Pass the Popcorn review

Rating: 8/10 (16 May 2013)

To be honest, I was sceptical when I heard the news that an Evil Dead remake was being made. And, seriously, who wasn't? The original (and the whole trilogy) was an excellent trash movie that perfectly combined horror and low budget comedy. The remake couldn't have possibly top that. Regardless, a serious question remained – who will replace the genius Bruce Campbell and his character Ash? No one is good enough to fit his shoes. Furthermore, rumors started circulating, about the fact that Diablo Cody was going to write the screenplay. In that moment, I was sure the remake would be God awful. Suddenly, something miraculous happened. Initial reactions from the screenings were really positive. And, thankfully, Diablo Cody didn't write the screenplay after all. She just 'polished' and 'americanized' it (whatever that means), and wasn't even included in the credits. My hopes for the movie went up, I was actually eager to see it and when I finally did, I wasn't disappointed. Of course, that doesn't mean this remake is without flaws. And I'm still going to blame Diablo Cody for them, because I can.
In case you don't know, Evil Dead is about a group of five young people who go into a remote cabin in the woods and there, by pure chance, summon bloodthirsty demons. The demons start possessing them one by one and the survivors have to fight for their lives. This time, there is a little twist on the classic story – the main female character, Mia (Jane Levy), is an ex-junkie who is going through withdrawal. In fact, her friends organised the trip to the cabin as a part of her rehabilitation and they plan on keeping her there, by all means necessary, until she gets better. Apart from that, the remake follows the original story – more or less. In addition to the plot similarities, there are numerous references to the original trilogy which I liked in particular. Currently, there are some other rumors circulating – that the original and the remake are a part of the same universe and that there could probably be a crossover in the future where Ash would meet the surviving character(s) (I won't give out any spoilers) of the remake. I stand behind that completely, and I would really love to see it happen.
Anyway, the Evil Dead remake is pretty good. The movie relies much more on practical effects instead on CG ones, which is always a plus and gives it a certain old school vibe. That being said, the movie is rather gory. It's one of the bloodiest, most violent movies I've seen in quite a while. Which, depending on the way you look at it, may be a good or a bad thing. I certainly liked it – the original trilogy was also extremely bloody from time to time, although this movie does go an extra mile. The remake also has a creepy, uncomfortable atmosphere through it. It also produces several effective scares. So, strictly viewing it as only a horror movie, the Evil Dead remake fulfilled its cause. This time, we even had a little more insight on the Book of the Dead. That serves mainly as a plot device, to explain the nature of the demon that is possessing everyone. Still, it was nice to find out more about the whole Evil Dead lore. All in all, the upside of this remake is that it's a fun, violent, gory movie, with plenty of references to the original. If that sounds appealing to you and you're into the horror genre, this flick will surely keep you entertained. I'd even say that the majority of the fans of the original will be ultimately satisfied or, at least, won't be severely disappointed.
As I said, the movie does have a few flaws. This one isn't necessarily a flaw, but all the characters in the movie seemed like stereotypic modern horror movie characters (damn you, Diablo Cody!). This isn't automatically bad, but it kind of goes against that old school vibe I mentioned. However, to be frank, the Evil Dead movies were never about the characters (save Ash, of course). Also the guy who plays the male lead David, Mia's brother (Shiloh Fernandez), did an awful acting job, I am not sure how he managed to land a role. The next flaw is that the movie sometime takes itself too seriously. By no means would I call this movie a serious one but still, the whole concept of the Evil Dead franchise is that they are just ridiculous movies and should be treated that way. So yes, this movie really did need an Ash character to elevate things a little. But, even though he wasn't there, I had a great time and enjoyed myself nevertheless.
Rating: 8/10 Read more at http://passpopcorn.wordpress.com/