|
Evil Dead
| Released |
19 April 2013 |
| Director |
Fede Alvarez |
Starring
|
Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Lou Taylor Pucci, Jessica Lucas, Elizabeth Blackmore, Phoenix Connolly, Jim McLarty |
Writer(s)
|
Fede Alvarez, Diablo Cody, Rodo Sayagues |
Producer(s)
|
Bruce Campbell, Sam Raimi, Robert G. Tapert |
| Origin |
United States |
| Running Time |
91 minutes |
| Genre |
Horror |
| Rating |
18 |
|
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The New Breed.
In the midst of the 1980s 'video nasty' phenomenon, outspoken activist Mary Whitehouse described Sam Raimi's original The Evil Dead as "the most despicable thing ever put to film" - indeed, the schlock horror classic was banned in our own humble country for years. But it wasn’t until the sequel landed six years later that Raimi would perfect his heady cocktail of B-movie gore tactics and self-referential campiness. So, how does the 2013 remake/reboot/ continuation fare when pitted against its near-flawless source material? Not half bad, surprisingly. Discarding Raimi’s trademark self-aware humour, Uruguayan director Fede Alvarez instead ups the ante gore wise and never slows the pace down long enough for us to notice Evil Dead’s limitations.
Five highly disposable, sexy teens head out to an old cabin deep in the woods under the pretext of staging a cold-turkey session for the drug-addled member of their party. They put her on the straight and narrow and everything’s coming up roses until the token geek character finds a mysterious book bound in human flesh (the Necronomicon to fanboys). Some passages are recited, some evil forces unleashed and things take a turn for the nasty (so far, so horror; not much original here).
The characters are all bland, stupid people that only gain a bit of personality post-possession, hacking off their own limbs with great abandon - those expecting the craftsmanship or intelligence of last years The Cabin in the Woods look elsewhere. Alvarez’s film remains successful however, as a fresh medley of old school repugnance and new school tropes – the most effective being his adoption of Raimi’s no frills stance and devotion to practical special effects. CGI is thrown by the wayside for the most part and it pays off majorly, making every act of brutality that much more gloriously disgusting – whether a box cutter-assisted tongue severing or some hearty self-imposed face-gouging. Adding to the melting pot a plethora of disturbing visuals and a literal rainstorm of blood, Alvarez has trumped the majority of recent Hollywood horror output. One minor gripe: the use of practical effects is so successful that when CGI is implemented it can look a tad naff (particularly jarring during the reimagining of the originals infamous ‘tree-rape’ sequence).
While not exactly subverting the horror genre, the film is more than exciting when put at odds with similar, often pointless remakes, and also manages to tip its hat to Raimi’s deadite legacy. Perhaps a failed opportunity to shed some light on the history of the Book of the Dead, the film resigns itself to merely being another chapter in said book - though Evil Dead should appease series aficionados and horror fans alike, which might be a good thing, considering a sequel is already in the works.
- Cathal Prendergast |
