The Cabin in the Woods: The Official Visual Companion

This is an outstanding companion piece to the film. It includes the following:+ The full screenplay+ Interviews with producer Joss Whedon and director Drew Goddard about writing and developing the film+ Character biographies+ TONS of concept art and color photos of the characters, monsters, sets and effects+ Interviews with the special effects crew about how they brought some of the monsters and effects to lifeI had extremely high expectations for this book, and it delivered. I really wanted to see lots of pictures and concept art of all the monsters and creatures since there were so many in the movie. There's a whole section at the back of the book dedicated to this, comparing various concept art to the final monster designs shown in the film. Some of the ideas the production designers came up with are wildly creative, even if they didn't make it into the film. The amount of detail they put into the monsters and sets is remarkable.The screenplay takes up a good chunk of the book, with photos and behind-the-scenes information displayed chronologically as you read it. At first I thought this was a bad layout idea, but after reading some of it, I found it really hard to put down. It really sucks you in and (for me) it brought back vivid memories of the film. The interviews with Whedon and Goddard are at the beginning of the book (before the screeplay starts) and are a great look into the how they developed the story.In short, this is a fantastic look at the creative process behind The Cabin In The Woods. It's a must read if you liked the film as much as I did, even more so if you want a behind-the-scenes look before it hits home video!

After hearing and reading great reviews from horror fans, I've been kicking myself for not seeing this movie in the theater when it first came out.After watching it for the first time last night on Blu-Ray, I can safely say that this was not only a fun horror movie, but just a fun movie period! It takes every old school horror cliche and turns it on it's ear. Why do people split up when they should stay together? Why do idiots go into a dark basement? What possesses a couple to go out into the woods at night for some naughty fun? It's all answered in this great movie by writers Joss "The Avengers" Whedon and Drew "Cloverfield" Goddard.I'm not going to spoil anything here, so I'll just say that the characterization was great (for the most part these aren't your typical "horror victims"--pot smoker Marty Mikalski was my favorite, as I'm sure he was to a lot of people) and the situation they find themselves in is anything but a cliche. Conspiracies are abundant and the truth that lies behind it all is frightening. And did I mention the STAGGERING amount of monsters and psychos that are in this film? There's something in here for every horror movie buff and the last 30 minutes or so will leave you with either your jaw on the floor or a huge smile on your face.Either way, this is a great film that should not be missed!

First of all, this book had a lot more than I expected, and for that I loved it. However, it was also a bit short on some things I was hoping for. Nevertheless, I'm glad I bought the book and it let me get a lot out of the movie, especially since it's not out on DVD yet.The book is essentially split into three parts. There's the interview with the two writers, Drew Goddard and Joss Whedon, who are also the director and producer respectively. It's a very long, in-depth piece which gives plenty of insight into what they were planning. You can see how they wanted certain things to be implemented with the original uncut script, the next part. It shows a bunch of behind the scenes shots, including a beautiful spread of the cellar the teens went in.The final part of the book is a bunch of artwork and pictures of all the monsters. It's got a bunch of good ones, but I wish they included more detailed pictures of a lot of the things I was interested in, such as Kevin, that robot, the tree, sexy witches, and more. But man, did they think of a lot of those things. It's this third section I wish was more expanded. Hopefully that's what the DVD is for, though. We'll see.Still, great book.

I guess the publishers understood that with the picky fanboy cult following that Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard have, they couldn't get away with shlock, because this is a masterly example of the breed, head and shoulders above the norm, and at a very good value. Loaded with color photography, the entire screenplay, interviews, and production artwork, "Companion" is a great way to relive and deepen the experience while we're waiting for DVD to come out.Word of warning that should hardly be necessary, but just in case: If you have not already seen the movie, do not even so much as open to a random page in the book. The risk of spoilers is extremely high, as virtually every page has some level of "reveal" you really want to experience as intended, at the proper rate, within the context of the plot.But having SEEN "Cabin," this book will help you put together some of the story elements that might have seemed obscure in the theater. It's kind of hard to catch absolutely everything when you're laughing and/or flinching.

I just saw the film on DVD and loved it and was very excited to get my copy of this book. As has been stated by many other reviewers, do not open this book unless you have seen the movie! The film's many twists and turns deserve to be unspoiled for those going in new. This book does not disappoint - lengthy interviews with Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard, the cast, and the full screenplay are included. It is perfect for fans of the film and I cannot recommend it enough! I do wish that it would have featured A LOT more on the various supernatural beasties that are in the film in more detail because it goes by fast in the film and there are some incredible ideas and amazing make up effects that I would have liked to have examined in more detail but there is a nice, sizable chunk of the book devoted to that, so, really, that is just a personal preference.

Warning: If you haven't seen the film, don't buy this book, don't read this book, but most especially don't even look at it.This warning will be repeated at the end of the review.It really is like a DVD in form with the whole movie and lots of extras. At the heart of it is the complete script with lots of photographs so you can relive the movie experience in your head with the photos as a visual refresher (no, there isn't a topless shot, sorry guys). The extras include a long long long interview with Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard. There's an extensive creature feature on how the monsters were made with lots of photos and illustrations. Plus interviews with main cast members. If you loved the movie (and if you didn't, getoutahere) you'll want this as a souvenir/supplement to keep you going until the real DVD arrives, especially at the current bargain price Amazon are asking. Get it before the price goes up.Warning: If you haven't seen the film, don't buy this book, don't read this book, but most especially don't even look at it.Really. I mean it.

If you enjoyed the movie you will most likely love this book.It is worth buying just for the interview with Grew Goddard and Joss Whedon alone. I can't be sure if the two writers were actually present in the same room together when the questions were asked - at times they both give quite full answers to the same question. But the questions and answers take us through pretty much the whole film-making process, from conception to production to wrap, with lots of great insights into how and why this film is so good.The screenplay is also really fun to read. Its actually the first time I have read a complete screenplay so it was surprising to see how close the filmed work was to what was written.Finally there is a relatively short section on the production of the piece, focusing largely on the creature workshops and the people making the makeup.Each part is accompanied by lots of great stills from the movie and many production shots, as well as diagrams showing how some of the FX shots were conceived and executed. I would have liked to have seen more of this work - details on how things were constructed and filmed and 'roads not taken'. But this is not so much a 'making of' as a companion to the movie.Plus its nice to have something to look at while we wait for the DVD release :)Great film, great book, buy now!

This book is a must-have companion to any fan of the film, and more so to those who didn't like it, you get so much infomation from it and a chance to have a closer look at everything, the only thig related to Cabin In The Woods, that could be remotely better than this book, will be the DVD extras... well worth the money. You Will Not Be Disapointed.

I really enjoy reading it and I love all the background information! I would recommend this book to any fan of this movie because it'll really tell you everything you need to know and more!

Más que un guión, esta "compañía" para la película es más de lo que un fan o cinéfilo podría esperar. El "making of" es brillante, todas las páginas a color; la entrevista como procesos creativos resultan adictivos (varias secciones las leí más de una vez). El único "pero" que puedo ponerle es el tamaño de la letra empleada--es tan pequeña que a momentos necesitaba descansar la vista.Aviso importante a quienes gustan de leer guiones: el texto no es espectacular, y su presentación es HORRIBLE. Diferente a los guiones "shooting script" publicados por otras editoriales, este guión es presentado en letra Arial (o similar), interrumpido constantemente por fotografías (a veces, hasta por dos páginas) y en todo momento dividido a dos columnas. Da la idea que el libro está dirigido, en realidad, a lectores más interesados en el "detrás de cámaras".