Virus the unlikely hero in lamentable horror

Cabin Fever is the gruesome tale of five students who head off for a few days in the woods celebrating the end of their exams.

The fearless five, Paul (Rider Strong), Karen (Jordan Ladd). Jeff (Joey Kern), Marcy (Cerina Vincent) and Bert (James DeBello), get the first hint that there might be a problem or two when they come across a blood-spewing guy on the side of the road. It turns out he’s caught a flesh-eating virus from the water.

By this time most normal folk would be catching the first stage out of town, but not these guys. Before long they’re trying to protect themselves from the virus as well as some local rednecks they’ve managed to annoy along the way.

By this time I found myself so irritated by these cardboard cut-out poster kids I was cheering for the virus and the locals.

Cabin Fever has three main problems.

It tries to be funny and fails, it tries to be scary and fails, and it tries to be gruesome and fails.

Horror, 18. 1/5