Anti-Kafka

Rating: Null/10 (18 October 2003)

Spoilers!
Somewhere between Evil Dead and Army of Darkness something happened to the series.
Sam Raimi is arguably the best visual artist of the 80s. If Brian DePalma demonstrated a knowledge of cinematography with The Untouchables, Raimi beat him with Evil Dead II. His camera never sits still and exploits almost every shot that can change the look of the film, including the trademark Point-of-View shots. Evil Dead II is the most fun you can have with camera angles and movement.
Action and horror genres are all about repeating the same two or three ideas in different fashions and Evil Dead II is no exception. Dominant references include Night of the Living Dead, The Exorcist, and Poltergeist. It isn't scary, it isn't trying to be. It ties to be what Tim Burton wants in his films--a funny Gothic exercise in visuals. In this respect, Raimi is ahead of Burton except the Spider-Man movie wasn't able to use this inventiveness and wound up being a poor Batman/Superman cross-breed. I hope that doesn't start a downward slide.
Ash is the first "hero" of the 90s, everything you find in later heroes is in him. Ahead of his time, no doubt. Since the acting is an afterthought, Raimi annihilates cliches and remakes the original. Just watch Ash fight with his hand, how much fun is that?
Overall, the film itself is stupid, but the picturesque merit of the "Evil Cam" chasing Ash is well worth your rental fee. Raimi is smart, I will end it at that. The only reason this gets a higher than expected rating is because AoD tries to make pop while ED2 insults pop and confuses the audience in the process. Whee! 2 out of 5 stars. P.S.--What does Raimi have against trees? Is he an anti-ecologist?