The Evil Dead
Studio: Starz/sphe Release Date: 03/05/2002 Starring: Bruce Campbell Rating: Nr
In the fall of 1979, Sam Raimi and his merry band headed into the woods of rural Tennessee to make a movie. They emerged with a roller coaster of a film packed with shocks, gore, and wild humor, a film that remains a benchmark for the genre. Ash (cult favorite Bruce Campbell) and four friends arrive at a backwoods cabin for a vacation, where they find a tape recorder containing incantations from an ancient book of the dead. When they play the tape, evil forces are unleashed, and one by one the friends are possessed. Wouldn't you know it, the only way to kill a "deadite" is by total bodily dismemberment, and soon the blood starts to fly. Raimi injects tremendous energy into this simple plot, using the claustrophobic set, disorienting camera angles, and even the graininess of the film stock itself to create an atmosphere of dread, punctuated by a relentless series of jump-out-of-your-seat shocks. The Evil Dead lacks the more highly developed sense of the absurd that distinguish later entries in the series--Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness--but it is still much more than a gore movie. It marks the appearance of one of the most original and visually exciting directors of his generation, and it stands as a monument to the triumph of imagination over budget. --Simon Leake
The Evil Dead Accessories
 Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn
Army of Darkness
Dead Alive
Dawn of the Dead - The Original Director's Cut (Collector's Edition)
Day of the Dead
Bubba Ho-Tep (Limited Collector's Edition)
Halloween
Night of the Living Dead
The Thing (Collector's Edition)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2-Disc Ultimate Edition)
The Evil Dead Reviews
I will add that Bruce Campbell's commentary is great. But I don't like horror. I found both his account of making the film in the book and his commentary on making the film on the DVD to be infinitely more entertaining than the film itself. But if you don't like horror, you will, like me, probably view this movie as a different kind of horror film, in which the horror consists of your having to watch it. THE EVIL DEAD was not only as boring to me as other horror films, the sheer amateurish quality (albeit gifted amateurs) added an additional layer of torture. In short, if you, unlike me, like horror films, especially no-budget horror film, you might like this.
Obviously the two subsequent films engage in a great deal of self-parody. Major disclaimer: I dislike horror as a genre pretty much from top to bottom. Or perhaps it says more about most people who watch and enjoy this than it does about me. Doesn't matter who makes them, films by people like Wes Craven, Sam Raimi, and Eli Roth, not to mention lesser lights, just bore me to tears. When I watch this, absolutely nothing steps forward to refute my conviction that this is complete and utter crap. I am a major movie buff. In fact, you will apparently love it, like most of the reviewers here.
Perhaps the way I'm wired I'm constitutionally incapable of "getting" whatever there is to get in a horror movie. I love nearly every other genre, from film noir to Astaire/Rogers musicals to screwball comedies to Italian Westerns to every imaginable form of Sci-fi, but I simply detest Horror. There was simply nothing in this film not a single second that I found in any way, shape, form, or manner to be even remotely entertaining. I actually watched this and the two sequels to the film because I was reading Campbell's account of his career as an actor, IF CHINS COULD KILL: CONFESSIONS OF A B ACTOR. So, in a way, this review might end up saying more about me than the movie.
OK, maybe I'm missing something. I'd rather watch a mime troupe than ever watch this again. I've seen quite literally thousands of films, have run film societies, and own a staggering pile of DVDs. I love the book; hate the EVIL DEAD movies.
The Bottom Line:. Despite being made for almost nothing by people who were hardly professionals, The Evil Dead is an extraordinarily effective and suprisingly well-made horror movie that is capable of scaring just about anyone.
Some dialogue came across as silly. Some of it is too over the top for my taste. This scene is similar to the one in "The Evil Dead" when the five friends listen to the tape recording of a professor reading from the Book of the Dead, which resulted in the demons being released from the ground outside the cabin.
Furthermore, the acting and directing was amateurish, almost to the point that it lent the film a homemade feel. "The Evil Dead" is an innovative, ground-breaking horror classic that has developed a cult following. Ash uses a chainsaw to slice up one of his friends. "Evil Dead" is highly recommended for fans of zombie films, especially those which involve demons such as Lamberto Bava's "Demons" and "Demons 2." The DVD from Anchor Bay is excellent.
Hence, the similarity to "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.". Fans of Lucio Fulci ("Zombie," "The House by the Cemetery, and "The Beyond") will enjoy "The Evil Dead." It has a tremendous amount of disgusting gore. It has interesting features that include outtakes and deleted scenes and great commentary from star Bruce Campbell. It is very educational to learn how this movie was finally released after five years of production and at a miniscule cost of $375,000. After discovering the Book of the Dead, the friends begin turning into demon possessed zombies. Director Sam Raimi ("Darkman" and "Spiderman") was highly influenced by other well established horror megahits such as "The Exorcist," "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," and "Night of the Living Dead." A young Bruce Campbell ("Maniac Cop," "The Woods," and "Bubba Ho-Tep") is college student Ash; him and his friends rent a secluded cabin in the mountains. There is levitation and green vomit spewing as in the "Exorcist." They have learned that only bodily dismemberment can destroy a demon. Numerous sharp farm implements hang from the cabin's ceiling.
It is this excessive gore that kept it from gaining the popularity that was achieved by "Halloween" - another low-budget horror classic. In his film "Baron Blood," the hideous baron is released from his tomb when a parchment was read. However, it helped ease the tension created by some of the graphic scenes of demonic violence. ("The Evil Dead" was filmed mostly in the backwoods of Morristown, near my home of Knoxville, Tennessee). Also, there is too much dark humor for me. Note of Interest: As stated earlier, Lamberto Bava's film "Demons" is similar to "The Evil Dead." His father, Mario Bava, was considered the Italian Maestro of the Macabre. Demonic forces inhabit these woods.
If you enjoyed this catch "Scary Movie". It is easy to see the tongue in cheek humor as well. By the time they got to "Army of Darkness" it became mostly comedy with some horror. AOD is my favorite of the three because of the outrageous bits and great special effects.
I can see why it is a cult favorite. This is a great collection for fans of horror/comedy movies. Part of a trilogy I think they got better as actor Bruce Campbell and Director Sam Raimi felt comfortable with this theme and took it further and further. As far as teenage horror movies go this is pretty decent stuff.
CA Luster
-Audacious, imaginative gore. Of course, Raimi's POV camera shots might be the scariest innovation employed in this film. About 3 minutes into the film, we get POV (point of view) shots through the woods watching our 2 couples, Ash and Linda (Bruce and Betsy Baker), Scott and Shelly (Richard DeManincor and Theresa Tilly) along with Ash's sister, Cheryl (Ellen Sandweiss); the fifth wheel I eluded to, driving up to the isolated and run down cabin. As long as you own this or "Evil Dead II" you'll get to watch him do it over and over as often as you want. This thinnest of plots becomes one of the great scaffolds of horror ever put to film. -Creative camera work. Well, of course he can. Of course, this references Raimi and executive producer Robert Tapert who were portraying local yokels on the road leading to the cabin.
The big surprise with "Evil Dead" was the physical state possession left people in. That was a characters name in "Dog Soldiers"; clearly a case of a director paying his respects to a horror icon. Even by today's "standards", "Evil Dead" can still hold its own for balls-out gore and grossness while still being a load of fun. Boy, that's clever marketing, . This movie plays on all those angles to the hilt. Fun factor.6 stars. Regardless, it all adds up to a nearly timeless horror experience. Average.4.5 Stars.
But maybe I should start at the beginning and slice this film up into little pieces. The words in German are: "Sam and Rob, Das ist Hikers Dan dee Roadsa" translated to mean "Sam and Rob are the Hikers on the road". He'll never win an Oscar (for what it's worth) but he has had a long and storied career since his initial portrayal of Ash. So, anyway it can get you dead is fair game. After nearly 30 years this film still holds up very well to its modern rivals.
YOU MIGHT REMEMBER ME FROM "DOG SOLDIERS". -5 WHEELS HEAD FOR THE RICKETY OLD CABIN. For me, few things are scarier than demonic possession. I have no freaking clue. The only standard this film didn't stretch was in the nudity department (as there really isn't any).
They have all become legendary for this film but have never translated that into successful film careers for a bunch of different reasons. Regardless of these iconic traits, "Evil Dead" is just flat out entertaining. With one swing of a shovel, Ashley (Ash/Bruce Campbell) defines the mood of this film. Horror films that came before could be viewed as sluggish. OH YEA.
Only then will I truly bring honor to Sam Raimi's seminal film of the horror genre. I have the one with the green outlined letters with Bruce Campbell's kisser poking through and the girl reaching up. It's good enough for me. If you can find a series of titles more reproduced in more varied levels of quality (excluding Star Wars), then I'd like to know what it is. This version has the little book in it. Acting.3.5 stars. Story.3 stars.
What we want to know is this; can the man still decapitate with the swing of a shovel. At the very worst you see seams, wrinkles and flaws. At the very best, it is still very creepy and grotesque. Gore.5 stars. If you enjoy audacious, in-your-face, balls-out horror done on the cheap, then this will do it for you.
-WHICH VERSION IS THE BEST. Given this, I don't know if one version is more complete than another. Needless to say, Bruce is the undisputed king of camp and B-movie horror. -PUTTING MY SOUL ON THE LINE. -WHEN SETTING THE STANDARD IS NO STANDARD AT ALL.
Even horror classics fail to scare people most of the time with few exceptions. -HI I'M BRUCE CAMPBELL. But this is where it all started for him. Amazingly, the other actors in "Evil Dead" may have actually done a better job than Bruce, but they lacked his persona. Though more over-the-top than anything that preceded, "Evil Dead" could still disturb the uninitiated. Much of what came after could be viewed as derivative. -SCARY.
Who cares where it came from or where it's going. If you ever get bored watching "Evil Dead" regardless of what you think of it, then I don't want to be you. Creativity.5 stars. Forget my fan-boy rambling and just sit down on Halloween night and watch "Evil Dead", "Evil Dead II", and "Army of Darkness". But we fans of "Evil Dead" certainly don't care. This film moves at a blindingly fast pace. Yea, I'm kidding.
The funny and great thing is most of the actors are better at being possessed than human. However, when getting raped by a tree is ok, well.enough said. For me, this is the scene that defines what "Evil Dead" is all about in a nutshell:. In retrospect, he was an awful actor in "Evil Dead", yet he brought a sense of slapstick to horror that was both fun and refreshing.
It's not his singing skills we're interested in. As horror films age, they tend to lose their visceral impact. If there was a gorier, sloppier more audaciously violent film prior to "Evil Dead" I want to know what it is (because I want it). As low as the budget is, as clunky as the acting gets, as thin as the plot is, "Evil Dead" is a landmark horror movie. This took "The Exorcist" to a different level. A demon is invisible, moves indiscriminately, is deceptive by nature and is in a hurry to get your soul. He's even had his "A-movie" cameos (Spider Man films etc). The "Evil Dead" series may be the most reproduced and exploited horror series ever.
Though the demonic makeup is a bit goofy by today's measurements, I still admire the vision of the work. I believe this film set the standards for eliminating standards in a horror movie. It doesn't take long for all hell to break loose after a recording found in the cellar is played with magic words in it. To learn more about this, particularly the women, a little book is included with this version of "Evil Dead" titled "The Ladies of the Evil Dead". -Spook-house fun. Regardless of Raimi's goofy devices, fifth wheels are usually where all the trouble begins and those magic words aren't ones to ignore the rules. -Spirited if not talented actors.
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