Here’s the trailer for Cabin in the Woods, directed by Cloverfield writer Drew Goddard, from a script by Goddard and Joss Whedon. It stars a pre-Thor Chris Hemsworth (the release was delayed because of MGM’s financial problems), and supposedly features Richard Jenkins, though he’s nowhere to be found in the trailer. Basically, some kids go out to a cabin in the woods, and yadda yadda yadda, they f*ck each other and get killed. A metaphor for humanity, really. It reminds me of those movies I used to watch on cable in the 80s and early 90s in order to see some boobs, only in this case, it looks like someone took out all the boob parts and cut together a film using just the boobless crap. Not even Chris Hemsworth shirtless? Jeez, these guys must be purists. “What if we made a cabin movie that was really about the CABIN, you know?”

I guess it will all come down to whether you respect wood. Do you respect wood?

(C’mon, if you had to hang out with these dudes, you’d be wasted too)

Apparently the New York Times is getting lazy and has started hiring over caffeinated soccer moms to write editorials in which they argue with themselves over whether something is worrisome.  Today’s issue?  Does Harry Potter promote teen drinking?  The annoyingly named Tara Parker-Pope writes…

Does Hogwarts have a drinking problem?
In scene after scene, the young wizards and their adult professors are seen sipping, gulping and pouring various forms of alcohol to calm their nerves, fortify their courage or comfort their sorrows.
Previous Harry Potter movies have shown drinking, but this one takes it to a new level.
In one scene, Harry, Ron and Hermione order butterbeers at the pub, and Hermione ends up with a frothy mustache. While it’s never been entirely clear whether butterbeer is alcoholic, it seems to have an effect on the normally uptight Hermione, who acts tipsy walking home as she throws her arms around the boys.
As the mother of a 10-year-old Harry Potter fan, I was taken aback by the reaction of the young people in the theater. They snickered at Hermione’s goofy grin and, later, guffawed when an inebriated Hagrid passed out.
“Hermione is such a tightly wound young lady, but she’s liberated by some butterbeer,” [Liz Perle, editor in chief of Common Sense Media] said. “The message is that it gives you liquid courage to put your arms around the guy you really like but are afraid to.” [NYTimes]

(*gasp*) Oh my, not the truth!  How vulgar!  Where’s the sparkling white vampire to save them from temptation?  Meanwhile, the other day, I saw hobo using the New York Times as a diaper.  Now, I realize I may be playing devil’s advocate here, but I think whether the New York Times promotes hobo diapers is a discussion we as a society need to have.