The Evil Dead (1981)
In 1979, a group of college students find a Sumerian Book of the Dead in an old wilderness cabin they've rented for a weekend getaway.
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That was an excellent one.
Absolutely Fantastic
Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.
It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.
'The Evil Dead (1981)' had a very low budget and it certainly shows. Yet, despite this, it looks and feels very convincing. Some dialogue is hokey, the acting can be hammy and wooden at times and a couple of scenes made me laugh due to their slightly campy nature, but the overall experience is charmingly entertaining. There's this mix of genuine horror and trash-induced bemusement, with some moments causing full-on unease and others provoking unintended chuckles, but this actually all adds to the off-kilter vibe of the picture. It's admirable that a group of people went into the woods and made a film, despite all the issues that befell them, and that adds to its ornate allure. You can almost feel the passion coming off the screen, and this (ironically) gives it a soul so much warmer than any studio ever could. It's well-made (especially for the shoe-string budget), gory, iconic and can be pretty tense and suspenseful, too. There's something to be said for the fact that, for the most part, it pulls you into its world and doesn't let you out until its credits roll. Even when it lapses slightly, the laughter it causes adds to the experience as opposed to detracting from it, and the occasional paint-peeling just proves that the film was made by a rag-tag team of friends. And if they can do it, so can you. 7/10
The Evil Dead tells the story of a group of friends who go to a errie cabin in the woods and they find a book made from the dead and they have to stop what it summons.Bruce Campbell is Ash Williams the hero of the story he kicks so much ass in this series and Ash has since been considered the best hero of horror movies and Bruce is just so awesme in this one and I really just love his character.Ellen Sandweiss,Richard DeManincor,Betsy Baker,Theresa Tilly are the supporting actors and they are the group which will try to fight the dead they give such as supporting group and they are awesone i couldn't ask for anyone better. I love The Evil Dead it is such a 80s movie and the cult status still holds up and they made sequals to the original and if anything the evil dead is one of tbe best early horror movies to exist and I just think this is one of the best movies i have watched and this one i can defiently re watch the evil dead any time
Released during a fantastic time for horror films, 'The Evil Dead' crept in under the radar and while it may not have invented the 'cabin-in-the-woods' trope, it certainly popularized it and many other horror cliches to come. As well, the film was endorsed by Stephen King himself, who rightly praised its originality (for the time of course), and though it was mocked for a while, it's found its rightful place in horror filmmaking history.THE STORY 'The Evil Dead' can never claim to have a robust and complex story, but that's not necessarily a problem. The basic premise - a group of somewhat drunken young adults stay at a cabin and accidentally unleash hellish forces that kill them one by one - is quite simple, but it's how Sam Raimi and company take this premise and go with it that is truly admirable. The concept of the Deadites, and the way Possession works, which seems to be a mixture of a contagion-style contact spread and Exorcist-style demonic possession - is quite imaginative and original. Possibly never before and rarely after have creatures in horror been so cleverly designed. The contagion-like spread through touching adds a sense of realism that makes the otherwordly hellish nature of the possession all the more horrifying. The fact that the Deadites mock and taunt their victims before killing them makes them not just spooky creatures, but frightening villains to contend with. Even if the basic premise is very simple, the flourishes with the Deadite concept is original and frightening enough to justify it. Out of 5 possible points for this category, 'The Evil Dead' gets 4 points.THE TECHNICALS 'The Evil Dead' was made for a budget of only $350 000, and was from all accounts an arduous and difficult shoot. Thankfully, the labour paid off for the most part. Not only were the concepts original and creative, but the filmmaking shows off a lot of talent. Dutch angles are usually a source of frustration, since they're often use to unsubtly point out things that are supposed to be bad, and are as a result quite cheesy. 'The Evil Dead' is a clinic on how to use dutch angles effectively, as they are used in scenes of tension and uncertainty. Rarely, if ever, are they used when a Deadite is on the screen. They are used when a character, especially Ash, is frightened and panicking. This way, what would be a static scene of a character losing his mind is now enhanced and compelling because the camerawork draws the audience in. As well, the use of stop motion animation at the end is unexpected, but very effective. The makeup is also often fantastic. Though the film is indeed gory, it's used to heighten the fear. An 'Evil Dead' that shies away from gore is not proper 'Evil Dead'. Very creative cinematography is employed here by Sam Raimi and Tim Philo, who make the most of a cramped location and pull off some great shots. The legendary demonic POV shots still hold up today, and 'The Evil Dead' stands as a testament to low-budget creativity in part due to this. Easily the strongest technical aspect of 'The Evil Dead' is the sound production. The film is filled with demonic voices and unfamiliar noises throughout nearly every scene, and the slightest sound is enough to freak out the viewer. Though the film's score is, in my opinion, fairly standard and not worth much mention, the sound design is fantastic and deserves recognition. Occasionally, the film's continuity stumbles a bit, as seen with that horrible Deadite Cheryl double doll that looks very little like Deadite Cheryl, or the changing hairstyles of the cast. As well, as much as I've come to enjoy the stop motion finale, it must be acknowledged that it is rather off-putting how inauthentic it looks at times. For the most part, though, the technicals of 'The Evil Dead' are great. I'll give it 4 points here too.Overall, 'The Evil Dead' is a great horror film, an absolute classic worthy of any horror fan's attention. It's not for the squeamish or easily offended, but there's enough creativity and conviction on show to distinguish it as one of the best of its era. Highly recommended.
In the first Evil Dead movie, Ash was just an average guy. He was cocky and egotistical. He wasn't stupid. He wasn't brave. In fact, he was the Beta male to his friend Scott. Hell, throughout the opening of the movie, people are calling him "Ashley", not the much cooler "Ash" he gets in later movies.A lot of what fans have come to expect from Bruce Campbell and Ash weren't in this movie. Bruce Campbell himself said on Reddit that the problem was that he couldn't act in this movie. But that's not the whole story. This movie didn't have campy humor or a strong hero. This movie was scary. You were thrown into the movie with no sense of humor, just dread.The movie had a $50k budget, which was spent over a few years that the film was thrown together by two friends. Every expense was spared. But it has still had a lasting impact on the modern horror genre.And, while I find most modern horror movies to be forgettable, I find myself coming back to Evil Dead every year around Halloween. It is scary and gory and unique in some way I find fun and endearing.