An awesome thrill-ride

Rating: 7/10 (16 April 2013)

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, and went in as a fan of the original. When I first heard that the next film Raimi was going to have a hand in was not going to be Evil Dead 4 but a remake of the original, I was doubtful at first-- having seen the scores of remakes that had none of the charm of the original (I'm looking at you Friday the 13th...)
But a good percentage of the charm of the original was lumped into three categories: atmosphere, gore effects, and creature effects. In fact, I would argue that's pretty much the three reasons anyone likes the original. The formula for the remake is a bit different-- I thought that the highlights included an interesting character development, gore- effects, and a huge amp-up in pacing from the original.
In other words... it's not a clone. Much of the atmosphere of the original was hit or miss-- Raimi's lingering camera sometimes caught things that were creepy, like the basement or the dimly lit forest, but it often just sort of sat there staring, essentially breaking the pacing completely. This film decided to do the opposite-- but while not rushing through and skipping fair introductions to characters that are much more human (although not hugely deep) than in the original.
This film is not for everyone: if you can't handle a film that hit a list called the "video nasty" list, then the original film and this remake are not for you. If the idea of watching something that you aren't SUPPOSED to see, if that idea sounds delightfully dangerous to you, then I highly recommend this film.
For those that found the original to be putrescent and vile-- and loved every minute of it-- you will find a lot to love here. The characters are introduced as essentially a group of young adults staging an intervention, and this immediately allows you to be more sympathetic than the original's characters (who were.... spring breakers.... I... think-- it was never fully explained). As far as symbolism goes, it is as sophisticated as a film called "Evil Dead" can be expected to be, but a little bit moreso. The inclusion of drug use puts narrative perspective into question, as does a history of mental illness that gets revealed a bit later on into the story, adding depth to the depravity. Was it all a drug-induced hallucination? Was it a delusion?
I LOVE films that have this double-edged sword of unreliable narrator, especially when used in horror films, like this or Lovely Molly. It allows you to connect with the characters, but it also allows you to have fun with the supernatural elements, as they can be as crazy or wild as you need in order to be thrilled, but ultimately the believability is flexible because, well... how serious are you going to take the world through a junkie's eyes?
All in all, a bit of a popcorn film-- you won't find the meaning of life here or any sort of deep Beckett-style experimentation with absurdity, but you WILL find a wild romp that is just devilish fun for those who truly understand what makes horror great!