The Deadites want to kick some Ash!

Rating: 8/10 (22 August 2000)

This is the third movie in director Sam Raimi's "Evil Dead" series, and it's definitely the funniest. "The Evil Dead" was pure horror, while "Evil Dead 2" mellowed out somewhat. "Army of Darkness"... okay, sure - it's still horror; anything with an army of the dead is going to have horror. But it's funny horror... 'Fake Shemps' (the Three Stooges routine with the skeletons in the graveyard and later with the Deadites), Ash's inability to remember the phrase 'Klaatu Barada Niktu' (from the movie "The Day the Earth Stood Still"), his parody of the sword-wielding hero (chainsaws, anyone?), a double-barrel shotgun that fires four times without reloading, Sheila the Ash-kisser... even the Deadites themselves are funny.
The acting is a little wooden in spots - Bruce Campbell has said that he's gotten better with every movie he's done (and he has), but this is one of his early ones. The stop-motion skeletons are stiff and jerky, but they're supposed to be... that's also part of the fun. Some of the other F/X aren't as smooth as they could be, but they're easily survivable... you don't go to a movie just for the F/X anyway. Makeup is a little patchy in spots, but that's also something that doesn't detract from the movie.
The plot is nothing new - ye olde 'reluctant (and somewhat inept) hero who eventually saves the day'. Yet in Raimi's hands, it hits new heights of silliness. Raimi has also gotten better with every movie he's done, but there are still a few spots in this where it doesn't flow quite that smoothly. Even so, there's never really a dull moment.
For any of you wondering, that really is director Sam Raimi's car that Ash uses... according to reviewer/author/actor Bill Warren (he's known Sam Raimi for almost 20 years now), Raimi uses (or used) that Olds in every movie he did in the beginning - which means that it got seriously banged up on the set. Everything you see in the trunk of the car - including the chemistry textbook - are really what Sam Raimi has in the trunk of his car... there are no product placements here. Another Raimi touch are the 'Fake Shemps' (you have to be a Three Stooges fan to get that reference)... yet another is having his brother(s) - such as Ted Raimi - in the movie, even if they're uncredited.
Humor and horror might seem to be an odd mix, but it works out well - I'd recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys the Three Stooges and slapstick, or any Mel Brooks movie. In terms of acting and plot, I give it a 7... in terms of humor, I give it a 9 - for an average of 8, which is a heck of a lot better than a lot of stuff coming out of Hollywood these days.