I think it's safe to say that I'm currently making up for the lack of Halloween spirit -- no pun intended there, really -- that I had this year by watching the thrillers and horrors I had originally intended to.
To be honest, I'm not actually sure if I had actually fully seen The Evil Dead before. I feel I had, at least many years ago, but potentially rewatching it, I couldn't remember a whole lot about the story, I was just capable of remembering specific scenes and events.
The Evil Dead is your typical 80's horror, harbouring everything you'd expect: obvious makeup, unimpressive but enjoyable uses of masks and props, and even somewhat poor acting. But each of these only adds to the charm, it isn't particularly distracting, but it feels like a film in which you know what's going to happen, but it doesn't bother you, because how the events occur are what makes it fun.
The character deaths often seem exaggerated and incredibly bloody, each with other characters seeming useless in their ability to help. They're constantly told that they won't get away, and that theme lingers on throughout as we see them slowly being picked off and realising their fate.
In terms of the narrative, it's a film that has very little, and that's certainly nothing to complain about. There's simplicity in giving the viewer all they really need to know and letting the character's actions drive the film forward. In short, a group of friends travel to a cabin to stay there, they discover a tape and play it, the tape features a strange mantra which unknowingly to the characters, summons evil. Characters begin to become possessed and picked off, with no escape from the threats of the woods surrounding them.
I have to say that I often prefer the simplicity of narratives such as The Evil Dead. There's something nice in knowing you, the viewer, aren't being told everything with minutes of exposition in order to get through to you something very obvious to begin with. It allows the film to focus more on the gory moments and creative death sequences.
The Evil Dead deserves the praise it has received over the years, but I can see why it may not sit well with those looking for something with a little more depth.
