EVIL DEAD
Starring
Bruce Campbell Ellen Sandweiss Hal Delrich Betsy Baker Sarah York
Make-up Effects by Tom Sullivan Music by Joe LoDuca
Produced by Robert G. Tapert
Written and Directed by Sam Raimi
Renaissance Pictures Ltd.
1982
"The most ferociously original horror movie I have ever seen" - Stephen King
BOOK OF THE DEAD
With a budget of $50,000 raised from a splatter short "Within the Woods", and some experience of making homemade movies, Sam and Bruce, (old high school buddies) were ready to raise the dead. On November 11th, 1979 the creative geniuses and crew got together during their first production meeting in a small town outside of Knoxvill, Tennessee. Morristown. About a mile away from Morristown is where the filmed. They used 16mm film which was later printed to 35mm. The cabin was "totally demolished" and had to be rebuilt. The exterior shots, car scenes, etc. were filmed first while work was being done on the cabin. The cabin is actually a bit bigger than it looks. Tom Sullivan's contract ended before the ending was shot, so everyone else chipped in on the effects at the end. Filming wrapped up on Jan 26th, 1980 and back to Detroit for post-production. The film was then released in the US on Oct. 15, 1981.
Review
The Evil Dead, the Ultimate Experience in Grueling Horror
Truly gratifying. A group of college students take a vacation in a secluded cabin in the woods. Everything would have been fine if only they had stayed out of the basement. Upon finding Necronomicon, The Book of The Dead "bound in human flesh and inked in human blood" they release something more frightening than their nightmares could have never created.
I love the chase scenes in the woods. Evil just flows through the trees with it's eyes on nothing but human flesh to sink its teeth into and a human soul to bathe in.
What is keeping them isolated from the rest of the world is that the bridge they came in on has been uprooted into the shape of a claw, as if the cabin and woods are in satans palm.
Raimi's direction and camera angeles are terrorific. You can tell Raimi had seen some Lucio Fulci flicks from one of the earlier scenes of the close ups of the characters eyes. The camera work in the 2nd half and end are the best.
Those demon eyes are something else, huh? I guess they could only keep the contacts in for 15 minutes at a time. Remember this was 1979. Notice the Hill Have Eyes poster in the basement? How about the name Ashley for a hero. Bob Dorian, the host AMC, does the voice of the professor on the recordings.
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"I don't care what happens to her! | 
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EVIL DEAD II DEAD BY DAWN
Starring
Bruce Campbell Sarah Berry Dan Hicks Kassie Wesley Richard Domeier
Make-up Effects by Mark Shostrom Music by Joseph Lo Duca
Director of Photography Peter Deming Produced by Robert Tapert
Written by Sam Raimi Scott Spiegel Directed by Sam Raimi
Renaissance Pictures Ltd.
1987
Evil Dead II, the Sequel to the Ultimate Experience in Grueling Terror
It is a sequel not a remake! Bruce Campbell says so himself. The creators could not get the rights to the original movie so they had to shoot a 6 minute recap with only Ash and his girlfriend going to the cabin, with the sequel starting as Ash flies through the trees and into a puddle.
Take a great movie, Evil Dead, use the same plot with a bigger budget and a slice of cheese and you got Evil Dead II. I love it though. The cinematography is something else. The flying through the woods, the sink part, the hand's view crawling on the floor, the eye ball flying across the room, Ash really getting to know himself while looking into the mirror, and the warped camera effects.
There is a few interesting things about this one. The first is the necklace that is lying on the carpet. Notice the shape the chain is in. It resembles a skull. Also, when Ash is in the basement and is walking towards the door there is a Freddy Krueger glove on the wall.
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"There's something out there. |
ARMY OF DARKNESS
Army of Darkness, the Ultimate Experience in Medieval Horror
Very entertaining. Nothing but a cheesy action movie. There has never been a film that has had its one-liners exploited as much as this one. It's on TV at least once a month. Check the USA Network or the Sci-Fi Network.
Ash is now in midevil times and upon trying to get back to the present he opens a whole can of worms. Or should I say Deadites.
The alternate ending had Ash in a cave getting ready to drink a concoption that the wizard made to take him forward in time. One drop a century and then a deep sleep in which he will wake up in the present. Of corse Ash take one drop to many and wakes up in the post-apocalyptic future. He then looks up at the red sky and screams. Like the ending to The Planet of the Apes.