Evil and deadly. A solid remake!

Rating: 8/10 (21 April 2013)

Now, let's start off by addressing the elephant in the room. Evil Dead is not as good as the original, The Evil Dead. The original is a true classic in my opinion, although I am biased being a big horror fan. The idea of a remake intrigued me because something truly exciting could come out of the same set-up with a bigger budget and Evil Dead is that! I was hugely excited from the moment I saw the intense red band trailer which promised one hell of a horror film! Unfortunately, hopes started to deflate when Luke-warm reviews came out amidst a horde of rave reviews, so I scaled my hopes down and I'm glad I did because it isn't as great as the trailer. It is however one of the most hardcore horror films to come out in mainstream cinema in years, so it's no surprise that it's been a huge box office hit in America!
What's great about this film is that it isn't a complete carbon copy of the original. It has new characters, new set-pieces and a whole horde of differences. This is how a remake should be approached in my opinion, as I see no point in doing something shot-for-shot such as the Psycho remake, because it's already been done! Of course Evil Dead does feature some of the iconic scenes such as the infamous tree rape, but it's largely approached refreshingly differently. One thing I loved was that it wasn't about a bunch of dumb kids going to an old cabin to party at the weekend, rather about friends trying to help someone go cold turkey. This also allows for different interpretations, as it isn't clear how much of it is in the main girl's head.
Evil Dead thrives on its break-neck pace. The film gets into the action extremely quickly, even more quickly than the original I'd say, which is a huge plus for me. There really is not one dull moment and once the demon chaos starts, it really does not stop. It's a non-stop thrill ride with some really exciting and memorable moments, making it a film to be watched more than once. Like the original, the film feels like an ordeal, with some extremely tense moments. Also, like the original, it isn't afraid to shy away from the gore. It really isn't afraid to shy away at all! It's one of the bloodiest films I've seen in recent years, which makes it great fun and much more intense to watch. There's loads of cringey moments with a finale to die for. In fact, the finale features one of the best kills I've seen in any horror film, almost reaching the heights of THAT kill in Frontier(s).
My only real grip with Evil Dead is that the characters weren't particularly likable or that memorable, aside from main girl Mia. One of the great things about the original is that you could like all of the characters, but here it's difficult to feel sorry for them when they die (which sounds like a really awful thing to say). I would've liked to have seen more character building during the action, to really make the film strong, however as it remains it's still a very much above average horror film. The demons were also less memorable and far less frightening than the original, aside from the creepy Exorcist-styled demon of Mia. I also think the film would have benefited from some dark humour, as there were one or two moments of very dark humour which fitted the film well and would've added to its entertainment factor.
However, Evil Dead is still a pretty amazing remake, although probably not as good as Mother's Day or Last House on the Left, you can rest assure that it's better than the likes of The Hitcher and such. It's refreshing to see a real horror throw-back with outstanding practical effects, instead of cheap and lazy CGI (I say cheap, it's probably really expensive, but it looks cheap!). The amount of blood and gore is unholy, and makes for a very memorable horror film. I heavily enjoyed it, but non-horror fans will probably find it hard to like. It should certainly knock some sense into inexperienced kids who get freaked out by Paranormal 26 and the likes! I look forward to seeing it again, and it's definitely a film every horror fan should have proudly in their collection!