Searching this board, I was surprised not to see a thread dedicated to Sam Raimi's Ultimate Experience in Grueling Horror and it's two sequels.
Unfortunately this isn't a trilogy that gets much love these days. Ask any random person on the street if they know who Michael Myers, Leatherface, Jason
or Freddy are, and they will most likely know who you are talking about; go to a Halloween party wearing a blood-soaked, tattered blue shirt, brown pants,
messy black hair, a red chainsaw "hand", and a boomstick, and 9/10 people have no idea who the hell you're supposed to be (yes, this did happen
to me this year.) However, the 1/10 who do, are probably the hardcore fans of the series.
Like most people, I first discovered the series through watching ARMY OF DARKNESS, when I was about eleven. With it's creative blend of action and comedy, I immediately did my research and found out that this was only the third in a series, so I sought out the original film in the trilogy. I bought THE EVIL DEAD on VHS, thinking it would be a comedy with a similar tone to AoD. Boy, was I wrong. I was genuinely shocked to see how creepy the original was. Where was the badass, chainsaw weidling, one-liner cracking Ash I knew and loved? Instead, I got a young Bruce Capmbell playing a slightly cowardly college kid, who was constantly getting tossed around and thrown into bookshelves, by gruesome looking zombies. Aside from the rapid change of style, I still enjoyed TED and rented EVIL DEAD 2: DEAD BY DAWN, just to see how it tied these two drastically different films together. ED2 ws alot more of what I had in mind when I thought of a prequel to AoD. It's blend of horror and over the top humor would have made James Whale proud.
Several years later, I am still an avid fan of the series, loving each film for what it is. I have the action figures, the DVDs, and the comics, and I always look foward to every bit of Ashley J. Williams merchandise I can get my hands on. There is simply no denying the fact that Bruce Campbell is the MAN. He is the reason I now use Old Spice regularly.
Anyway, I view the series like this:
THE EVIL DEAD: A really dark, and serious horror film, whos gritty and grimy make-up effects, still make it a creepy and cringeworthy horror film today.
EVIL DEAD II: DEAD BY DAWN: A fun horror-comedy with Ash evolving into the character we all know and love.
ARMY OF DARKNESS: A truly badass action-comedy. Okay, so it's budget wasn't very high, and the acting and dialogue is cheesy, but that's why I love it. A truly funny and all around entertaining throwback to the adventure films of Ray Harryhausen.
Hail to the King, Baby.
Now when the hell are Raimi and Campbell gonna give us ED IV? Oh well, at least I have the comic of FREDDY vs JASON vs ASH to hold me over until then....
Like most people, I first discovered the series through watching ARMY OF DARKNESS, when I was about eleven. With it's creative blend of action and comedy, I immediately did my research and found out that this was only the third in a series, so I sought out the original film in the trilogy. I bought THE EVIL DEAD on VHS, thinking it would be a comedy with a similar tone to AoD. Boy, was I wrong. I was genuinely shocked to see how creepy the original was. Where was the badass, chainsaw weidling, one-liner cracking Ash I knew and loved? Instead, I got a young Bruce Capmbell playing a slightly cowardly college kid, who was constantly getting tossed around and thrown into bookshelves, by gruesome looking zombies. Aside from the rapid change of style, I still enjoyed TED and rented EVIL DEAD 2: DEAD BY DAWN, just to see how it tied these two drastically different films together. ED2 ws alot more of what I had in mind when I thought of a prequel to AoD. It's blend of horror and over the top humor would have made James Whale proud.
Several years later, I am still an avid fan of the series, loving each film for what it is. I have the action figures, the DVDs, and the comics, and I always look foward to every bit of Ashley J. Williams merchandise I can get my hands on. There is simply no denying the fact that Bruce Campbell is the MAN. He is the reason I now use Old Spice regularly.
Anyway, I view the series like this:
THE EVIL DEAD: A really dark, and serious horror film, whos gritty and grimy make-up effects, still make it a creepy and cringeworthy horror film today.
EVIL DEAD II: DEAD BY DAWN: A fun horror-comedy with Ash evolving into the character we all know and love.
ARMY OF DARKNESS: A truly badass action-comedy. Okay, so it's budget wasn't very high, and the acting and dialogue is cheesy, but that's why I love it. A truly funny and all around entertaining throwback to the adventure films of Ray Harryhausen.
Hail to the King, Baby.
Now when the hell are Raimi and Campbell gonna give us ED IV? Oh well, at least I have the comic of FREDDY vs JASON vs ASH to hold me over until then....
