★★★★

Evil Dead II (1987)

Written by Dalton Welsh - November 3, 2020

While there have been examples of sequels expanding from their original film to fit a new genre such as the jump from ‘Alien’ being more horror centric to ‘Aliens’ enacting an action style. I think one of the more drastic changes is that between the first two Evil Dead films, which is interesting considering their plots are near identical, proving how drastically tone can affect a film. While the predecessor was essentially straight horror, Evil Dead II is part horror, part comedy, with Ash Williams once again battling horrifying demons at a secluded cabin in the woods. With camerawork unlike any other film, fantastically theatrical horror, and a perfectly cheesy performance from Bruce Campbell as Ash make this film the gold standard for horror comedies. 

It has been frequently pointed out of late how more modern comedies lack visual comedic techniques, instead vowing to be purely dialogue based, this is certainly not the case for Evil Dead II. With unyieldingly chaotic zooms and tracking shots, often hovering just below the ground to create a greater sense of the speed at which the camera is moving. This both heightens the comedic elements of the film in that is zany and over the top as well as enhancing the horror of the film in its successfully exhausting intensity. There is also a frequent use of close-ups which both gives Bruce Campbell the opportunity to flex his great physical performance and adds another inventive visual technique to the film. Speaking of Bruce Campbell, he is tasked with carrying the majority of the film and he brings such a great natural charisma to his role and a great dedication to the fantastical elements of the film as well as the greatly physical elements, complete with impeccable eyebrow raises. His character is by no means strongly written, but ultimately the intention of the film isn’t to grow or communicate a great character study. Ash instead acts more as a vessel to display the horror of the film. So, while a character you can empathize with more through an understanding of who they are would be greatly welcomed, it’s hard to say if that would be an advantage or detriment to the film. 

This is mainly due to the films pace, at just over 1 hour 20 minutes, after the first 10 minutes setting up the film it is just non-stop from then on out. And the film is just the perfect length to where it doesn’t drag or feel exhausting, so by doing away with the formalities of slowing down the film for character moments it allows the film to maintain its unkempt, unorthodox and fantastical energy. And perhaps including more characterization may come at a cost of the films great flow.

If there were to be any drags to the film, it is perhaps the secondary characters that seem to be there purely to react to or fall victim to the horror of the film. While the cliché elements of their characters are somewhat intentional for the comedic and satirical elements of the film. And their mundanity enhances the presence of Ash, where equally loud personalities may have clashed with his strengths as the protagonist. This doesn’t change the fact that whenever they are on screen you immediately want Ash to return, thankfully the direction from Sam Raimi and the cinematography by Peter Deming make up for this, keeping the film consistently engaging.

Then where there are 80’s horror films, there will almost certainly be some practical effects to go with it. With animatronics and a whole lot of make-up, the in-camera effects give the film a real personal touch as well as making the scenes of horror feel all the more real, despite their highly stylized presentation. 

So all in all, Evil Dead II is by no means a masterpiece in terms of its characters and storytelling but that never seemed to be the intentions of it’s director Sam Raimi. With some moments of satire poking fun at the clichés of the horror genre shining through the over the top comedic elements of the film, paired with intense horror with particular praise to the effects department. This is all topped off with some of the most inventively frantic and dizzying camerawork and a stellarly theatrical performance from one Bruce Campbell. And at a mere 80 minutes in length, it hits just the right amount of non-stop severity before entering gratuitous to make Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead II a prime example of how to make something new and interesting out of both the comedy and horror genre.