Back in 2002, Eli Roth launched himself into the modern horror scene with 'Cabin Fever' and he's been hanging around ever since. His low budget horror-comedy about obnoxious young people going to a remote cabin in the woods and battling a flesh-eating virus paved the way for the 'Hostel' films and then his constant presence as a producer on every other horror movie that heads straight to DVD. And here we are: only 12 years have passed and they're remaking 'Cabin Fever.' And Roth is producing. And they're using the same script as the original.

Um, what?

It's a weird choice because 'Cabin Fever' is still very much a modern (and fairly entertaining) movie. Why shoot it again? Why not try something completely different? Why not let new director Travis Zariwny try something completely fresh with the material? Here's what Roth had to say on the matter:

Travis had an amazing vision for my original script, and as a scary movie fan I really wanted to see it. I almost see this like re-staging a play, and I’m excited to see what ideas Travis and the cast bring to it. They’re all fans of the original and want to make a film that’s a new classic and I believe they will.

Although he does have an interesting point about treating the project as a play, this is the kind of concept that would be far more interesting if it was applied to a much older movie. What if Roth bought the rights to a horror movie from decades ago that he loves, but is barely known? Wouldn't that make for a more interesting experiment? The cynical way to look at this is that Roth and company don't want to pay a writer and just to get this going so it can hit Redbox kiosks by next Halloween. Because $$$$$. And maybe, just maybe, that cash-money is needed to get Roth's 'The Green Inferno' out of whatever hell has it trapped and unable to be released in theaters.

Anyway, the casting was just finished (it's no one you've heard of) and shooting is set to begin this week. Yeah, forgive us for being a little cynical about the remake of 'Cabin Fever.' This thing smells a little rotten.

More From ScreenCrush