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Retro reviews: 'The Evil Dead'
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One of many release posters
Thirty years ago, Sam Raimi and company began principal photography on “Book of the Dead” the film which would later be retitled “The Evil Dead.” Shooting on a shoestring budget, the film took nearly a year and a half to complete. When it was eventually released in theaters in 1981, it had little success at the box office and was banned in several countries worldwide. At the time, no one would have predicted that this film would go on to be considered one of the greatest horror films of all time.
The story is simple enough. A group of five friends journey to a cabin deep in the woods for a weekend of partying, but unwittingly resurrect ancient demons that come for their souls. What ensues from that point forward is an absolute bloodbath. One by one they become possessed, turning from happy-go-lucky college students into decaying, crazed lunatics who can only be stopped “through the act of bodily dismemberment.”
“The Evil Dead” was part of the “gore boom” of the mid-70’s to early-80’s, where each horror film released attempted to have more blood and guts, along with better special effects, than the last. But what made “The Evil Dead” different was that it didn’t take itself too seriously and, at times, seemed to poke fun at its own genre. Prime example: a woman wanders into the woods (in typical horror movie fashion), but doesn’t fall victim to an ax wielding maniac. She gets attacked by the trees themselves and ends up being sexually assaulted by a tree branch. Man-on-woman rape: bad. Tree-on-woman rape: huh? If rapist trees aren’t your thing, there is still plenty of blood, mutilations, shotgun blasts, and exploding demons, to keep any real horror fan happy.
“The Evil Dead” also gave the world its first glimpse into the genius of Sam Raimi. Mostly known today as the director of the insanely popular “Spider-Man” films, Raimi’s experimental and influential approach to film-making was first showcased right here. It is amazing to think that at the time of production Raimi was just twenty-years-old.
“The Evil Dead’s” influence on horror has been immeasurable. The film itself has been copied time and time again by various filmmakers, but no one has been able to duplicate it. It represents a time in horror cinema history when filmmakers were bringing their art to a new, more gruesome level, perhaps what some would call the horror renaissance. We can only hope that Raimi’s return to horror this weekend with “Drag Me to Hell” can recapture half the magic made in “The Evil Dead.”
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