Genre: Horror
Director: Sam Raimi
Starring: Bruce Campbell, Ellen Sandweiss, Richard DeManincor, Betsy Baker, Theresa Tilly
Language: English
Duration: 85 min.
Summary:
Five 20-something friends are holed up in a remote cabin where they discover a Book Of The Dead. An archaeologist's tape recording reveals that the ancient text was discovered among the Khandarian ruins of a Sumerian civilization. Playing the taped incantations, the youths unwittingly summon up dormant demons living in the nearby woods, which possess the youngsters in succession until only one is left intact to fight for survival.
January's LAMB Movie of the Month is Sam Raimi's debut feature film, the cult horror classic The Evil Dead. Written and directed by Raimi and starring childhood friend Bruce Campbell, the film follows five young friends who head out for a vacation in a remote cabin in the Tennessee wilderness where they unknowingly summon evil forces that possess them one by one, turning them into murderous demons.
When you look at this film from a modern perspective it really isn't anything special, with its cliche setup, weak story, cheesy acting, and dated effects. Granted I might be more desensitized to this stuff than most, but I highly doubt anyone of age watching this for the first time today would find it at all frightening, disgustingly gory maybe but not scary. However, Raimi proves his worth as a director by overcoming those flaws with a great atmosphere, buckets of gore, and a keen awareness of the genre, making this entertaining with great camera work and dark humor that pokes fun at other horror films that take themselves too seriously.
It's really just a fun film where you have to disregard reality, simply ignore logic and go along for the ride. Watch in amusement as the not so heroic Ash (Bruce Campbell) witnesses his friends get turned into zombified reincarnations of the three stooges one after another. Or watch the already terrified Cheryl (Ellen Sandweiss), wander out alone into the darkness of the woods for no good reason, other than to become the victim of surprise tree rape. Or the skill and craft used in the hilariously nostalgic stop motion animation decay effects.
It's no masterpiece, and looking back it's hard to believe that it was banned in so many places, but as far as B grade 80's horror films go, this one belongs near the top of the list. Delivering much graphic and gruesome gore, a healthy amount of dark laughs, and an interesting glimpse at the beginning of Raimi and Campbell's careers.
When you look at this film from a modern perspective it really isn't anything special, with its cliche setup, weak story, cheesy acting, and dated effects. Granted I might be more desensitized to this stuff than most, but I highly doubt anyone of age watching this for the first time today would find it at all frightening, disgustingly gory maybe but not scary. However, Raimi proves his worth as a director by overcoming those flaws with a great atmosphere, buckets of gore, and a keen awareness of the genre, making this entertaining with great camera work and dark humor that pokes fun at other horror films that take themselves too seriously.
It's really just a fun film where you have to disregard reality, simply ignore logic and go along for the ride. Watch in amusement as the not so heroic Ash (Bruce Campbell) witnesses his friends get turned into zombified reincarnations of the three stooges one after another. Or watch the already terrified Cheryl (Ellen Sandweiss), wander out alone into the darkness of the woods for no good reason, other than to become the victim of surprise tree rape. Or the skill and craft used in the hilariously nostalgic stop motion animation decay effects.
It's no masterpiece, and looking back it's hard to believe that it was banned in so many places, but as far as B grade 80's horror films go, this one belongs near the top of the list. Delivering much graphic and gruesome gore, a healthy amount of dark laughs, and an interesting glimpse at the beginning of Raimi and Campbell's careers.
— Bonjour Tristesse
19 comments:
Thanks Jason. I agree, part 2 is more enjoyable and a better film overall.
Compared to what gets shown today that scene isn't a big deal, but it was one of the reasons the film got banned back in the day.
I also prefer the second one, it is funnier and more polished.
Yep, it's a category that I've been neglecting lately but cult horror films are among my favorites. Plus it was voted by the LAMB for movie of the month, and I am determined to review whatever happens to be selected.
Thanks Dan. As pure entertainment I do enjoy the second and third installments slightly more than this, they are better scripted and more comedic
I feel the same way. It's one of those cult hits that has never been one of my favorites, but I respect it's place in the genre.
That opening is very good. You always feel like something bad is going to happen at any moment.
Yeah I can see how some may think that it's a masterpiece. It is a damn good use of budget, and an impressive display of potential. It just doesn't do enough for me to place it any higher than that.
Yep its the first of a trilogy so it would make a great Halloween event.
Seven really, were you terrified?
Nice review. I watched this when I was in high school... (sigh) and I found it less enjoyable than Evil Dead II which has much more comedy. I don't think I can bring myself to watch it again. I agree that it's an interesting glimpse into the beginning of Campbell and Raimi's careers and so I can't fault it too much because they are legends.
I finally watched this a few years ago (along with the two sequels). It's not my genre and so predictably the movie didn't do much for me. I realized during the tree rape scene that I had actually heard classmates talking about this movie way back when it first came out. That was the scene that a guy kept describing over and over again to anyone in the school that would listen to him.
I did actually kind of like the first sequel. I was a little disappointed by the third only because I had heard that it was the funniest of the three, but I thought the second one was funnier.
Initially I felt surprise that you'd review this classic film, then I noticed you do "Foreign, Indie *AND* Cult" films.
The script is terribly cheesy but when it comes to being an actually freaky and gory flick, Raimi does a great job and I still need to check out the two other sequels. Nice review.
Man, I remember the exact moment and place I watched this. I tried watching this a few months ago but couldn't make it through. I guess I was more hyped into trying to watch it again rather than actually wanting to watch it. I know this is a huge cult hit to a lot of people, but it's never really been one of my favorites. I can't deny it's significance in the film world, but ya know....
E-P-I-C!
not a horror film fan, but this would be a good movie to watch during halloween!
Nice classic here! I need to revisit this every Fall. I like the openning with the car that Raimi always uses in his films and the bench that hits. It creates a tension and brings the viewer into the territory of Horror. A nice first film and a very inspiring one too!
Y'know, I might argue that this is, in one form or another, a masterpiece. If nothing else, it serves as inspiration to new filmmakers by demonstrating what can be done on a small budget. It's cheesy and cheap, but it's also wildly creative and inventive. You can see everything Raimi learned in this film in his later films.
That said, I think 7.7 is a really fair rating. It's not by any stretch a "great" film. It's loads of fun, though, and important for what it is--gory, silly B-horror that is (sometimes) entertaining in spite of itself.
Oh yeah. I remember watching with my pop when I was seven.
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