The never-ending onslaught of Horror film remakes is expanded yet again… now adding The Evil Dead franchise onto list. Before diving into this review, let us make one thing clear – seldom, if ever, does a remade film ever stand up with the original. Taking a cynical view, most of the time it is simply an easy way for large production companies to make a profit off a known, beloved film without having to create a new idea.
In truth, Hollywood knows that the masses will flock to the theaters; because these are stories people are familiar with. That in mind, not all remakes are created equal or done with the same approach. Sometimes, in the case of The Evil Dead, the terms ‘re-imaging’ or ‘reboot’ are utilized, as opposed to just calling something a straight-up remake. With that said, let us begin discussing the new Evil Dead; in theaters as of April 5, 2013 through Sony Pictures Releasing.
The overall fourth film in the franchise, coming nearly two decades after 1992’s Army of Darkness, Evil Dead basically follows the same concept of the 1981 original classic The Evil Dead. In short, you have a cabin in the woods, a group of young people planning a stay at the said cabin, they stumble along with the book of the dead (in this film called Naturom Demonto), and thus one by one become possessed by demons. A promising start… that is where the similarity between the 1981 film and 2013’s version ends.
Modernized, in this revamped Evil Dead, we have a group of friends coming to this cabin in the woods to help detox their friend from addiction. The story moves slowly from here, and unfortunately it does not offer much thoughtful stimulation. Much like many other modern Horror films, the characters involved here are one-dimensional and display little to no redeeming qualities. This aside, the book of the dead is found, the forbidden, ancient language is read aloud by one of the characters, and the demonic party begins.
From here, Evil Dead continues to drag at a snail’s pace. Something you could deal with if the actual story had some substance, in this case, you cannot help but find yourself very frustrated with the cast as a collective. Breaking it down, the acting is overall poor, the character development is weak, and most of all, there is no clear protagonist. Again, something you see within many modern Horror film scripts, you are left feeling indifferent about the faint of each character. This is opposed to older Horror films, such as The Evil Dead, where you actually are cheering for lead characters such as Ash Williams; because he is apathetic, humorous, and above all, human.
Nonetheless, as things begin to get worse and hell breaks loose in Evil Dead you are desensitized by excessive gore. Perhaps the premeditated direction of the creators, the realistic make-up effects are possibly one of the only redeeming qualities here. However, considering the overly gory nature, there is little left to the imagination, and as a result, you can hardly appreciate it.
In fairness, Uruguayan Filmmaker Fede Álvarez clearly tries to make Evil Dead much more serious and less campy than the original 1981 cult classic. His debut feature film as both a director and writer, he is not without talent and has a promising future, but in the case of Evil Dead, the storyline is weak and character development even weaker. Unfair to compare the 1981 film with this 2013 film, it is still a natural reaction, and Evil Dead offered none of the same charm or lasting imagination as The Evil Dead. Why? Because of everything previously outlined, but also because the dialogue falls into the modern cliché of using excessive vulgarity for no apparent reason. Pointer – vulgarity accentuates a mood, and when every other word is vulgar, the mood is dulled.
In the end, Evil Dead is a big budget Hollywood film capitalizing on the inventive concept of a low budget classic of the past. It plays on the idea that in 2013 more is better, and just exemplifies how excessive the Horror genre has become just to provoke a physical rather than emotional reaction.
Interestingly enough, original Writer/Director Sam Raimi and star Bruce Campbell are listed as producers on Evil Dead. A drawing card, apparently, they had been working on the plans for an Evil Dead 4 for some time, but nothing grew legs. And while their names listed on this project may excite diehard fans, with all due respect to Raimi and Campbell, Evil Dead really misses the mark. In closing, 2013’s Evil Dead is forgettable and just another remake to add to an already growing laundry list. That is why Cryptic Rock gives this film 1 out of 5 stars.
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