Evil Dead Rise

If there is something we have learned in the world of horror films, is that a big budget doesn´t make a good horror film. What you need is a good idea, great characters and especially practical effects that actually works. It doesn´t matter how much CGI effects you believe will make a scene better, it will never be as good as it is from a practical effects point of view. This is why i defend a lot of old horror films that didn´t have the oppurtunity to use effects with computers. they had to create everything themselves with practical make up effects and create evil characters that really worked on screen. There are of course a lot ot classic titles i could easily mention but let us go back in time to the year of 1981 when director Sam Raimi released his full feature directorial debut film The Evil Dead. Considering the budget that this film was made on and the practical effects they used, The Evil Dead really proved that you can make effective horror films on a very limited budget. This film tells the story of five Michigan State University students who travel to a isolated cabin in rural Tennessee. Down in the cellar, Ash ( Bruce Campbell ) and Scott ( Richard DeManicor ) look around to see what they can find, and there lies a very old book they have never seen before. They bring the book upstairs and it is translated Naturom Demonto, a Sumerion version of the Egyptian Book Of The Dead. Scott plays the tape recorder found close to the book, where archaeologist Raymond Knowby ( Bob Dorian ) speaks of the pages of the book, and while they listen to the tape they resurrect a demonic entity. The Evil Dead is not only a really fun horror film, but this film also proved why director Sam Raimi was brilliant and using camera angles in his own unique way. The Evil Dead was a really big success in the 80´s and gave director Sam Raimi a lot of respect among horror fans as well as audiences worldwide. The sequel Evil Dead 2 is even better than the first film according to me, and actor Bruce Campbell really proved his acting ability in this film as well. I also really enjoy Army Of Darkness ( also known as Evil Dead 3 ) from director Sam Raimi as well. A different take on this franchise but really entertaining. 20 years after Army Of Darkness we got a remake of Evil Dead in 2013 from director Fede Alvarez, and i really enjoy this remake that clearly showed respect for this franchise. So here we are 10 years later with a Evil Dead sequel, simply calle Evil Dead Rise. With a different story and a brand new director on board, is this film better than i expected or should they have skipped making this sequel and left the franchise alone?

Guitar technician Beth ( Lilly Sullivan ) is upset when she finds out that she is pregnant and decides to visit her sister Ellie at the Monde Apartments complex in L.A. ( Alyssa Sutherland ), a tatoo artist. These sisters are not very close anymore, affected by their past. Ellie is a single mother to teenagers Danny ( Morgan Davies ) and Bridget ( Gabrielle Echols ), as well as her youngest daughter Kassie ( Nell Fisher ). While the children return home after going out to buy pizza for everyone, an earthquake open up a concealed chamber down in the basement parking lot. Danny investigate the chamber and find old records dated all the way back to the year of 1923, as well as a very strange looking book. Not knowing what these records are all about, and the connection to the strange book, he and his family are about to find out that something very evil is about to be released.

In the first 20 minutes of Evil Dead Rise you get a sense that this is just another attempt to cash in on the Evil Dead franchise. I know some people were impressed with the opening scene of the film title and it does look good, but i wouldn´t say it is scary. It is after these 20 minutes when we get closer to about 30 minutes into the film when things become more interesting. This is where we finally feel the Evil Dead influences come to life and bring some fun. I have some other negative things to say but let´s leave that to later on in this review. So let´s talk about what i enjoy most of Evil Dead Rise. Some of the gore effects are fun and are quite brutal in some scenes, and this is exactly what i would want in an Evil Dead film. There is even an eye flying scene similar to Evil Dead 2 ( not as effective i would say as in Evil Dead 2, but still a fun watch ), and that to me shows that they tried to show their appreciation to the classic films. The biggest highlight when it comes to the gore is when they really make it extremely brutal towards the end. Actress Alyssa Sutherland ( who played the character Aslaug in the TV series Vikings ) is definetely the highlight of Evil Dead Rise playing the character Ellie. Especially when she is possessed and bring on several fun scenes and really go out of control. The children in this film are surprisingly good and i think they bring something for each character, so we get a little bit sense of who they really are. Ok so i have to talk about the negative about Evil Dead Rise, and that is that i will probably not remember this film that much in the next 20 years. What do i mean by that? The shock elements are not as effective to me as it was in the 2013 remake of Evil Dead from director Fede Alvarez. That remake really understood what Evil Dead was all about and captured a lot of the spirit from the previous Evil Dead films, while Evil Dead Rise tries to go in a different direction. That doesn´t mean i dislike this new film for trying something different, i still enjoy it. But if i compare this latest film with the 2013 remake i can tell you right away i will most likely remember that film more than Evil Dead Rise, because the shock elements in this latest film isn´t quite strong enough. It may be that i have seen so many horror films that it is hard to shock me at all, unless someone does something original or unexpected. I will say that i still enjoy Evil Dead Rise for what it is, a gory horror film with some fun suprises. Director Lee Cronin ( director of the horror film The Hole In The Ground, worth checking out ) tries to do something different with Evil Dead Rise and i have to applaud him for his effort, because he does manage to bring something different into the genre. He does manage to capture some effective horror moments throughout this film, especially with the brutal scenes. If you are a fan of this franchise i am pretty sure you will enjoy this film, but as i said earlier do not expect the same shock value as in the 2013 remake. There is a chance you might be disappointed.

Rating: DDD