The opening prologue shows a father setting
his possessed daughter on fire and then shooting her in the face at point blank
range.
Cut to the present. Mia (Jane Levy) is trying to kick her
drug habit and has her friends Eric (Lou Taylor Pucci) and Olivia (Jessica
Lucas) for support. Mia’s estranged brother, David (Shiloh Fernandez) and his girlfriend Natalie
(Elizabeth Blackmore) are here too.
The 5 youngsters have chosen a cabin in the woods, away from
human civilization. Of course, this is the same place where the previously
mentioned burning and shooting took place.
.jpg "Shiloh Fernandez as David in Evil Dead (2013)") |
| Shiloh Fernandez as David |
They discover a lot of weird stuff in the cellar. Eric is
very curious about a book, "Naturom Demonto" covered by barbed wires and has been
clearly labeled (in human blood) to be left alone. Eric disregards
these warnings. We would not have a horror movie, if Eric did otherwise!
Following the same course of events as in the original movie,
Mia faces the same ordeal in the woods (aka being violated by the trees in the
woods).
Mia wants to leave the cabin and return to the city. Mia has
failed in her previous efforts and her friends (especially Olivia, a registered
nurse) are determined to see to it that she succeeds this time.
 |
| Lou Taylor Pucci as Eric |
Soon, the others start changing one by one into deadites. David
is still not convinced that supernatural forces are at work. Only Eric suspects that his chanting of the verses in the book
might be the reason.
I am a fan of the original Evil Dead trilogy. Sam Raimi made
the first movie on a shoestring budget and that movie is a certifiable classic.
The sequels had as much slapstick humor as horror. The Sam Raimi-Bruce Campbell
worked wonders.
In the latest movie, there is no successful replacement for
Bruce Campbell’s Ash.
 |
| Jessica Lucas as Olivia |
The movie lacks the enjoyable humor and fun, that Raimi brought to the earlier movies. The aspects of the movie I enjoyed the most were the references to Raimi’s movies and the nail gun “fight” between a deadite and a character. Gore has become the trend with the horror movie genre these days and Evil Dead is only happy to continue this (unfortunate) case.
To give the movie credit where it’s due, the practical effects are very convincing and executed very well. The music by
The last 15 minutes were genuinely gripping. If only the rest of the movie had been as much fun…
 |
| Jane Levy as Mia |
Jane Levy is the best of the bunch with an
excellent performance. Lou Taylor Pucci and Jessica Lucas fare the next best. Elizabeth
Blackmore is adequate.
The biggest disappointment is Shiloh Fernandez as David. He seems to be a
student of the wooden faced school of acting. Hope he achieves the same level
of success as other (equally unappealing but highly successful) contemporaries
like Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner.
Click on the link below to buy your copy:
Recommended to gorehounds only. Readers looking for a
genuine horror movie are recommended to check out the original Evil Dead
trilogy or the recent releases Sinister or Cabin in the Woods.
Image Sources: FilmDistrict, Ghost House Pictures and TriStar Pictures
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