Title: Evil Dead<\/p>\n
Screened at: SXSW 2013<\/p>\n
Directed By: Fede Alvarez<\/p>\n
Starring: Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Jessica Lucas, Lou Taylor Pucci, Elizabeth Blackmore<\/B><\/p>\n
Extreme gore paired with the most minimal story support is generally not a good thing \u2013 unless you\u2019ve got a man like Fede Alvarez behind the lens.<\/p>\n
After a near-lethal overdose, Mia\u2019s (Jane Levy) brother, David (Shiloh Fernandez), his girlfriend, Natalie (Elizabeth Blackmore), and their longtime friends, Olivia and Eric (Jessica Lucas and Lou Taylor Pucci), decide enough is enough. They\u2019re going to get Mia sober once and for all. They bring her out to their family\u2019s secluded cabin in the woods for some privacy, but are shocked to find someone\u2019s been there \u2013 someone with a thing for killing animals and keeping a certain book locked up tight. While Mia struggles through her withdrawal and David trashes the carcasses, Eric pops open the forbidden book and reads aloud, unleashing an unimaginable evil that makes a b-line for poor Mia.<\/p>\n
But even with all that backstory, \u201cEvil Dead\u201d isn\u2019t about much more than gore. Each cast member assumes your typical horror movie caricature \u2013 Mia\u2019s the leading lady, David\u2019s the dashing hero, Natalie\u2019s the hot blonde, Olivia\u2019s the devoted friend, and Eric\u2019s the more intellectual of the bunch. There\u2019s some talk about a tumultuous history involving Mia and David\u2019s disturbed mother who has since passed and Mia\u2019s issue with substance abuse is fleshed out enough to have value, but once the violence, brutality and gore start pouring in, the shock value of the visuals are so overwhelming, they blur all the narrative around it – and there\u2019s actually nothing wrong with that because the brutality is so exceptionally well done.<\/p>\n
Alvarez is the ideal director for this type of material. His imagery is on point from the moment the film begins, the screen absolutely oozing not necessarily with blood, but rather stellar lighting. Even before the visuals of the most outrageous violence you\u2019ll see on the big screen kick in, each and every frame of \u201cEvil Dead\u201d is snapshot worthy courtesy of gorgeous backlighting and shot composition. But of course, once Eric mutters those fateful words and the group begins to fall victim to the mysterious force, tunnel vision kicks in and all you can see is gore, gore, gore.<\/p>\n
Think you watch a lot of horror and have seen every possible big kill set piece? Just wait until you catch \u201cEvil Dead.\u201d If the film\u2019s red band trailer made you squirm and gave you the urge to cheer for more death, the full feature will absolutely blow you away. You may have a sense of what\u2019s coming courtesy of that trailer, but in context and in full form, with seemingly zero gore boundaries, the tongue slicing, face mangling and more will quite literally have you jumping out of your seat \u2013 whether it\u2019s because you\u2019re genuinely scared or are about to become that crazy person cheering at the screen.<\/p>\n
And even though \u201cEvil Dead\u201d is light on character development, the cast deserves a great deal of credit for what looks like some of the most exhausting performances in horror history. Each actor may play his or her genre stereotype, but in some cases, they turn and have to tap into a demonic force that requires them to deliver extreme facial expressions, contort their bodies and represent sheer lunacy, and each and every one of them nails it.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s that commitment to going to the maximum that makes this \u201cEvil Dead\u201d remake work. Should Alvarez and his writing team have tried to beef up the plot, even the most valid story details would have paled in comparison to the effects evil unleashed. Mommy issues, a drug problem, whatever it may be, any and all real life problems would be long gone should someone get tree-raped and start attacking their friends. And while \u201cEvil Dead\u201d may be gore for the sake of gore, it\u2019s the best type possible courtesy of a committed cast and a director with an eye for striking visuals and the skillset to deliver a show of carnage that may be lacking in story, but still feels deeply thoughtful.<\/p>\n
Technical: A<\/p>\n
Acting: A-<\/p>\n
Story: B<\/p>\n
Overall: B+<\/B><\/p>\n
![\"Evil](\"http:\/\/g-ecx.images-amazon.com\/images\/G\/01\/imdb\/plugins\/rating\/images\/imdb_31x14.png\")