Pleasant Valley

Rating: 10/10 (6 April 2000)

People are always groaning about Hollywood's tired practice of churning out weak sequels to popular movie to make a few bucks. Well, I contend that not all sequels suck- in fact, a few even improve upon the originals, like the classic "Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn".
Technically, I suppose "Evil Dead 2" is more of a remake of "The Evil Dead" than a real sequel, as it starts out from a fresh beginning with one returning character, the amazing Ash (as played by the amazing Bruce Campbell). Ash ends up trapped in the woods by an unseen demonic force that turns his traveling companions into laughing, maniacal ghouls. For most of the movie Campbell pulls off a one man show, fighting the possessed house, his girlfriend's severed head, even his own hand in an amazing performance full of slapstick and character. Eventually more characters show up, including a love interest for Ash who sports some of the ugliest socks I've ever seen.
This is an amazing, one of a kind movie. It is relentlessly clever, throwing one great idea after another on screen (the only disappointment is the final, climactic appearance of the demon, which isn't very scary). It's got way more personality than the first one, as well as better make-up and a great sense of humor.
The Ash character appeared in another movie after this, "Army of Darkness" which is a totally different kind of movie than this (a comedy/adventure set in medieval times), but still recommended.