Review: Evil Dead (2013)

The Evil Dead, Sam Raimi's 1981 cult horror classic is one of the great independent film success stories. Made for peanuts, and shot on weekends with his friends, the film was both scary and wickedly funny. It showcased the director's innovative visuals and energetic style, which would be put to good use in later films such as The Quick and the Dead and the Spider-Man trilogy.

It also launched the career of Bruce Campbell, who played Ashley J. "Ash" Williams, the hero at the center of Raimi's story. Over the course of three films (Evil Dead II and Army of Darkness being the others), Ash took his place in movie history as one of the most entertaining horror characters ever, thanks to Campbell's cartoonish reactions and larger than life appeal. Since recasting Campbell for this updated version would create distracting comparisons and potentially alienate fans, the filmmakers smartly decided to write out the character altogether. That's right, horror fans, there is no Ash in this movie.

Instead, we are introduced to Mia (Jane Levy), a young addict looking for a little support for a weekend detox. Her friends, Olivia (Jessica Lucas) and Eric (Lou Taylor Pucci) have been through this cold-turkey routine with her before, each time ending in a heartbreaking relapse. This time, they've enlisted the help of her estranged brother, David (Shiloh Fernandez), who shows up with his girlfriend, Natalie (Elizabeth Blackmore), unaware of how serious Mia's problem is.

When they arrive at the cabin, they discover that someone has broken in recently. The place is a mess, and there are dead animals hanging in the cellar, which is covered in blood and burn marks -- the result of ritualistic sacrifice. On the table, wrapped in barbed wire with the intention of never being opened again, is a book bound with human flesh and written in blood. Instead of getting the hell out of there before it's too late, they choose to stay -- because, well, this is a movie -- and curiosity prompts one of them to open the book and read from it, unleashing an evil that possesses Mia and begins to spread through the rest of them like a virus.

Using possession as an allegory for the inner demons of substance abuse isn't exactly new, but it works for this film and I appreciate the effort. The script, written by the film's director, Fede Alvarez, and co-written by Rodo Sayagues (with some fine-tuning by Diablo Cody), uses Raimi's scenario without rigidly copying everything about the original. It does take a while to get going, but the second half is relentless, and there are a number of surprises for even the most ardent fans.

Although I didn't find the film to be particularly scary, I was still thrilled by much of what gets splattered on screen. Alvarez, who was hand picked by [producers] Raimi and Campbell, has crafted an extremely graphic and violent film which includes stabbing, shooting, projectile-vomiting, self-mutilation, and worse (if you've seen the original you know what I'm talking about). Fans should be pleased to know that the special effects and makeup were achieved using mostly old-school techniques over computer imagery, and the results are impressive.

If they do a sequel to this film, I'd love to see them ditch the cabin-in-the-woods entirely and invent something as far away from the formula as Army of Darkness was to the original. One thing's for certain, any follow-up will have a hard time topping the amount of blood and gore used here -- Evil Dead delivers both by the truckload.

STF Film Grade = B-