Discovering 'Evil Dead'

Discovering 'Evil Dead' (2002)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Stephen Woolley and Nik Powell, co-owners of The Palace, are interviewed about how they became aware of THE EVIL DEAD and they discuss the steps they took to buy the film and get it released. Also on hand is author Bill Warren who throws in a few bits of trivia on the film's release.

If you're a fan of THE EVIL DEAD then you'll know that the movie has been released all over the world in a variety of special editions. Countless extras have been produced for the film and this here is a good one and certainly worth watching. Both Woolley and Powell do a very good job at telling their story and you certainly get a great idea of what the U.K. release was like and how well the film did on video. They also talk about the controversy that soon hit the film and of course the Video Nasties would follow.

i really think this movie was classic. funny but kinda scary at the same time. i have thought about that kind of stuff happening I'm sure u have as well. even though this flick was a bit laughable it was still a horror movie i would watch over and over again. my brother turned me on to this movie a long time ago and i couldn't believe they came out with a part 2. i liked this movie because it was well done and it made me jump. and i never jump at horror movies. i have seen some really bad horror movies and this was not one of them. it was like a clone of the re-animator now that was a movie. that guy was really demented. you have to love these movies. anyone who loves horror can enjoy these movies. well i hope i don't sound too stupid,but i loved this movie.

This is the only featurette on the DVD of The Evil Dead. It is a series of interviews intercut with clips of the film and stills of covers and art for various movies that are put in the same category as it. This regails the story of how the flick was discovered, the big scandal caused by the idea that these weren't just a healthy release of emotions and frustrations, but in fact could inspire real-life violence, the talent that they could see in Raimi's debut, and the originality of it and how it reinvigorated the genre. There is no deep analysis of the picture itself in this, but there isn't meant to. They do talk about what makes it great(and let's be honest, they're absolutely right... Sam is one of the results of someone growing up watching tons of this stuff... uh, and The Three Stooges), including the camera-work, editing and sound-side. No one who was a part of making the first one appears in this. Stephen King is mentioned/referenced. There is brutal, bloody gore and disturbing content in this. I recommend this to anyone who likes the subject(and this doesn't spoil it, if you haven't seen it yet). 7/10