Evil Dead [2013, remake] Review
I remember the first time I watch Evil
Dead. It was in college at a friend's family house during
Thanksgiving break. We also rented Reindeer Games. I mistook Ben
Affleck for Keanu Reeves because the film was that terrible; but that
is another story. I had already watched Army of Darkness and Evil
Dead II in that order mind you. I liked horror films well enough. I
was more interested in the origin of the antagonist when watching it.
I knew it would be a low budgeted film. I was still impressed by the
film; even with the paperback version of the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis.
Bruce Campbell is quite a gem for many pictures.
I miss Bruce Campbell for this film.
The Remake does a little twist to why
four “young adults” are out at a creepy cabin in the middle of
the woods. The sister Mia [Jane Levy] is a drug addict who wants to
clean up her act. Her brother David [Shiloh Fernandez], his
girlfriend Natalie, Eric and Olivia join her at the siblings' old
family cabin out in the middle of the woods. You can easily call the
cast by the roles they play: Sister, Brother, Girlfriend, Nerd, and
Doctor. Technically Olivia is a RN, which is pointed out as plotty
goodness and not fully addressed. Eric is pissed that David left and
never visited them when he moved. This is fleshed out by the back
story of Mia and David's mom getting ill explains that his
disappearance and the reason why he wants back in Mia's life. Olivia
plays the sympathetic part and total bastard through the movie. Eric
is the nerd who is far too inquisitive for his own good with no
background to why he was interested in the occult. Natalie plays the
girlfriend, but more on that point later. That is all the background
these character were given.
The Remake itself was decent. As a
horror movie it held up on its own. It was a well contained story. I
felt the pacing was tight and consistent. I did not notice very much
CGI. There were many practical effects and were well done. The movie
tires to break the mold of past horror films as a whole, but those
moments were few and far between. Many times it was the same shtick,
sprinkled with homages and lines from the series. It had the same
trappings like any other horror film, which is fine. You should
always keep some basics. However, there were some problems.
I neglect to mention there is a cold
opening at the beginning. The film makers play up some quite
important plot points that could easily indicate a reason that the
cabin would be watched so nothing evil could take place again.
Perhaps that'll be in the sequel; yes there is a sequel in the works.
I was not expecting much for characters, but the set up felt rushed
for the gore and horror. For example Natalie could have been a little
more fleshed out. She had just one defining moment and it was quiet a
doozy. It looked like her character was there just to fill space
with out any significance. The other characters had their respective
roles as I mentioned above, but she could have been an Ash or
anything to be honest.
In conclusion, the writers gave out the
lines of the past movie like it was candy to feed the Evil Dead fans
with little or no consequence. The characters are squandered many
times for the sake of pace. It played out like a typical horror film.
That is not necessarily a bad thing, but I was hoping for something a
little more unique. I do find that amusing to say about a remake, but
originality can happen from time to time. The film ran for 90
minutes. If the movie was fleshed out for the characters; it would
easily loose the pace of an Evil Dead film, something the film makers
were aiming for. It looked great and sounded well. There were times
when whispers of dialogue would pop into a scene. The first time I
happened, I thought it was another moviegoer. The film would be worth
a matinee price for a horror fan. An Evil Dead fan would have some
misgivings for it. I would rate it middle of the road, 2 ½ out of 5.
Labels: Bruce Campbell, Evil Dead, movie review, Remakes
posted by GJ at 12:30 AM
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