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After hitting it big with Evil Dead II and Darkman, director Sam Raimi decided to revisit Ash Williams once again with Army of Darkness. While the second film was more of a comedy than the first one, it was still more or less a horror film. With this one, they decided to seemingly toss out anything horror-related and make the third entry more of an action-comedy. Though, it technically is horror since it follows two horror films and there are some horror elements in it, but not much. With a budget of $11 million, more than the first two combined, this had a lot to live up to. So how does a series that started with college kids trapped in a cabin go to having a medieval setting? Well, with a pretty strong cast, fun battle sequences, and a great sense of humor, chances are it really worked.

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Synopsis

Picking up from where the last film left off, our lovable smartass hero Ash is now stuck in the past. Unfortunately, he’s greeted with hostility and fear as he’s taken prisoner by King Arthur and his men. After surviving a battle between two deadites with his chainsaw, Ash manages to climb out and punch out the King. Now having proved himself, Ash must embark on a quest to reclaim the Necronomicon to stop the evil forces. Ash reluctantly sets off in the hopes of this leading to him going back to his own time. Along the way, he meets his evil twin, who he kills, eviscerates, and buries, but not before being warned. Once he gets the book, Ash ends up accidentally releases an army of the dead. Now led by Ash’s undead evil twin, the army is after the book and will kill anyone in their way.

Review

Given its fairly large budget, you can definitely see the money on the screen. From the immense sets to all the creatures and effects, this has a much larger scope than the previous films. It reminds me of Monty Python and the Holy Grail with its grand setting, sets, and costumes, but more comedic. That said, I feel like the bigger budget and larger production also hurts the film in terms of the style. It lacks the gritty and creepy feeling that the first two films had, and it feels a bit too polished. This one does feel more like a big-budget studio picture, but for what it is, it’s still better than others. Also, there are times where the comedy tends to clash with some of the more serious moments, to where the movie has a bit of a tone problem.

All that being said, I still really enjoy this film. It’s funny, it’s exciting, it’s got some great special effects and action sequences, it’s fully aware of itself, and it features Bruce Campbell at his most badass. While the film did make a profit (it made $21.5 million against its $11 million budget), it wasn’t as big of a hit as they were hoping, and it didn’t get as warm of a response from critics as the last one did. Even still, the movie has gone on to become a major cult hit, and it’s also quite possibly one of the most quotable movies ever!

Hail to the king, baby!

Buy Army of Darkness from Amazon: https://amzn.to/4i0oDsW.

Disclosure: The above link is an affiliate link, which means that, at no additional cost, I will earn a commission if you click through the link and make a purchase.

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Where to watch Army of Darkness (1992)

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After hitting it big with The Evil Dead, Sam Raimi and company were not having much luck finding work. In 1985, Raimi, his producing partner Rob Tapert, and co-producer/star Bruce Campbell teamed up to make Crimewave. Written by The Coen Brothers, famous for Raising Arizona, Fargo, and Miller’s Crossing, the film, unfortunately, was a disaster. Between issues with the producers to difficulty with cast members, the film as Bruce Campbell “wasn’t released, it escaped.” Needing a hit, Raimi and company decided to return to the cabin for the 1987 follow-up, Evil Dead II, also known as Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn.

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Synopsis

Following the first film, Ash’s stuck in the cabin with no escape, and the demonic forces psychologically torture him. Meanwhile, a young woman named Annie (Sarah Berry) meets up with her partner Ed (Richard Domeier). Annie is the daughter of Professor Knowby, who initially found the Book of the Dead. The two decide to go to the cabin after not hearing from her father in some time. With the help of local rednecks Jake (Dan Hicks) and Bobbie Joe (Kassie Wesley), they get to the cabin only to find Ash, who just cut off his hand and accidentally shot Bobbie Joe. Trapped within and dealing with a witch in the cellar, our heroes must fight to survive the night.

Review

Frequently, horror-comedies can be a tricky balance, where sometimes they stray a bit too far into either direction. However, Evil Dead II is one of those great examples where they are blended perfectly. When there’s humor, it’s genuinely funny in a very dark and grotesque sort of way. When there’s horror, there’s a great sense of dread and a foreboding nature that gets under your skin. Like the first one, this one is insane with the gore, though dialed back to avoid an X rating. You’ll notice throughout that the blood changes colors, including a bright red, black, green, and more of a dark red. So long as it didn’t look like real blood, it’s all good.

I think this film is an excellent showcase of Bruce Campbell’s acting abilities. He starts as a shellshocked person who has survived this horrible series of events and slowly loses his sanity, especially having killed his girlfriend twice. A few highlights that show this include a small moment where he sees a rocking chair moving on his own till he goes over to it, and it stops as soon as Ash reaches his hand out, as well as a moment where his reflection leaps out at him to tell him how crazy he is. Once the new group arrives, he eventually steps up to be the badass hero we all think of him as. Although, I’d like to mention Sarah Berry as Annie, who’s easily the best actor after Campbell.

To sum it up, I enjoy this film. As I said, the first one will always hold a special place in my heart. Even still, this one is a solid recommendation from me. This one has achieved significant cult status like the first one and is even considered the best of the trilogy. Even curmudgeonly old Roger Ebert gave it three stars, saying it is “a comedy disguised as a blood-soaked shock-a-rama. It looks superficially like a routine horror movie, a vomitorium designed to separate callow teenagers from their lunch. But look a little closer, and you’ll realize that the movie is a fairly sophisticated satire.” If that does not sell you on the film, I don’t know what will.

Buy Evil Dead II from Amazon: https://amzn.to/3tgCwbT.

Disclosure: The above link is an affiliate link, which means that, at no additional cost, I will earn a commission if you click through the link and make a purchase.

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Where to watch Evil Dead II (1987)

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Stephen King, author of The Shining and Misery, called The Evil Dead “the most ferociously original horror film of the year”. Personally, I feel that this is a very appropriate description for the film. It is a very ferocious film and, for its time, was very original. While there had been plenty of movies about young people stranded in the woods and movies about people becoming possessed by demonic forces, there had never been a movie that combined the two together. As anybody who knows me well enough will tell you, The Evil Dead is my all-time favorite horror film. Some people have asked me why this is my all-time favorite, so let me take the time to explain why.

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Synopsis

The film follows five college students: Ash, his sister Cheryl, his girlfriend Linda, his friend Scotty, and Scotty’s girlfriend, Shelley. They’re together for a camping trip to the woods, where they stay in a small, isolated cabin. When strange things start happening, including weird voices and odd sounds, Ash and Scotty decide to check the basement. There, they find various items, including a tape recorder, an ancient book and dagger, and a shotgun. Once back upstairs, they play the tape recorder, which has a recording by a professor who found the blade and the book, known as “Naturum De Montum,” aka Book of the Dead. As the recording continues, the professor recites incantations from the book, releasing an ancient evil in the woods that possesses them one by one. As those possessed wind up killing each other, who will be the next victim, and who will survive the night?

Review

Many things make this film stand out from many other low-budget horror films from the time. First, it is a well-made and well-directed film, utilizing unique camera angles and unconventional editing techniques. This film was the directorial debut of Sam Raimi, who would later helm the original Spider-Man trilogy from 2002-2007. You can see his style in the movie from the various camera angles and tricks used throughout the film. For instance, the second half is mainly shot at dutch angles to give a sense of unease and suspense throughout. Also, there are the famous POV shots, done by mounting a camera on a 2×4 and running through the woods.

The movie also makes its mix of suspense and atmosphere and insanely graphic violence and gore. It can be tricky to balance the suspense and tension with the buckets of blood and guts. Often, it can lead to tonal clashes with your film, but in this one, it works. The suspense and atmosphere complement the blood and guts, similar to what John Carpenter would do later with The Thing.

While the movie does have its flaws, they’re not enough to ruin my enjoyment of it overall. For instance, a lot of the acting is questionable, not as bad as Cabin Fever. Everyone acts like complete asshats with no personality, while here, the characters are much likable. Also, you can see the low-budget production on the screen, even if you didn’t realize it. Plus, I feel like some of its spots help lend to its charm, given the harsh filming conditions they endured. Things like how cast members change every so often, how the cast is clearly getting cut up and bruised and beat up because they did their own stunts and didn’t have any safety protocols, and how Bruce Campbell tends to age between shots, going from a babyface to looking more defined and how we know him today.

Even with that said, I still love this movie. It is one of the greatest horror films and has inspired many other filmmakers, including Edgar Wright and Peter Jackson. It’s spawned two sequels, comics, video games, action figures, a TV series, a remake in 2013, and even a musical. If you consider yourself a genuine horror fan and haven’t seen this, you owe it to yourself to watch it. If you dismiss this film as being nothing more than yucky trash, give it another chance and recognize it for how it started its career and how they put a lot of time and energy into making this.

Buy The Evil Dead from Amazon: https://amzn.to/3twGC0Q.

Disclosure: The above link is an affiliate link, which means that, at no additional cost, I will earn a commission if you click through the link and make a purchase.

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Where to watch The Evil Dead (1981)

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