One of the landmark achievements of low budget horror

Rating: 9/10 (1 June 2001)

The Evil Dead is the first in a trilogy of films (Evil Dead II and Army Of Darkness followed). While it is not the best, that distinction would definitely have to fall to the second in the series, it has it's place in history as the film that launched the careers of Sam Raimi (writer/director) and Bruce Campbell (star).
A simplistic plot, which is just really an excuse to showcase the excellent (for the most part) special effects and the virtuoso camera movements of director Raimi.
The film also deserves notice as one of the slate of horror films that got fledgling studio New Line off the ground.
But perhaps the finest achievement of the film is it's continued influence on films to this day. Not just the low budget horror genre, but all films across the board. I don't know if Sam Raimi realized he was creating some revolutionary techniques at the time, but his film has stood the test of time and Raimi is finally getting his due in hits like Darkman and the critically acclaimed A Simple Plan (which is actually far more frightening than this film).
Raimi is currently directing Spiderman and I for one cannot wait to see what this master of the camera has in store with a budget that ridiculous.