Cabin Fever is a 2002 American horror film written and directed by Eli Roth. It has been variously described as horror, body horror, and horror-comedy. It tells the story of a group of five college students (Rider Strong, Jordan Ladd, Cerina Vincent, Joey Kern, James DeBello) who take a vacation at a small cabin in the woods and soon find themselves in the middle of an outbreak of a contagious and deadly flesh-eating disease.
Numerous surreal elements, mysteries and character eccentricities have spurred many theories amongst Cabin Fever's fans.
The Marcy & Paul's Destiny Theory[]
Cabin Fever is the story of five friends' vacation that was suddenly interrupted by the appearance of a sick vagrant.
But what the vacation hadn't been interrupted? How would it have played out?
Superficially, the introductory scenes suggest that Paul would have romantically paired off with Karen, while Jeff and Marcy continued their sexed-up relationship and Bert carried on with his juvenile antics in the woods.
But according to this theory, Cabin Fever is littered with numerous clues that tell a very different story. If their vacation had played out normally, Marcy and Jeff would have broken up at some point, and Marcy would've subsequently slept with Paul (as she does in the actual film), which would've led to her getting pregnant.
The evidence that supports this theory is scattered and often subtle, but it is also substantial. Marcy and Paul are repeatedly displayed in near-symmetrical fashion in back-to-back shots. Their storylines also parallel one another in numerous remarkable ways: such as with them each making a lonely journey to the lake house at different points within the film; or the remarkable coincidence that they both take a horrifying bath at precisely the same moment. They each spend a lot of their screentime walking in each other's shoes - though separated by time and space. The lengthy list of such coincidences supposedly convey a message that Marcy and Paul are "linked" - as if by destiny, or some other profound bond.
When we examine the character traits of the five lead characters, it is often noted that Paul and Marcy seem to be the most compatible with one another, even though they are not in a relationship at the film's outset. The most compelling evidence for this claim is the fact that Marcy and Paul are the only two leads who are too selfless to abandon Karen after the truck is repaired. In fact, it is because of this unique selflessness that they are left alone in the cabin together, during which time they have sex.
Using the "link" depicted between Marcy and Paul, and the compatibility they demonstrate between one another as its framework, the theory builds the outline of an alternate story, where Marcy and Paul would have inevitably come together as lovers, had they been able to live out their lives naturally (i.e. if Henry the Hermit hadn't crashed their vacation).
Several factors go on to elaborate this untold story, indicating that Marcy would've gotten pregnant from their vacation liaison.
Probably the most significant factor is when Marcy and Paul have a brief conversation during their actual sex scene which reveals that they aren't using a condom. Fans have debated the relevance of this dialog. Unprotected sex is not needed to explain why Paul eventually succumbs to the disease, as this is adequately explained by his later fall into the contaminated reservoir. Within Cabin Fever itself, the dialog seems to serve no purpose.
Functionally, the only significant differences between safe sex and unsafe sex are the risk of spreading disease, and the risk of pregnancy. Since we know that their unprotected sex played no relevant role in the spread of the disease, it would seem that the only possible relevance of clarifying that they aren't using a condom is that it implies a risk of pregnancy. i.e. This detail serves as a clue that Paul would have gotten Marcy pregnant, if the disease hadn't disrupted their lives.
The pregnancy theory is further supported by several other clues throughout the film. For example, the visual imagery of Paul and Marcy tending to Karen in the clearing resembles two parents caring for their child together. Also, of the five leads, Marcy and Paul are the only two to deliberately interact with a child during the initial scenes of the film. Some believe that Dennis' biting Paul at the beginning of the film indicates he was destined to get a "rude shock" of suddenly having a child thrust upon him (i.e. by discovering he'd accidentally gotten Marcy pregnant.) Whereas Marcy is theorized to be much more comfortable with discovery that she has fallen pregnant. Her dialog with the boy at the beginning of the film, in which she advises him not to go to college, is said to indicate that Marcy has no interest in a college -> stable career life progression, and is instead looking forward to becoming a mom/homemaker early in life.
