Released way back before cable TV and before VHS' made low budget merchandise available to the average viewer, “The Evil Dead” found its audience with the midnight movie horror festival audience. This did not get a nationwide release. Privately owned theaters bought prints and slowly the film went from coast to coast and even landed in Britain. By this time, videos were getting popular and it was released on VHS at the same time as a very limited theatrical release.
Critics and censors didn't care for the trash and not long after that it was submitted to the video trash can and banned. Gator MacReady stated in his review, “As silly as this may seem, that was the logic of the BBFC.” The fact that it is inventive and well directed was not really looked at by them. Until some years back, only cult audiences appreciated its value. With Anchor Bay's new DVD everyone can enjoy the uncut, standard and best-look of the movie ever presented.
Originally released in 1981 as “The Book of the Dead,” this was a feature length remake of Sam Raimi's short film, “Within the Woods.” The plot and story is about five friends enjoying a few days of quiet at an abandoned cabin in the Tennessee woods. Just to clarify, these are not the same kids as the “Friday the 13th” franchise, they are realistic. All of it goes nicely until Scotty, played by Hal Delrich, finds this hideous looking book (with a face) and an old tape recorder in the basement. The tape is about an archaeologist explaining how he resurrected demons that took over his wife in that same cabin. The professor is nowhere to be found, but the haunting burial rites and magic spells written in Sumerian text in this book, The Necronomicon Ex Mortis-Book of the Dead, are on the tape as well.
Sheryl, played by Ellen Sandweiss, gets scared. She hears an unholy voice out in the woods. “Join us!” Being the naive person she is, she goes out to investigate and is attacked by a tree. Although this part isn't so hard to watch, the film still has the power to disturb and make you move.
Once Sheryl returns, evil stuff happens and Raimi has an enjoyable time firing downpours of polychromatic blood throughout the cabin. Limbs are cut off with untroubled unrestraint and poor old Ash, played by Bruce Campbell, has to take them all alone.
I agree with MacReady when he says, “The supernatural hijinks were repeated to a much lesser effect in the sequel, but here Raimi creates an atmosphere of dread and whatever that force is out in the woods - it's scary.” It does have some humor, but for the first watch, filmmakers obviously wanted the horror first. You'll flinch a few times, undeniably. The raw tone goes hand-in-hand with the low budget and Raimi's eccentric, hardcore comic strip style is very much evident.
More time is spent on building character. Ash loves his girlfriend, Linda, played by Betsy Baker, and an easy little scene between them makes us completely on his side. He is still to become the pathetic clown, as he will reprise in the sequels.
At the very least, “The Evil Dead” has gotten much popularity that it can no longer be called a cult movie. It's not a classic yet, but it is highly regarded and definitely worth sitting and watching multiple times.
With that said, you should definitely see this movie. It was made low-budget, but for the time, this wasn't the only horror movie that was made low-budget. A good handful of horror movies started out that way. If you like Bruce Campbell and want to see him playing his most popular movie character that he has ever played, then you should check out this movie and the sequels. Theresa Tilly is also in this movie playing Shelly, but she was credited as Sarah York.
How is “Evil Dead II” compared to this one? Find out tomorrow when I continue with “Evil Dead-a-thon,” which is the next series I will look at for “Halloween Month.”
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