Horror Trailer Analysis Three - The Cabin in the Woods

This is the trailer for The Cabin in the Woods, the 2012 satirical horror starring Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchison, and Kristen Connolly among others. The film has received an IMDB rating of 7.1 out of 10, and made a solid profit of over $66 million at box office, more than doubling its worth from its $30 million budget.

The characters’ suburban setting is immediately introduced to us through an establishing shot, displaying an equilibrium – this is very conventional of horror films and their trailers. This shot, combined with the music that goes with it, creates a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere. After this, the camera pans around the campeer van, almost as if someone is watching the protagonists. This adds elements of horror, like they are being spied on. However, the audience would probably still feel relatively comfortable as the music is still upbeat.

The extreme close up of Curt’s [Chris Hemsworth] hand turning the key in the ignition may be significant – it signifies the beginning of their journey. After this, we see several pans and tracking shots. These types of shots are effective as they show the characters’ journey in a way that makes the audience feel like they are part of the trailer, especially as some of the shots are almost like point of view shots. There are also a few shots recorded inside the camper van where the camera moves with the vehicle, again making it seem to the audience as though it is something they are seeing for themselves.

About 26 seconds into the trailer, the comfortable, upbeat music stops. After this, the main sound in the trailer is character dialogue. During the next few shots, we see some mid-shots and some close-ups of different characters, reinforcing the element of the protagonists as a group, and the older man as an antagonist on his own, his face being the main focus of the frame when he is on screen. His dirty appearance also gives a stereotypical portrayal of being a villain of some sort. Shortly after this we are shown another establishing shot, this time taken from a lower angle. The shot shows the cabin itself, and low angle makes it seem more dominant and powerful than if it was shown from above.

Here, we are shown a caption which reads ‘YOU THINK YOU KNOW THE STORY’. This appears on screen to a beat in a new track in the sound mix, which is much lower, slower, and more sinister than the previous piece of music, creating a sense of unease for the audience. Similarly to the previous caption, another one appears on screen which reads ‘YOU THINK YOU KNOW THE PLACE’, again on a beat, continuing the uncomfortable atmosphere. We are then shown a shot of Curt diving into the lake which some of the other protagonists are in already – they don’t know as of yet what is really happening.

A little bit further into the trailer and the audience is given the most vital piece of information within the trailer – the protagonists have walked into a trap, a set up. This is shown to us through three different shots – the older man from earlier who is on the telephone, another shot of what appear to be surveillance screens, and a third shot which again consists of screens but also two men sitting either side of the frame at large control desks.

After a couple more shots of the protagonists being completely oblivious as to what’s happening, we begin to see some more shots at a faster pace. The majority of these are of the protagonists being attacked, such as Jules [Anna Hutchison] and Curt in the woods, but in between these there are odd shots of controls being activated by someone, although we never see who. Eventually, Marty [Fran Kranz] catches on to what is happening, telling Dana [Kristen Connolly] that ‘somebody sent those things’. At this point, more and more panic-like shots, which depict more and more monsters, are shown at a quick pace to create and unsettling atmosphere for the audience – to keep them alert. Then, after the title of the film is shown, we see that Dana and Marty have survived the longest as they establish whether or not they want the elevator they have found to go down. Clearly having no other option, they take the elevator as shown through a small montage of mid-shots and close-ups of Dana and Marty, the last of which is Dana hitting out at something and screaming. These shots make the audience wonder where Dana and Marty are taken in the elevator and what else they encounter. The very last shot leaves the audience wondering what happens to Dana, and creates a lasting impression that may be what persuades them to go and see the film.