#Evil dead 2013 review series#

Watching the directorвЂ™s short film (вЂњ Panic AttackвЂњ), one wouldвЂ™ve expected a similar playful inventiveness to carry over (which is probably what convinced Raimi and co. (To be fair, the original featured a mostly forgettable round-up of characters as well with Ash arising as the unexpected hero.) TheyвЂ™re clearly all game and willing to be put through the ringer here, but there just isnвЂ™t anything to work with. Outside of Mia whose defining attribute in early scenes seems to be вЂњhysterical,вЂќ to try to describe the other characters with any adjectives other than вЂњblandвЂќ would be a disservice to the script, which doesnвЂ™t imbue any of its characters with traits that are even recognizably human. But before too long the group find the Necronomicon in the cellar and begin reading from it, awakening an evil spirit which begins to inhabit and dismember them one by one. The group includes the aforementioned addict Mia ( Jane Levy), her friends Olivia ( Jessica Lucas) and Eric ( Lou Taylor Pucci), her brother David ( Zac Efron stand-in Shiloh Fernandez), who weвЂ™re told hasnвЂ™t been there for her in years, and his girlfriend Natalie ( Elizabeth Blackmore). But they havenвЂ™t come for a weekend getaway, theyвЂ™re there so that one of them can detox off heroin. After a brief (and regrettable) prologue designed to put some horror right up front, we follow five kids into a cabin in the woods.

Featuring truly shocking levels of violence but none of the wit or fun of the original, the new вЂњEvil DeadвЂќ is mostly a dud. Unfortunately for fans, it seems that Alvarez (and by extension producers Raimi, Campbell and Tapert) may not have understood what made the originals great in the first place.

#Evil dead 2013 review series#

And since they perhaps felt they were getting a little old for another go-round themselves вЂ“ itвЂ™s been 20 years since the third and previously final installment вЂњ Army Of DarknessвЂќ вЂ“ a remake/reboot/вЂќrebirthвЂќ must have seemed really the only way to go.ДЄfter roughly a decade of trying to bring the series back to life, the trio eventually settled on newcomer Fede Alvarezas co-writer/director, signed on as producers and promised fans that they would not be disappointed. But after years of being assaulted with fan questions about a fourth installment, the trio behind the original (Campbell, writer/director Sam Raimi and producer Robert Tapert) probably felt it was their duty to give the fans what they wanted. This was something that star/producer Bruce Campbell acknowledged during the Q&A at last nightвЂ™s SXSW World Premiere. When the вЂњ Evil DeadвЂќ remake was first announced, everyone pretty much assumed that it was going to suck.