Evil Dead

A few things before we begin. At the time of writing this review I have a poll going that I would like you to vote in. It's all about some changes that could be headed to Rath's Reviews. Right now, it looks like you guys want me to start reviewing older movies and videogames. If you are reading this and have not voted yet then VOTE! Let me know what I can do to make your experience with Rath's Reviews better! Secondly, this post features some disturbing images (PG-13ish) so dont say I didn't warn you. Turn away now if you don't like blood or demons. In other words: Mom if you are reading this, stop now. Dad, you too.

The poster to your right says that the Evil Dead will be the most terrifying film you will ever experience. It's not. But it might be one of the most disturbing. 

For those of you who are just joining me, the horror genre might be my least favorite. I find that most of them don't truly scare me and are just really demented. The only times that I have been consistently scared in a movie is during the Paranormal Activity films. Say what you want about the series, but I truly think that it is currently the scariest horror series out there. A few months ago an absolutely nuts red-band trailer came out for Evil Dead promising that it would haunt my dreams at night. I went in expecting just non-stop scares and balls-to-the-wall images that would prohibit me from even starting a REM cycle within the next 24 hours. Chock this one up to high expectations but Evil Dead did not meet them, which is perhaps why I am not a fan of the horror genre...I tend to expect too much of them because I have seen too few of them to know any better. I'll comment more on that later before I give it a rating, but let's talk about the movie itself for a little while. 

Introducing our cast (from left to right): Really Dumb, Pretty
Dumb, and Dr. F**king Stupid

A screaming guy with blood on his face and a 
chainsaw....is anyone surprised by this?

Evil Dead starts off like every other horror movie ever created: kids at a cabin in the woods. But I'll give it that since this is a remake of the horror classic and I'm sure it was one of the first to feature that setting (and no, I have not seen the original). However, this cabin in the woods story is kind of different because these kids are here to help their friend, Mia, overcome heroin addiction by stopping her cold turkey. An intervention of sorts I guess you could say. It works well because it gives reasoning for the early events going on when Mia starts going crazy obviously because of her withdrawals. But other than that, it just like every other horror movie you have ever seen as far as plot goes. Demonic possessions, "we can kill the demon if we kill the host", dying one-by-one, world's-stupidest-characters-who-find-a-book-of-witchcraft-and-decide-to-open-it-and-read-it....you get the picture here. I guess I dont have much room to complain about generic plots since the action genre is basically all about nukes and Russians these days, but still this whole setup gets tiring. Apparently the forests of the United States are riddled with demons, ghosts, devils, and really, really dumb kids. Thanks Obama! 

Such a potty mouth on this one. Seriously the things that come
out of her mouth, other than the blood-vomit and demon
branch, are just vulgar. Someone get the bar of soap!

You really don't want to know what's happening
right now. And yes, that's blood. Her blood. 

Whereas the first Evil Dead had a sense of comedy to it (or so I hear), this one is all serious, all the time. I think it actually worked for the better because I did get a much larger sense of dread in this film than I do in most horror pictures. For some inexplicable reason, I really felt like these were people fighting for their lives, other than their idiotic decisions. I think the reasoning for this is because of the way that Evil Dead was shot. It's got surprisingly good cinematography for a horror flick and it gave it a sense of "epicness" that is often missing from lesser horror pictures. And speaking of epicness...Evil Dead is gory. I think they gave away two of the more "OMG" gore parts in the red-band trailer, but regardless the gore here is still cray-cray. Once things get started, it's pretty constant and almost always shocking, particularly the very end. There were a few times where I had my hands placed right under my eyes in preparation to cover them so I didn't have to see what was coming, as well as a few turns of my head while I showed disdain/dry-heaved because of what was being shown on screen. This movie is certainly not for the faint of heart and it will make you feel like you need a shower afterwards, but the gore here is far more appreciated than it is in most other horror movies. In movies like Saw, the gore is there because it's a "torture-porn" film and that's why you are there. Here, it serves a purpose for the most part. But boy...is some of it hard to watch! 

In all reality, I shouldn't be reviewing this movie. I never saw the original and I am certainly no horror buff. I "enjoyed" myself in the theater for this one and I appreciate it for what it is. But I was never really jumping in my seat from fear; I was just very disturbed by the whole thing. Which I guess is fun? 

AHHHH!!! This demon be whack!
But I bet she can get to the center of a
Tootsie-Pop faster now!

Recently I got in a bit of an argument with someone on an entertainment site called IGN. He was commenting on another movie reviewer's score and it was a stupid comment so I thought I would call him out. I told him that he should start setting his expectations up appropriately for a movie. You don't go into a Michael Bay movie expecting character development, a Will Ferrell comedy expecting an intricate plot, or a superhero movie expecting bad special effects. I like to rate movies on what they set out to do and how well they did it from a technical, emotional, and entertainment standpoint. So for me to give Evil Dead the score I want to give it just because I am not a fan of the horror genre is inaccurate and frankly, unfair. In all honesty, if you are a fan of horror, you HAVE to see this movie as I'm sure it will be a near-classic several years from now. But this is my site after all so my opinion should have some factor into the final score, therefore I will give it a score in between what I would have given it and what a horror fan would most likely give it.

And I'll just stick to my Paranormal Activity once a year. 

Pros:

• Shot surprisingly well. I was impressed several times with the cinematography. There are several iconic images (particularly the final killing) and this is almost entirely due to the camera-work
• The original score worked really well here. It wouldn't be anything that I would download and listen to, but it also helped to add to the sense of "epicness" coming from the film
• Has a sense of dread, severity, and seriousness seeping from it. I really can't put an exact finger on why, but I felt it
• The gore, for better or worse, is insane and I nearly looked away a few times. This coupled with the super-creepy, potty mouthed demon makes for one very disturbing movie
• Having the initial setup pertain to a heroin addict helps make some of the earlier things makes sense and afterwards the movie continues on at a very brisk pace
• I'm not a fan of the horror genre, but I feel like this will be a classic in a couple years

Cons:

• Loses some of its epic qualities at times and makes it feel just like every other horror movie
• Stupid, dumb, idiotic, moronic, mentally deficient characters. This is one of my biggest pet peeves with the genre
• Generic plot, setting, and resolution. Granted it's a remake, but still
• The horror genre needs to get some new tricks up its sleeve...BADLY. For example, you know the trick where the screen is displaying a character (or their reflection in a mirror) and there is nothing there initially but then the camera pans slightly to the side and comes back and there is all the sudden a demon there? This happens at least five times in Evil Dead. It's a dead horse that is continuously beaten. Like I said, the horror genre needs some new tricks

Rath's Review Score: 7/10

Please note that this is the RED BAND trailer. Not suitable for children under 17 and certainly NSFW.