Evil Dead (2013) - Limited Edition Steelbook [4K Ultra HD] [4K UHD]

Description

Mia (Jane Levy), a drug addict, is determined to kick the habit. To that end, she asks her brother, David (Shiloh Fernandez), his girlfriend, Natalie (Elizabeth Blackmore) and their friends Olivia (Jessica Lucas) and Eric (Lou Taylor Pucci) to accompany her to their family's remote forest cabin to help her through withdrawal. Eric finds a mysterious Book of the Dead at the cabin and reads aloud from it, awakening an ancient demon. All hell breaks loose when the malevolent entity possesses Mia.Bonus Content:4K Transfers by Sony for Both the Theatrical and Unrated CutsUnrated Cut: In Dolby Vision (HDR10 Compatible)Theatrical Cut: HDR10 CompatibleAudio Commentary with Director/Co-writer Fede Alvarez, Co-writer Rodo Sayagues, and Cast Members Jane Levy, Lou Taylor Pucci, and Jessica Lucas (Theatrical Cut Only)Directing The Dead FeaturetteEvil Dead: The Reboot FeaturetteMaking Life Difficult FeaturetteUnleashing the Evil Forces FeaturetteBeing Mia FeaturetteTrailersTV Spots Review: Balls to the wall, no holds barred fantastic remake of a classic! - I never thought I'd live to see this remake, but, here it is. In 2003 it was announced that Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell would be producing a remake of the original horror film that started both their careers, 1983's (or 1979, or 1981, depending on where you were before the wide release of the original) "The Evil Dead," a film so violent and so disturbing it's still banned in several countries across the world, today. The original film is a classic, from the opening frame depicting a crashed automobile half sunken in a swamp in out in the boondocks of Tennessee to one of the most profoundly haunting endings of a horror movie I've ever seen. And while the original in is a classic, nearly flawless horror film made on a shoestring budget, this remake proves to one up it many ways. I waited ten years for this film to be made, it was worth every moment. The main strong points of the remake are the character development and the slight expansion on the origin of the demonic nature of the Mortorum Demonto (Book of the Dead). The original film's premise was straightforward: Five college students go to a remote cabin in the woods for a weekend to drink, smoke pot and have fun, but when something evil haunting the woods beyond leads to them discovering the ancient Book of the Dead, which one by one possesses them, turning them into monsters, turning on each other, playing mind games and eventually leading into a blood explosion extraordinaire. The remake drops much of that premise, while retaining only the bare bones of the old characters' archetypes. There's a guy with his girlfriend who's with his sister, but she's a recovering heroin addict and has come to their old family cabin in hopes of detoxing over the course of a weekend with the help of a rather nerdy fellow's smart registered nurse girlfriend. A foul smell in the basement leads to the nerdy guy discovering a strange package wrapped in black trash bags and barbed wire and upon carefully opening it, he discovers a book bound in human flesh and inked in human blood. On the inside, someone has scribbled the words "LEAVE THIS BOOK ALONE," but being a curious college student, presumably with a philosophy nature (or just bored because he forgot to bring a book along for the trip and the TV doesn't get good reception) he begins to translate it, speaking the terrible words aloud which awaken something from deep below the earth. And then the fun begins. I know this remake (I'm not sure it's a remake, part of me thinks it's actually a clever prequel to the original, more on that, later) had rather split views from fans of the original. Some hated it, others loved it. It seems in the year since it was released it's leaned more towards the latter, gaining trust due to the heavy involvement of Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell acting as executive producers. Pretty much everything in this movie is, if Sam Raimi or Bruce Campbell wanted you to see something going on on screen, you saw it. There's a scene when the addict girl tries to escape and she crashes a car into a swamp... this is what leads me to believe this film may be a prequel. In the original movie, as I said, the first scene is of a crashed car in the swamp-- not the same make or model of course, but it's the thought here that counts. On the commentary for the original film, Bruce or Sam said the idea behind the crashed car was that another group had been at the cabin and tried to flee, failing-- although in the original movie that's only implied for the brief time the submerged automobile appears. So I'm lead to assume that this film takes place before the original movie, if not literally then spiritually speaking. This movie did not disappoint me, I've been a fan of the original "Evil Dead" movies for a very long time and this movie stayed very true to the original's "balls to the wall" approach, rather than sink into the demented "Looney Tunes" or "Three Stooges" comedy/horror of the also excellent sequels. And, to viewers with a keen eye, the "Three Stooges" elements are still in this film, however they're played in such a way that they come off as more terrifying than funny (when someone slips on a severed ear and smashes their head into the bowl of a toilet in the movie is rather gruesome, where as it can be seen there is influence from comedic bits, there). The acting is surprisingly good for a group of unknown actors, the writing was done by the same screenwriter as the Oscar winning (or nominated?) film "Juno," and the camera movement is fluid and haunting, combined with the dark lighting and often ambient sounds creating a perfect atmosphere for a great horror film. However, all in all, I felt this movie's violence was seriously downplayed from the original's. The original film is a much more brutal film if you watch them back to back. And while there may be more blood in the remake, the original has more scenes that make you turn your head and wince (the Achilles' heel pencil stabbing scene, for instance). While much of the film's plot is dramatically different from the original, certain scenes are almost frame for frame reproductions of the original-- which is a nice mix. My main disappointment was a single line of dialogue near the end which was from one of the original films spoken with a slight change which made me a little upset, but it's easy to get over, though it still makes me roll my eyes when I hear it delivered. However the rest of the movie is so solid that it borders on brilliance. The expansion on the demons is nice, some rules have changed regarding the book, but for the most part, the same rules to kill a "deadite" apply. If you pause the film and look at each visible page of the Necronomicon, you'll find there's some interesting insights written in it by "previous readers," which expand upon the origin of the demons. In the old movies, one could argue that the demons weren't so much devils, as they were mischievous spirits who happened to be extremely playful in a very violent way. In this film, the demonically possessed don't act so goofy, instead opting to taunt the tormented by whispering those most profound of personal blasphemies. The picture quality of the Blu-Ray is amazing, there's a nice commentary by the director and actors on it, but few special features other than that to be found. But, if you're an "Evil Dead" fan, new or old, this movie belongs on your shelf along with all the others. It's pretty damn groovy. Review: "You're all going to die tonight" - As a big fan of the original which is a campy horror classic I was looking forward to this remake as it seemed to distance itself from other horror remakes. There have been some great horror remakes such as "Dawn of the Dead (2004)" or "The last House on the Left (2009)" but none have distanced themselves quite like this one. This film had huge hype around it as it was an outside of Hollywood unpolished remake with the tagline "The Most Terrifying Film you will ever experience". You have to have guts to make that argument. The directors who took on a big challenge obviously believed in the masterpiece they had created. Most horror film remakes come and go without a whimper, this one certainly did not. As far as I'm concerned the film lived up to its hype. As we were leaving the theater I heard another group of people discussing the movie saying it was as good as it could have been. I completely agree and more. The film itself is beautiful in every way, absolutely outstanding. The acting was excellent. All of the characters exemplified the position they found themselves in and really personified the phrase "the fear is real" as you actual felt what the characters were feeling. That's what makes this film so terrifying and exciting. I give particular props to Jane Levy for her portrayal of Mia. The scripting, at times, is excellent as it kept all the infamous lines from the original plus some though some of the scripting does feel somewhat awkward and slow opposed to the fast pace of the film. I was greatly disappointed that the "They're gonna get you" song scene which was in the red band trailer didn't make it into the final cut. Not sure why they would ever cut that scene but rumor has it that it will be restored in the DVD release which I'm looking forward to. The makeup and pratical effects in the film are outstanding (the main high point). It is unheard of to make a horror film with minimal CGI but this film managed to. Certain scenes like the original have intentional over the top gore to almost be comic but other scenes have strategically placed gore and such graphic and detailed effects that it's these scenes that really get to you and make the film so ruthless. The film is intense from start to finish and the cinematography captures that perfectly. Despite having a wide release and huge hype surrounding it this film is NOT for mainstream audiences. It is incredibly detailed and graphic and I can't stress that enough. It is a huge step away from mainstream horror films. Approach with caution. Aside from the outstanding practical effects the other notable high point is the pacing. Both these things make the film. The pacing of the film is ruthless and assaulting and it has been so long since a film was so unforgiving to the audience. The pacing of this film feels like a homage to the 70's classic horror films beyond just the original Evil Dead. The film jumps right in quickly developing the setting and then takes right off. It wastes no time with character development(though it would have been nice if the characters had a little personality) yet we still end up feeling for the characters as they actually care about one another. The criticisms of this movie include that it's "pointless gore" or "isn't like the original". I am not sure what to say to the "pointless gore" as it truly is not. The gore is over the top in parts but this is intentional and other times it has a clear purpose. Again this film is most likely too graphic for average movie goers but that doesn't make it a bad film. Second, what would be the point of remaking a film so that it is identical to the original? To watch the exact same movie over again? This film is a takeoff of the original and pays homage to the original in many ways including many symbols referencing the original. Overall this film is excellent. Go in with an open mind.