5. "Fun" Can Invigorate an Entire Genre - The Cabin in the Woods
Even though the movie was shelved in 2009, Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard's love letter to the horror-comedy genre turned out to be the breath of fresh air it desperately needed. The writers were unafraid to be silly and blunt with their picture, and because of it, their invitation to the party allows the audience to find genuine humor and fright from the picture. It's just as twisty as it needs to be, just as creepy and steady, and just as ghoulishly charming as it deserves to be. Not since Scream bent the rules by exclaiming them has a mainstream horror movie felt like a horror movie worth returning to, and it does so without compromising what the genre has become now known for (gallons of blood, monster mix-and-matching, stereotypes). In fact, these are the tired elements that make the film so endearing. And you can never go wrong with Richard Jenkins.