When the original Evil Dead was released in 1981 it became a cult movie, bringing rave reviews for such a low budget film. A new chapter of the Evil Dead series was added in 2013, and this film was vamped up using all the technology readily available today. Does the new Evil Dead live up to the high bar set by the original?
PLOT
The basic plot of each was similar, a group of five friends go to a cabin in the woods, discover the Book of The Dead, read from it, and then the teenagers become possessed and start dying. Though the remake did stick to this main plot, there are many differences. The main characters of the original are Ash, Linda, Scott, Shelly and Cheryl. Ash and Linda are a couple, Scott and Shelly are a couple, and Cheryl is Ash’s sister. In the 2013 film the relationships stay constant but the names change to David, Natalie, Eric, Olivia and Mia, in their respective orders. The original film starts with the teenagers driving up to the cabin. However the 2013 film starts with a girl being chased through the woods and then exorcised. This scene moves on to the teenagers arriving at the cabin. The original has them going to the cabin for fun, but the remake adds a lot of depth to this. In the recent film the kids are going to the cabin because David and Mia’s mother has recently died, and Mia has a heroin addiction. they go to the cabin to get Mia to quit heroin. As Cheryl is the first to be possessed in the original, Mia is also the first as they both run into the woods then become trapped by trees. An important moment that is changed is when Cheryl and Mia want to escape. She could not escape in the original because the bridge has fallen down, but her friends in the remake would not let her leave because they think she just wants to get her fix. The possessed teens in the remake are much more violent, with more stabbing and chasing after Mia is brought back to the cabin. The ending of these films are very different. The original ends quite abruptly, with Ash throwing the book into the fire and the possessed people melting, and then he believes it is over until another demon attacks him. In the remake the book will not burn, so there is no easy solution. David killed Mia, Olivia and Natalie and Eric is in the house. David buries Mia then revives her so she is no longer possessed. However, Eric is still inside and ready to attack so David sacrifices himself for her. Mia was then left to battle the demon itself, and she eventually wins and it became day again. The remake had a plot with more depth and explanation, making it much more intriguing for the audience.
ONE POINT TO EVIL DEAD (2013)
THEME
The theme of these movies is that true evil can never be destroyed. In the original film there are a couple evils that are going on. One is the evil within themselves. When the girls tell them to stop playing the tape recorder they continue, just to spite them. This shows the evil that people have within themselves, and even though it may be a joke it can go very far. Furthermore, after Ash believes he has finally defeated the demons, because he killed all of his friends and was never hurt the entire ending quickly changes. He believes he will get away because he burns the book. However, in the end a demon still rushes towards him, leaving the viewer to decide whether he dies or not. This theme was shown exceptionally in the remake. The film starts off right away with this theme, as a young girl is exorcised in the cabin after her father discovers she is possessed. She burns against a post then her carcass is left there to rot among animal carcasses. The people of that time believe the evil was truly gone when they kill the girl, but it is only the beginning. In the remake Mia is a heroin addict who has had a lot of trouble quitting. The heroin in this context is pure evil and it never really goes away. She is never able to get away from the evil that is heroin, even though she valiantly tries in the movie. The evil of human nature was also shown in this film. Eric opens the Book of The Dead and even though there was writing all over it telling him not to, he still deciphers the words and reads from it. This evil causes the rest of the teenagers to suffer, just because Eric was curious. The main evil of this film was the possession of the teenagers and the demons. Even though there were many fights and victories during the movie, the evil keeps coming back. David has to continuously kill his friends, but as soon as he does the next friend will become possessed. There is no defeating the evil in that cabin. When Mia is revived and fights the ultimate demon the viewer believes it is all over, because the demon is killed. However, the Book of the Dead is still lying on the ground unscathed, showing that the evil in the cabin can never be defeated and it is just waiting for the next victim. The theme of these movies was that evil can never truly be destroyed, and each movie well supported that statement. The new movie had much more support for this theme because of the added depth to the movie, which causes the point from this round to be awarded to the remake.
ONE POINT TO EVIL DEAD (2013)
Sound
Sound is an important factor in all horror movies, so it was very prominent in these movies. In the original film there is often suspenseful music that adhered to the story. A very strong point in the original is near the end of the film, when Ash is the only one still alive. The viewer can hear voices in Ash’s head and the thump of a heartbeat. It is very suspenseful and adds to the horror of the scene. The sound in the remake is also very strong. When Mia enters the cottage and goes to her room she starts to look at pictures and sounds of kids laughing and playing plays softly in the background. A very important moment for sound in the remake was when Mia was possessed. A piece of sound from Cheryl talking in the original is integrated into the movie, which was very interesting. The original sound is timeless, as it was even in the remake, and deserves this round.
ONE POINT TO EVIL DEAD (1981)
LIGHTING
. The lighting in these films is also an important factor. In the 1981 film lighting is used as foreshadowing. Just before something bad is going to happen there will be a shot of the moon, and a shadow will go over it. A very strong point in the 2013 film is when Eric is in the bathroom with Olivia. Olivia is possessed and is cutting her own face. He goes to check on her and finds her mutilating herself. When he tries to run away the lights started to flicker and continues throughout the whole scene. Not being able to see the whole scene adds to the suspense and fear of not knowing if Olivia kills Eric or not. The foreshadowing with the moon was a genius idea,therefore the point of this round is awarded to the 1981 Evil Dead.
ONE POINT TO EVIL DEAD (1981)
SET
. Each movie is set in a small isolated cabin in the woods. The cottage in the first movie is very small and run down, with random boards everywhere and an old porch swing. However, the set of the 2013 film is creepier. The wood of the cabin is very run down and chipping, there are leaves on the floor and very few lights. The basement of the cottage is covered in animal carcasses, which adds to the mystery and horror.
ONE POINT TO EVIL DEAD (2013)
COSTUMES
The costumes vary significantly from movie to movie. When Cheryl is possessed in the original the audience can clearly see the coloured gauze on her hands and the makeup, which makes it very ineffective. A main costume that adds to the depth of the 2013 film was Mia. Mia wears baggy and old clothes, as she is trying to get over her heroin addiction. The audience could see that she was struggling. The costumes of the original were more intriguing, however, because you could still see the human underneath the demon.
ONE POINT TO EVIL DEAD (1981)
PROPS
The main prop of these films is The Book of The Dead. In the original it is just a scary book, and has no symbolism. Cheryl draws a face that is in it, and then it is thrown in a fire at the end. The recent film wanted to add more depth to this book to make it scarier. To do this the book is wrapped in barbed wire at the start, and the reader is told to stay out. It also has drawings of what will happen at each stage of the possession, and it foreshadows what would happen next. At the end, the book does not burn in the cabin fire, instead it remains unscathed on the lawn, waiting for the next visitor to come and find it. The Book in the remake had a lot more depth, and was a much better prop.
ONE POINT TO EVIL DEAD (2013)
ACTING
The original Evil Dead starred Bruce Campbell as ash Williams while the 2013 remake starred Shiloh Fernandez as David Allen. The name of this main character is changed in the remake, and the role is slightly changed as he is no longer the only main character. Campbell is a great actor for the role of Ash Williams. Ash is a normal guy who is just going out with friends then receives an unexpected surprise, and this is captured well. A very strong moment for Campbell is when Ash sees the necklace he gave to his girlfriend lying on the floor near the fire. You can see the sorrow he has, but he has to use the necklace to get the book and save his own life. A weak point for Campbell is when Ash put Cheryl into the basement. Campbell just stands around and does not seem shocked or scared that his sister is possessed. Fernandez plays David Allen in the remake. With the added depth of their mother’s death and Mia’s heroin addiction, Fernandez’s brooding and dark looks adds to the realism of the role. A very strong moment for Fernandez is when he has to bury Mia. He wants to kill her, and then revive her without the possession of the demon. Burying her was difficult, as the demon keeps talking and saying that it is his little sister. After he buries her, he takes her back up and tries to save her. When he fails at first the audience can see the heartbreak he feels and the sorrow of not being there for her when she was alive. A weak moment for Fernandez is when Mia asks to go home. David says that she could not, because he believes that she will relapse and overdose. Fernandez seems confused about what he was supposed to say, and it was not very powerful. Both of these actors are successful in the role they portray, but Campbell was a better actor overall.
ONE POINT TO EVIL DEAD (1981)
RESULTS
It's a tie! Both movies have four points to tie out the score. The originality of the 1981 movie and the added depth and plot to the remake even out the standings. Either movie would be a great watch, depending on whether you want a classic horror movie or a modern movie with more depth to the storyline.