After having seen Evil Dead Rise, quite a few people asked me: “Is it better than the 2013 remake?“
Oh, it is so much better than the 2013 remake. Evil Dead Rise uses a lot of the Evil Dead tropes very effectively, yet, it uses them in its own unique way. Abandoning the isolated-teenagers-doing-stupid-stuff-to-conjure-up-demons trope, the evil is inadvertently summoned in a home of a struggling, modern family, smack in the middle of earthquake bound Los Angeles. While this movie does have its suspenseful moments, it doesn’t get under your skin like the original. And that’s fine since few movies can achieve that. It’s a fun splatter fest that you shouldn’t take too seriously going in. It does deliver greatly on gore and body horror. If you expect it to hold a candle to Evil Dead, Evil Dead II, and/or Army of Darkness, you’re just setting yourself up for disappointment. So, don’t. Evil Dead Rise is a different type of Evil Dead film that doesn’t incorporate the Three Stooges brand of comedy as much as you’d see in Raimi’s original classics. The part of that that did make it in, taps into a much darker sense of humor; something I much appreciated. Turn off your critical thinking, and simply enjoy the splatter fest rollercoaster ride.
Bruce “Ash” Cambell fans should go in knowing he doesn’t physically appear in this installment. Yet, he does have. voice cameo you’ll enjoy.
One thing that stood out for me was the sound design. It’s absolutely beautiful, so be sure to see it in a theater with a stellar sound system that’s cranked up to eleven.
Evil Dead Rise is masterfully directed by Lee Cronin, who also wrote the screenplay. Cronin does a good job of creating a sense of suspense and dread, and he delivers some truly gruesome kills. The cast is also solid, with Alyssa Sutherland and Lily Sullivan giving standout performances.
