?

[Joe Hillshoist]

Didn't that used to be one of the underlying premises of this board? That that was how things worked. The powerful sacrificed a portion of the rest of us (including their own possibly) for access to the "power of the old ones".

Yes. It was hard to read through the breadth of Jeff's blogs without taking that theme away.

But then there was a kind of unwritten ban on woo, save for the occasional UFO topic, and that was that. Not that I wanted RI to turn into Godlikeproductions...

Yeah, I dunno whether to blame Hugh or the GFC...

(Or neither.)

[MayDay]

I certainly walked out of the theater subconsciously reassured that the hidden hand that guides us is ultimately justified in it's atrocities- after all, some times we have to do horrible things to a few innocent people in order to stop even more hideous things from happening to the rest of us. If we try to do the 'right thing', sparing innocent lives, all hell will break loose. That was the moral of the story, right?

I was also quite tipsy and found the whole thing to be rather hilarious, to the chagrin of fellow theater goers who seemed annoyed that I was laughing my ass off while they attempted to get some kind of real scare out of the whole thing. Totally missed the point, as far as I can tell. At some point one lady in the back joined me in raucous laughter at the appropriate places, seemingly liberated by the fact that she was not the only one who saw the humor in this satirical send-up of the teen slasher flick.

[Hugh Manatee Wins]

Maybe we should all be going to theaters and scoffing outloud at the psyops bullshit. Break the stupified spell of 'suspension of disbelief.'
Take advantage of social normalization as described below.

I certainly walked out of the theater subconsciously reassured that the hidden hand that guides us is ultimately justified in it's atrocities- after all, some times we have to do horrible things to a few innocent people in order to stop even more hideous things from happening to the rest of us. If we try to do the 'right thing', sparing innocent lives, all hell will break loose. That was the moral of the story, right?

I was also quite tipsy and found the whole thing to be rather hilarious, to the chagrin of fellow theater goers who seemed annoyed that I was laughing my ass off while they attempted to get some kind of real scare out of the whole thing. Totally missed the point, as far as I can tell. At some point one lady in the back joined me in raucous laughter at the appropriate places, seemingly liberated by the fact that she was not the only one who saw the humor in this satirical send-up of the teen slasher flick.

[Nordic]

There's a ban on woo around here? I hadn't noticed. Could someone explain what I'm missing?

[MayDay]

There's a ban on woo around here? I hadn't noticed. Could someone explain what I'm missing?

It seems to have become something of a faux pas to get too far into the woo around here. Which is actually what keeps me coming back. I come here for the sharp analysis and civilized discussion of mostly tangible world events, although granted almost everything big going on these days has a 'woo' element to it if you look close enough- and I don't think that fact has by any means been lost to this board. What's missing here is the hysteria and stubborn certitude of the posters lurking on other deep politics/ conspiracy sites. This board seems to be okay with leaving woo topics open ended, which leaves plenty of room for new ideas and speculations to be brought into the conversation as more is revealed. I, for one, like it that way.

[crikkett]

I like how they treated pot.
Spoiler:It makes the user immune to mind-control, but enlightenment and free will brings down the world.

[justdrew]

well, this probably tops cabin by a mile...

<warning>


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beyond_the_Black_Rainbow

Set in the strange and oppressive emotional landscape of the year 1983, BEYOND THE BLACK RAINBOW is a Reagan-era fever dream inspired by hazy childhood memories of midnight movies and Saturday morning cartoons. Cosmatos was born in Rome in 1974 to the late Greek movie director (George Cosmatos) and a Swedish experimental artist mother. He spent his early formative years traveling all over the globe before settling in Canada. In 1981, the family lived for a year in Mexico where exposure to the strange local interpretations of American pop culture had a profound and lasting effect on his creative life. Growing up in the isolated suburbs of Vancouver Island during the 80s, he obsessed over the minutiae of heavy metal, fantasy art, and science fiction horror films, which he still does to this day. He then immersed himself in the underground art and music scenes making short films, album covers and music videos with a burgeoning group of influential and groundbreaking artists. Panos currently lives and works in Vancouver, British Columbia.

(I wonder if there was a 'special' school in mexico?)

[Wombaticus Rex]

I hope Panos has re-edited Black Rainbow into something resembling a film, because the print I saw was basically a music video. Compelling but completely incoherent -- while it draws off MK for raw material it doesn't say anything about it. I'd be hard pressed to say for sure if it says anything about anything, really. Pretty, though.

[8bitagent]

Finally downloaded Beyond the Black Rainbow, gave up on waiting for it to come to theaters. Saw the trailer awhile back and was blown away by it. Will have to watch it soon, as I love music videos and films with that vibe. Also the soundtrack, very cool.

[Six Hits of Sunshine]

Saw this movie tonight. Watched Evil Dead 2 last night. Cabin had some scenes that were an homage to that film I think. In addition, I think it was an awesome story spun, intentionally or not, from some of the speculation done in the Hunt for the Skinwalker book and some of the shit I've heard guys like Christopher O'Brien say. What an interesting mix.

Not the ultimate RI movie, but the most self aware movie, of any genre, I've seen in a while.

[JackRiddler]

I want to thank everyone on this thread for your fine thoughts - including and especially MacC (who's always got a point) and nashvillebrook. Just watched it tonight. It's very clever and hilarious, about the ritual murder of youth in horror films as well as in life. Had me laughing throughout. There was no need to take the gore seriously, these were trappings of the genre being put to rest. I had to stop at the scene of the Japanese girls triumphing over the floating spirit to laugh for a while. Spoiler:And I actually cheered when Marty turned out to be alive & the hero. Keeping in mind that it's satire with a conscious metaphoric intent, I don't think it's as you see it Mayday -- it's not a justification for the status quo as protecting the world against destruction. The people in the complex are the quotidian evil motivated by fear and what tradition says is necessary. But in all the cities depicted on the screens, by implication, the complexes have fallen and the youth have won. And so "the world" of this status quo ends. That being said, it's still a relatively light entertainment.

This hasn't been quoted on this page yet and it's the comment of the thread:

Why do we keep feeding kids into meat grinders, metaphorically and IRL? It's a simple little trope that Whedon deploys, but he's not interested in the metaphor...he's interested in the meta-discussion. Rather than manipulating the audience, Whedon seeks to expose the manipulation.

Rarely does anyone bother to ask why our culture resonates with fetishized violent retribution for sex and/or freethinking. It's never pointed out that using this bloody awful theme so often, and so rigidly proves that it's gone beyond narrative storytelling. It's fucking ritual. Whedon is suggesting that it's as-if we're appeasing The Ancient Ones. I wonder, at what point is there a difference btwn appeasing gods and appeasing billionaires.

You want a connection to RigInt? Men in control rooms making people die for reasons we can't understand, and won't ever be given the opportunity to understand. They watch monitors and finger controls that rain death down on people halfway around the world, and then go home to weekend BBQs, office pools and NBA playoffs. Oh, and btw, those men in control rooms manipulating drones are already here in the US. It's as dystopically clean and twisted as it gets. And what's even more dystopic is that nobody is asking what these men are doing, or why they are doing it. We're supposed to play along...nevermind The Harbinger. Nevermind the crack in the matrix.

At one time in history the global killing game at least gave the pretense of being a "real war." Not anymore. GWOT changed that. The mask is off. Count me as fully on board with the notion that the global killing game at this point in time (bug splat) resembles ritual way more than any sort of geo-political strategy. So, Whedon is on point...he burned down the temple of bullshit.

If Hollywood movies are too bourgeois a medium to ask questions about men in control rooms killing kids, what then would be a more acceptable medium? Essays? Novels? Internet forums? Why the inherent contempt for *popular* subversion? If it's popular it can't be saying anything important, right? Only film with limited distribution can possibly have anything relevant to offer.

Actually...now that I think about it, i like it better this way. Better that popular subversion isn't given credit for being subversive. That would subvert its subversion. So, Hush Nothing to see here.

[Jerky]

Why do we keep feeding kids into meat grinders, metaphorically and IRL? It's a simple little trope that Whedon deploys, but he's not interested in the metaphor...he's interested in the meta-discussion. Rather than manipulating the audience, Whedon seeks to expose the manipulation. ...

Brilliant summation. The film was good, and deserves this kind of close, intelligent reading. Kudos to you for doing this service. It has not gone un-read or un-noticed!

Yours,
YOPJerky

[justdrew]

yeah, I only saw it recently as well, it was much better than expected

[geogeo]

Somebody commented on the marginalization of 'woo' in RI. This does seem to be happening, as a new generation takes over. Those of us who have been reading and commenting on RI since Jeff was writing his entries certainly remember the existence of ops like MKOften and MKUltra, and are aware of the likes of Sidney Gottlieb and the occult side of the 3rd Reich. I've watched Cabin in the Woods three times, and haven't laughed at all. 'Giant, evil gods' have been central to the beliefs of societies throughout history, and have been used to slaughter millions. What do you think is happening right now with the involvement of evangelical Christians and Salafist Jihadists in the 'war for civilization'? This movie simply uses the patina of poking fun at the slasher gender to delve into much, much more troubling topics. But then, I believe the PTB behind the CIA incorporated elements of mega-ritual into 9-11 and may very well be running an op involved with school shootings, like an even sicker version of their Brabant massacres.

[NaturalMystik]

I really enjoyed CITW, thought it was a refreshing and clever twist on the tired old genre...

At the risk of sounding insensitive... After hearing about the most recent school shooting massacre and then hearing that there had also been a mass stabbing at a school in China, I was immediately reminded of Cabin in the Woods... IE, one ritual worked while the 'back-up' failed...

Life imitating 'art' ??