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| Huge types on this poster state the over-confident tagline for Fede Alvarez's Evil Dead |
Evil Dead is a reboot of Michigander master filmmaker Sam Raimi's (Spider-Man (2002)) three picture cult franchise (1981-1992), which has many similarities with the original first movie, Evil Dead (1981), yet is also quite different: While the original film is told in a more creeping style, slower and scarier, this Evil Dead is more of a post 'torture porn' version: Fast, relentlessly gory and good-looking, if a tad hollow.
5 youngsters go to a cabin in the woods to clean up one of the guy's sister, who is a junkie. But Evil rests there, - and death and dismemberment ensue.
Another critique to feature debuting co-writer/director Fede Alvarez's (Don't Breathe (2016)) work here is that his Evil Dead barely has a first act, - Those seeking character specifics, - that little bit of 'meat' which might actually make us feel for (and with) the unfortunate youths, - will mostly search in vain here. All five of the cast spew dialog which mostly just states their intentions, such as; 'I am scared that...', 'we should...' and so on, blended with plenty of 'fucks' and 'fricking's' and other expletives, making it all very 'young' and certainly action-oriented. The 1981 original has more character color and humor, but despite the new Evil Dead being nearly bereft of humor, it still is a fun ride for a horror fan.
Hollywood up-and-comers Jane Levy (Monster Trucks (2016)) and hunky Shiloh Fernandez (Deadgirl (2008) are the leads. Levy twists and turns like a pro, while Fernandez does what he can with what is essentially an insubstantial character.
A generous four stars are nevertheless awarded to this reboot, which makes up for what it lacks in substance by being literally one hell of a ride: SPOILER From the opening thrill of watching a father lighting his daughter on fire, - justifiably, - to an awesome remake of the forest rape scene from the original film, the movie lacks nothing in images of extreme horror and mayhem. And is therefore only warmly recommended for true horror fans.
Evil Dead is co-written with Rodo Sayagues (Don't Breathe) and produced by the writer/director, the producer and the star of the original trilogy: Sam Raimi, Rob G. Tapert (Boogeyman (2005)) and Bruce Campbell (The Woods (2006))
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Alvarez is interviewed about his second feature Don't Breathe (2016) at the 2016 San Diego Comic-Con in this video
Cost: 17 mil. $
Box office: 97.5 $
= Huge hit (returned 5.73 times its cost)
[Evil Dead premiered 8 March (SXSW Festival, Austin, Texas) and runs 92 minutes. A remake was in development for years before it landed with Uruguayan Alvarez helming it. He was contacted solely on the basis of his 5-minute short Panic Attack/Ataque de Pánico! (2009), which achieved roughly 5 mil. views on Youtube and is about his native Montevideo being invaded and blown up by robots. Watch it here. Made on reportedly just 300 $, (and an unreported number of work hours), Alvarez has informed that his obvious knack for creating CGI effects was mostly shelved for Evil Dead, which, like the original trilogy, relies on practical effects, using CGI just for 'touch-ups'. Shooting took place in Auckland, New Zealand in 70 days from April - July 2017. The film opened #1 to a 25.7 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it fell to #5 in its second week and from there left the top 5 the following week, grossing 54.2 mil. $ (55.6 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were Germany with 6.5 mil. $ (6.7 %) and Russia with 5.9 mil. $ (6.1 %). The franchise has since spurred a popular TV-series: Ash vs Evil Dead (2015-). Alvarez returned with From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series (2014, TV-series) and theatrically with great horror Don't Breathe (2016). Levy returned in Kroll Show (2014, TV-series) and theatrically in About Alex (2014); Fernandez in Deep Powder (2013). Evil Dead is fresh at 62 % with a 6.16/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]
What do you think of Evil Dead?
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