Brutal, ferociously entertaining and insanely over-the-top, 2013's "Evil Dead" remake is good, old-fashioned gory horror done right!

Rating: 9/10 (7 April 2013)

Director/Co-Writer Fede Alvarez and producers Sam Raimi, Rob Tapert and Bruce Campbell have done it. They have accomplished the impossible.
They have, in 2013, made a horror remake/reboot that was actually good. Actually startling. Actually worthwhile.
In an age of horrid Platinum Dunes reboots, watered-down PG-13 horror, and awful direct-to-video gore-fests, Fede Alvarez's "Evil Dead" is a breath of fresh, blood-fueled air, filled with dozens of callbacks to the original series and enough internal originality to make it worth a watch for any fan of the original trilogy and any fan of extreme horror.
Four friends gather at a secluded cabin deep in the woods to help their friend Mia battle her addiction to dope. Among them are Mia's brother David, David's girlfriend Natalie, David's former friend Eric and Olivia. They have decided to band together to help Mia quit cold turkey after an OD left her legally dead before paramedics were able to revive her.
However, after investigating a mysterious, derelict basement filled with animal carcasses, the five find a mysterious book- bound in flesh. Eric reads passages from the book, unleashing a demonic force that takes hold of Mia and begins to spread throughout the rest of the group, turning them into violent, zombie-like cretins that will stop at nothing to destroy every single one of them.
This is, without a doubt, "Evil Dead" all the way.
The acting is actually admirable for a horror film. Jane Levy as Mia steals the show, both in her performance as human Mia, a sad soul going through withdrawal from drugs, and as the possessed-Mia, an insane, twitching "Deadite" who is a ton of fun to watch. Shiloh Fernandez as her brother is also well-played, giving a lot of emotion and becoming a begrudging hero-figure throughout the course of the film. Lou Taylor Pucci, Jessica Lucas and Elizabeth Blackmore round out the group in performances that are decent, but nothing to write home about. (Although this is mainly due to the script, which focuses mainly on Mia and David's relationship as siblings.)
And the script itself is fundamentally solid. It does dwell a bit before the horror kicks in, but unlike some of the more negative reviews suggest, it gives all the characters motivation and development, and creates a good framing for the events to unfold. I really have to disagree with many people who complain about there being no character development or story- there most certainly is character development and there most certainly is a story here.
The film does take liberties and make changes to the formula, but it's all for the better here. It throws fans familiar to the series curve-balls, and leaves us unable to know what to expect next, which is a good thing. It also builds towards a more natural and fitting climax than the original film, and the stakes feel higher than before.
Alvarez's direction is top-notch. Everything is shot brutally and simply, with a lot of little winks and nods to Sam Raimi's style in the original. I also applaud Alvarez on not over-doing the gritty "shaky cam" style of camera-work that has been plaguing horror for the past decade. You know what I mean- that faux-realistic look where everything is shot in shaky hand-held in closeup. Alvarez does use hand-held footage, but for the most part, is able to use it wisely and to add to the chaos, rather than distract from it like most films.
The horror and gore is also outstanding. Some have been complaining about the level of gore in the film, but this is "Evil Dead." The original was extremely gory for it's time, and this film had to step it up. And it did. This is one of the goriest wide-releases I've ever seen. From dismemberment's to burns to slices to mutilations, this film really pushes the boundaries of it's R-rating. And I'm glad it did, because it captured not only the desperation of the situation, but at times it also hinted at the camp value of Raimi's original. I was shocked that a few scenes were left intact. And the film is all the more ferociously entertaining for pushing these bounds.
This is, without a doubt, the best horror remake since Cronenberg's "The Fly" or Carpenter's "The Thing." The original film is still objectively a little bit better because of it's purity and low-budget charm... but this comes close. Very close. And it's still darned good fun.
This is brutal, insane, over-the-top fun. Best horror movie experience this year, and one of the best of the decade. Ignore the nay-sayers. If you love insane, over-the-top madness, this is the film for you. "Evil Dead" gets a 9 out of 10.