Director: Fede Alverez
Starring: Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Jessica Lucas
My Rating: Liked It
(I wrote this review back when the film came out)
The plot is simple – a group of friends relocate to a remote
cabin in the woods to help their friend kick her drug habit. The rest of the
key plot points play out similar to Sam Raimi’s original: the group discovers
the book of the dead, one member of the group reads something from it they
shouldn’t have, consequently conjuring evil into existence, then trees get a bit too
handsy, and the only exit out becomes obstructed. Now, let the madness begin! Quick
side note: there is one major addition to the story that ultimately leads to
the best part of the movie, but I won’t mention it for fear of ruining it for
anyone.
From a visual and technical standpoint, Evil Dead is
gorgeous and impeccably shot. Props to Fede Alvarez and Aaron Morton, director
and cinematographer, respectively, for the gentle care they took with the film.
Colors really pop onscreen, making images like blood and the eyes of the
possessed even more effective. Another huge positive: no cgi! To me it’s very
refreshing to know that every single thing I witnessed was a product of clever
illusions or tricks, rather than a computer.
The largest pitfall in Evil Dead is definitely the weak
dialogue it contains. Half of the interactions between characters are weird and
awkward, sometimes even laughably so. Quite a few times the crowd was laughing
at the absolutely brainless comments said by the characters. I can’t even say that
I enjoyed the lines blurted out by the possessed either, which I was rather
looking forward to. I also found myself questioning a few of the decisions made
by the characters, but these things are neither here nor there. No one sees a
horror movie for gripping dialogue, and stupid decisions are made in
practically every horror movie that has ever graced the silver screen.
Rivers of blood are used in the movie as a result of the
unrelenting brutality throughout, brought upon via nailgun, shotgun, machete, glass,
razor blades, and, it wouldn’t be an Evil Dead flick without one, a chainsaw. Alvarez
knew he had to up the ante if he wanted to get the attention from the diehard
fans of Raimi’s trilogy, and in my opinion, he nailed it. The casual moviegoers
in the crowd were oohing and ahhing, and voicing their disgust very often;
while the diehard fans like me were simply smiling, taking it all in one dismembered
limb at a time. Alvarez struck a fantastic balance between nods to Raimi’s
original and making the film all his own.
There comes a point nearing the conclusion when things start
slowing down and it seems like the movie could possibly end. Up to that point I
was satisfied with the feel of the movie, and satisfied with a few of the more
creative blood-spilling endeavors, but I really wasn’t completely sold on the
movie; I hadn’t been wowed yet. Things were winding down, and I figured there
had to be a little more movie left, but I remember thinking if this ends now,
it’s a completely average movie. But that wasn’t the end; it continued into my
favorite horror movie climax I’ve seen in a very long time. It’s perfect. It’s
visually arresting, intense, and incredibly brutal, creating the ultimate
pay-off for a movie like Evil Dead. Alvarez clearly knew his audience because
this climax is one of the few things that isn’t borrowed from Raimi’s original,
and it’s f$@king awesome.
I’m a huge fan of the 1981 original, and I caught myself
trying to compare the two films. That’s the natural thing to do to a remake
that bears the same name and follows the original story closely, but don’t do
it. Comparing the two is like the plague to the new one, it’ll always come up
short. The question that needs to be asked: How does Evil Dead stack up against
modern horror? It’s easily, and I mean by a mile, the best time you’ll have at
a horror film so far in 2013. I’ve liked quite a few independent horror movies
over the past five years, but mainstream American horror is in a huge slump. Since
the beginning of 2009 all the way to 2013, the only mainstream American horror
movies that I think are above average are: Sinister, Insidious, Piranha 3-D, The
Crazies, The Last House on the Left, and Drag Me to Hell. I know this is my
opinion, and you may gravely disagree, but that’s only six horror films out of
a large number that hit all of America’s theaters that I would consider a great
watch; and that’s a problem. With that said, here’s a bold claim for you: Evil
Dead is one of the top mainstream horror films to hit American theaters in
years because, even through the clunky dialogue, it still manages to be an
incredibly fun and rewarding experience – something that even the brightest of horror
movies have no idea how to do.
If the dialogue were more intelligent, Evil Dead would probably already be dimed a classic horror. Luckily, the majority of fans in the genre are willing to forgive shortcomings if they walk out of that theater satisfied. If you don’t like horror do us all a favor and don’t see it, it wasn’t made for you.