I went to see Evil Dead and wrote a review.
You could almost hear the fans waiting ready with bated insults and remake rhetoric to slander Fede Alvarez’s remake of Sam Raimi’s b-movie classic, so much so that it almost rendered the movie obsolete. Fortunately after Raimi was confirmed to be co-producing some hope was restored.
There a few swaying factors that tempt you back from the precipice of disappointment. What’s that you say? Sam Raimi assisted producing? No CGI used throughout? 500, 000 gallons of blood used on set? These glimmers of hope are strong motives, yet ultimately you are left with a vague nod towards the original.
Seeking for an antidote to the cliché of sexy teens stuck in the woods, the plot adds an odd contemporary twist and makes the lead, Jane Levy, a drug addict seeking rehabilitation ‘the hard way’ with her friends. It adds a certain amount of audience bonding, which the original achieves in a much more hands-on way.
For fans of the franchise, you can expect vague acknowledgments that this is a remake but at no point should you expect to be consciously aware of it. The recognition of a few original shots and ideas, but mostly they are re-imagined. Shiloh Fernandez’s delivery is far from the dark, twisted, satirical joy of a young Bruce Campbell.
The soundtrack obviously sets up viewer’s expectations for fright but punctures them in obvious crescendos, leaving you far from the uneasy edges of your seat and feeling rather empty. The ultimate scene in the movie, using the aforementioned gallons of blood, creates a beautiful sodden symphony, exposing the true doom of the characters possession and inevitability of their demise.
It was the drama of their shared mental torture that allowed the original such un-wielding gore, and Mia’s recovery from addiction was the platform this movie used to accomplish that. The female protagonist is a strong feature and Jane Levy captures both parallels of clucking drug addict and a twitching foaming demon. Her whispered lullabies are a haunting throwback to the original.
Fede Alvarez has spoken of his love of the original and working with Sam Raimi, saying in an interview, that he wanted to remain true to the original but change some parts, it is what he calls a “requel.”
Without preaching to a select number of Bruce Campbell loving zombie fans; the original spirit of the film was brought about by unrelenting torture and Raimi’s groundbreaking special effects, and with Alvarez’s admission to make a CGI free movie, he has successfully made a decent horror movie that takes heavy influence from a far superior original.
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