Directed by:
Fede AlvarezCinematography:
Aaron MortonComposer:
Roque BañosCast:
Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Jessica Lucas, Lou Taylor Pucci, Elizabeth Blackmore, Stephen Butterworth, Jim McLarty, Phoenix Connolly, Bruce CampbellVOD (5)
Plots(1)
A secluded cabin. An ancient curse. An unrelenting evil. The original producers reunite to present a genuenly terryfiing re-imagining of their original horror masterpiece. Five young friends have found the mysterious and fiercely powerful Book of the Dead. Unable to resist its temptation, they release a violent demon on a bloodthirsty quest to possess them all. Who will be left to fight for their survival and defeat this unearthly force of murderous carnage? (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)
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Reviews (10)
SPOILERS AHEAD. “Feast on this, motherfucker”, or “Why Men Don’t Understand Witchcraft and Why Women Shouldn’t Play with Electric Knives”. When this absurdly phallocentric horror movie turns into a “feminine” rape revenge flick at the end – using a quote from Carrie – that is the last of a plethora of extraordinary inconsistencies in content (as opposed to the filmmaking craftsmanship on display, which remains constantly at a high level). Evil Dead gives the impression of being a film by at least two directors, or rather multiple screenwriters (which it actually is), each of which took their own approach to Raimi’s original. Some of them are obliging toward horror fans, attempting to step out of the genre in a post-modern way and to make fun of the banality of slasher flicks. The others, who unfortunately had the last word, conversely slept through several decades and loaded the film down with terrors long past their sell-by date – fear of sexually transmitted infections (a curse passed on through bodily fluids) and of the wilderness, specifically a forest (which in the climax is ironically conquered using a non-environmentally friendly chainsaw). This disjointedness is directly personified in the film by the two male characters, who represent two possible types of viewers. David is prone to sentimentality and regrets every bruise. He lacks a sense of detachment. The rational Eric, on the other hand, remains above things, because he has read the book (everything has been written already). Like a knowledgeable horror-movie viewer, he has also read the source work, he knows what to expect and, together with the cynics in the audience, he is derisive of his friend’s oversensitivity. Both of them are necessary. If David doesn’t adhere to the horror clichés in his behaviour, the film would end a few amputations early, which we bloodthirsty viewers would not accept. Through Eric, we are simultaneously made aware that one the film’s creators ranks among the knowledgeable and sympathises with the community of horror fans. Surprisingly, the one who comes out on top in the end is neither of them, but rather the representative of the previously, mostly passively suffering (and, as the case may be, self-mutilating) gender. The delay in equalising gender strengths compels us to atypically redistribute our empathy to the body, which has caused others so much unpleasantness. (With respect to the body and carnality, it’s worth mentioning that the men in the film are usually penetrated by something – pellets, a needle, nails – whereas the women lose body parts – head, arms, legs; the Freudians can analyse and interpret that however they like). Thanks to the unsatisfying culmination of the drug storyline, we also retroactively become witnesses to the harshest withdrawal scene from Trainspotting. The unclear creative direction has unintentionally given rise to the subgenre of melodramatic horror, in which tumultuous family relationships are almost given greater care than the burning of witches and other forest activities (besides the gore scenes, the melodramatic “excessive” also refers to the spectacularly postponed reconciliation between the brother and sister). What can we learn from this very inconsistent film? The soul is more important than the body and drugs make you hoarse. Appendix: I definitely would not use the twice presented “medical” procedure of putting adhesive tape on anything that bleeds. 65%
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The original Evil Dead is an unsurpassed classic, yet I have to give the creators of this remake a cautious salute for the very bloody ending and the genuinely creepy atmosphere in places. It's kind of the modern viewer’s consumable material, but definitely at the better end of the spectrum. I appreciate the direct references to Raimi's Evil Dead! [60%]
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Great potential undermined by low IQ. The film’s characters repeatedly behave like naive idiots and deal with situations
by taking unreasonable steps, just like in the worst horror B-movies. However, plenty of positives outweigh this
shortcoming (literally): violence, blood and gore are deliciously elaborated, many scenes are very intense even for
hardened horror fans, the pace of the film is killing (!), the bloody rain in the climax is impressive and the siren sound,
subconsciously causing panic in the audience, is just perfect. One of the better remakes of the horror classics we grew
up with.
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I have already seen more useless remakes, and I quite understand that after the festival of Raimi's bloody surrealism and genre phantasmagoria, which culminated in the brilliantly unruly and nonchalantly campy Army of Darkness, Fede Alvarez wanted to go his own way. In the first half of the film, thanks to the dense atmosphere and unruly gore violence, he is quite successful, but it can't be tightened without irony, especially with the eruption of clichés at the end. Exaggeration is missing just like Ash's hand, blood sprays all the way to the next hall, but it all just fades out over time. When the new version came up with a "new" story, it should have tried to at least get something out of it (drug dumplings motif). It did not do so, and so the result is barely above average. This composition of old familiar motifs simply lacks any added value other than beautifully hysterical babes. But while all of Evil Dead was a totally misogynistic trilogy at its core, Alvarez eventually ruined it completely unnecessarily. Bleeding girls with a chainsaw are cheesy, but they can’t beat Ash with a shotgun...
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Well... Nothing new under the sun. Nothing good either. There's suspense in only about two scenes (Natalie going to get sugar and water, the final hiding), otherwise it’s more or less boring, disgusting things that aren't really disgusting because they get old right away, and the promising idea with the rehab is brought down by the stupid behavior of everyone - the living, the dead and the half-dead.
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Gallery (156)
Photo © TriStar Pictures
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