Cabin Fever (2016) … A Serious Case of Deja Vu
After just coming off the MARTYRS remake, I came across the remake of 2002s CABIN FEVER and thought, “What the hell. How bad could it be?” Whereas this remake didn’t anger me as much as the remake of MARTYRS, there was one thing that kept echoing through my head as I was watching CABIN FEVER: “Haven’t I seen this before?”
Yes … yes I have seen this before. In fact, I’ve seen this exact film before.
To be accurate, the 2016 CABIN FEVER isn’t really a remake or even a re-imaging. It is practically a scene-for-scene exact reshoot of the original film. In fact, this production used the exact same script as the original film, all the characters’ names are the same, and the film follows the exact same format. The producers claim that the deaths are all new, but they are about five percent right. The majority of the deaths are also the same as the original.
What’s that? You want a plot summary? Didn’t you see the original? Okay, okay. Five twenty-something friends–Karen, Jeff, Paul, Marcy, and Bert– head out to a remote cabin in the woods for some sexing, drinking, and drugging. A stranger that is infected with a flesh-eating disease stumbles along, infects everyone, and mayhem ensues. Seriously people, this is the exact same film as the original. The most glaring difference between the two films is the character of Deputy Winston. In the original, Giuseppe Andrews plays the role of the sleazy, party animal. In the reshoot, Louise Linton plays the role, and she plays it exactly like the original. She’s still a horny, creepy, party-seeking cop who could care less about helping out people in danger.
To give you an idea of just how similar the reshoot and the original are, this new production even used some of the same set designs. The sheets and comforter on Marcy and Jeff’s bed is almost the same design as in the original (a blood-red floral design, with the under-bedding being white or near-white in color). Not since the 1998 shot-for-shot remake of PSYCHO has a film managed to avoid injecting any originality into a reshoot, but you have to imagine that this is exactly what the brains behind this project wanted.
Reviewing CABIN FEVER (2016) is a pretty easy job. If you loved the original, then you’ll love the reshoot. If you hated the original, you’ll hate the reshoot. Period. On a side note, the special f/x were fun and gooey at!!
My Summary:
Director: Travis Zariwny
Plot: 3 out of 5 stars (just like the original)
Gore: 7.5 out of 10 skulls (just like the original)
Zombie Mayhem: 0 out of 5 brains (just like the original)
Reviewed by Scott Shoyer (just like the original)
Stay Bloody!!!
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Maybe it’s better to go for the original. I believe the Germans converted it into a Blu-ray 3D!
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