Evil Dead

SPOILER(S) POSSIBLE

The first ever full-on film project by budding filmmakers Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert(then called Bobby Tapert)would prove to be a work of endurance and love and also one of the more entertaining horror films made in the eighties.

The plot is painfully simple: Five young adults from Michigan drive off into the woods for a camping vacation,using a seldom-used cabin as their haunt. They uncover a tape recorder and a crusty,dusty and blood-and-flesh-coated "Book of the Dead" or "Necromonicon",inadvertently incant the chant that awakes a limitless supply of malevolent spirits in the woods,and then one by one get picked off until a lone survivor is left to fight to escape. The story isn't much of an accomplishment:it's the whole physical undertaking that's the real accomplishment.

On a small budget that was probably getting smaller as the shoot continued(I don't know the exact amount of time of filming,but it probably lasted at least a year),the filmmakers and stars(all of 'em,most famously budding star Bruce Campbell as the conflicted but can-do Ash)had to make the most of a limited set,claustrophobic settings,gallons of viscous fluids,endless supplies of cakey make-up,a limited amount of lighting(probably NOT an accident,there) and probably a mass-produced amount of fog to create something that has both the feel of a creepily eerie film about the undead and yet had the effects to back up the type of slasher horror pic that the producers were aiming for.

The first of an intriguing trio of horror/comedy films that Raimi,Tapert,Campbell and company would crank out over a period of just under fifteen years(and,after seeing this film in full,I'm not sure if anyone involved originally intended to make any sequels),the atmosphere and noticeably cheap effects may turn-off your pickier horror film snobs,but anyone with a sense of adventure and high tolerance for gore will be reasonably pleased--if not greatly impressed--by this first effort film. A keeper,not a renter,not only for repeated viewing but also for the extras.

The Evil Dead is a film that scared me. In fact, everyone I spoke to has been scared of this film.

It really is a horrible film. You feel sorry for the characters in it. They are trapped in a cabin in the woods with some evil looking demons. The forest itself is alive and there is no way out. When I first watched this film I wanted the good guys to die because I felt sorry for them.

This film is one of the great horrors like The Omen, Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Nightmare on Elm Street. There are some truly creepy scenes in the film. The scariest scenes are where the girls are possessed by the demons. The other really scary scene is where the demon is in the cellar-I couldn't stop thinking about that scene.

The best horror films are the ones where the characters are in hopeless situations with no easy way out. The Evil Dead is one of those films. It really is creepy. Make sure you watch this film during daylight hours. Those with a nervous disposition should avoid.

Sam Raimi proved to the world that he could not only direct a movie but that he could create a product that was not only original but that could scare the hell out of you. Since the 1981 release, Bruce Campbell has found work on many film projects due to his break out performance in the Evil Dead. Raimi, has gone on to direct many films. Both have earned much of their career based on this little horror movie, that has been re-produced / recycled by thousands of "wanna-be" film makers world wide. This is not your typical "zombie" film, let alone your garden variety horror movie as well. The Evil Dead is one of those black comedies / horror movies that overwhelms the audience to either be scared out of their wits or won over by the movie's story and over the top characters. The Evil Dead is what most, if not all horror movies should be, very real and powerful.

For a film that was made on a budget that would make Steven Spielberg die laughing, "Evil Dead" was one for the most interesting pieces of horror cinema I've ever seen. I watched the series backwards, so "Army of Darkness" was the film I saw first, then "Evil Dead II." While "Evil Dead II" is probably still my favorite, it was interesting to see where it all started.

The camera work is incredibly good, and the fast motion sequences showing the demon's approach was pretty well done, if not completely original. Though also interesting, and kinda funny to note is that we see the characters running away, but when the camera switches away from the demon's view, we don't see the demon, and that seems like a touch of genius...we know it's there, but we can't see it, and while it probably was a limitation of the budget, it actually proved to be a great method of suspense.

The special effects are as laughable as they were in the rest of the series, but there's something to be said for a film that takes its chances and goes to the extreme in lieu of lacking resources. People complain about this a lot, but I have to say to them "get a sense of humor." The whole point of the "Evil Dead" series was to mock horror films and show how campy they were and that they could get even worse. It's humor is in that the film tries to take itself seriously, but the lack of a big budget makes this not only impossible, but even funny in spite of the fact that it could conceivable be a serious film.

The acting is also terrible, but again in that way that it's so obviously bad that it's hard to tell were the actors just plain bad or were they doing that deliberately to serve the purpose of mocking the genre. Bruce Campbell's introduction into the world of abused heroes is interesting since his character is actually less of a chauvinist in this one than he ultimately became famous for. But it works, and the horror on his face when his friend has no reservations about chopping up his possessed girlfriend is actually believable.

Overall, this movie is a great piece of cinema. It's humorous, but serious as well, and its greatest strength is its ability to draw the line between being part of the genre and mocking it. There are plenty of moments of original horror (I don't think anybody could keep their composure during the "Tree Rape" scene, which they repeated to lesser effect in "Evil Dead II," but let's face it that movie was supposed to be a rehash and extension). Give the film a chance and don't take it too seriously. Otherwise you're missing the point.

It has many virtues for see it again. From the humor and make up, to the animation and Bruce Campbell in action, from the nice frame about the poor Sumerians to the end and, sure, the fight scenes, all is seductive, making The Evil Dead a classic. A film of detals, it defines, in fair manner, the horror of the period.