This is a best-case scenario for everyone involved, from the filmmakers to the studio to the fans. Lest the fans forget, this is yet another remake that virtually no one was asking for, and most thought was a bad idea. I’m happy to admit I was one of those people. I didn’t need another EVIL DEAD film in my life unless it was the continuing adventures of Ash as told by the original team. But even that is something I’m not sure my rational brain wants, but my geek brain definitely does. My point here is just to say that we all need to keep our memories intact when discussing the current culture of remakes and franchises. EVIL DEAD isn’t the first time that many of us have “come around” on a hallowed film being re-imagined, and it won’t be the last either. This isn’t to say that we should all be “pro-reboot”, just that it is important to be a blank slate as much as possible and let today’s filmmakers either work their magic or fall on their faces.
In the case of EVIL DEAD, Fede Alvarez has announced his coming with friggin’ mighty trumpet blasts. These stakes were pretty high. He is a first-time director, so almost wholly untested. THE EVIL DEAD (1981) had an infamously horrid shoot due mostly to inexperience, a tiny budget, and complicated practical gore effects. Alvarez had the money, but otherwise the same challenges were all there for him. Although practical gore was certainly a choice made by this creative team. The easy way to do this film would obviously have been to lather on as much CGI as possible. It is cheaper, easier to manipulate in post production, and the kids these days just love it!
But Alvarez and team took the road less traveled these days and brought that old school magic of practical gore back to wide audiences in a hard-R studio horror film unlike anything that has seen wide release in many years. Sure, we’ve had some awesome horror-comedies and gore-fests of late. CABIN IN THE WOODS obviously comes to mind. And practical gore can often be found in homes all across America on THE WALKING DEAD right now. But EVIL DEAD is a different animal. This thing wants to swallow your soul. Alvarez and crew seem to have had the goal of absolutely horrifying their audience. And my vote is that they succeeded wildly beyond my own expectations.
Beyond the phenomenal gore effects, including needles into eyeballs, the sawing off of faces, and several different hands and arms being mauled and mutilated; what does this new remake have going for it? Well, it actually has an engaging story! On my drive to the theater, after hearing lots of positive buzz and allowing myself to get pretty hyped up, I tried to temper my expectations. After all, this would have amazing effects, but what else could it really bring to the table? In order to be EVIL DEAD, some young people have to go to a cabin, they have to read aloud a passage from the Book Of The Dead, and then terrible things have to happen to them. I knew that there would be gross out moments, but I fully assumed the story couldn’t be re-tread enough to make me care. As a matter of fact, CABIN IN THE WOODS (just one year ago), seemed to me to be the definitive capper on the entire “teens go into the woods” sub-genre. How could anything after CABIN IN THE WOODS have the balls to take itself seriously and offer up a straight-faced take on this tired trope?
EVIL DEAD pulls it off. I had been told that this group of friends were headed out to the cabin in order to seclude their friend Mia (Jane Levy) and allow her to go cold turkey from heroine. She is accompanied by a brother, David (Shiloh Fernandez), who has a history of unreliability. And there is some bone head dude who reads the book allowed and those two guys’ girlfriends. The set up is very effective. And credit for that has to go to screen writers Fede Alvarez, Diablo Cody, and Rodo Sayagues. There were times, sure, when I could feel the machinations of writers behind the actions of the character. But for the most part the story unfolded in surprising and engaging ways that kept me thrilled and surprised throughout.
One area of EVIL DEAD that stands out as a marked improvement over the original is adding a bare bones structure and mythology to the Deadites themselves. In Raimi’s trilogy, the dead don’t seem to have much of an agenda or even an M.O. They are going to fly through the woods, swallow your souls, and keep on doing so until… the movie ends. They’ll have different methods, different tricks, but no discernable plan. Here the Deadites’ intentions are laid out mostly through quick glances at the book and minimal exposition. But there was just enough there to make me feel like the Dead had a plan, a motivation, and it was sinister to say the least. I don’t know, those were just some screenplay elements that I felt like really succeeded in keeping me entertained in between gags.
But a ton of credit for my enjoyment of this film also lies squarely in the lap of Ms. Jane Levy. I’d never heard of her before, but I will be keeping an eye on her from here on out. Her Mia is complex and deeply frightening. She definitely endures a fair amount of on screen abuse (and doles out a fair bit as well.) But that bro who reads the book aloud probably still gets the most abuse heaped on him. At any rate, Levy is fantastic and unsettling throughout. Good show, Jane Levy. Although you weren’t cast specifically to replace Bruce Campbell or even play his character at all… you still managed to create a strong lead in an EVIL DEAD that I would A) Gladly like to see in other films and B) Didn’t make me miss Ash at all.
And speaking of, another bit of internet gossip and/or quoting I had heard from filmmakers prior to the film was this notion that, rather than “replace” the Ash character with another actor, the plans was to sort of sprinkle little bits of Ash (see what I did there?) among the whole cast. I rolled my eyes at this idea from the moment I heard it. But you know what… that is exactly what they did. And it works! David has the strapping good looks and the bumbling brashness. Doofus Book Reading Guy has the pride and arrogance. Mia has the tenacity and duplicity. There is plenty of Ash to go around.
But what doesn’t work? I know, I’ve used a fair amount of hyperbole here. Words like “fantastic” and “trumpet blasts” have been typed. And I won’t deny it. But there are some elements that don’t work here. If we are keeping tabs, there are also elements that don’t work in Raimi’s original trilogy of films. I regularly felt myself bristling at Shiloh Fernandez’ performance as David. He just feels like the kind of bland, attractive, nominal performer that is always getting cast in films like this. He isn’t terrible, but he was rough enough to pull me out of my joyfully horrified stupor from time to time. There is also a very far fetched thing that he does towards the end of the film that momentarily made me cry BS. I won’t go into detail because it is majorly spoiler-ific. But lets just say that the third act of EVIL DEAD feels a lot more EVIL DEAD II where the rest of the film feels way more THE EVIL DEAD. If that makes any sense.
That said, when I let Act III of EVIL DEAD sweep me into its surprising and fun sharp turn, I really enjoyed the ride. What you get here in EVIL DEAD is a minor miracle of a modern horror film in that a studio greenlit and fully supported a gore-filled, practical effects-laden grueling experience in terror. I genuinely hope the film does killer business and this type of horror is given the wide-audience treatment again. Is EVIL DEAD “The most terrifying film you will ever experience?”. No, not really. But it still earns that tag line. EVIL DEAD has the gall to try and genuinely horrify you with gruesome body horror out in a cabin. In the woods. In 2013. And then it has the follow through to back up its intentions with a crowd pleasing product that will have audiences squirming and screaming for years to come. As I mentioned, this is a best case scenario for all involved!
And I’m Out.