It is a rare occasion for a sequel to be better than the original, even more so for a low-budget B-movie. “Evil Dead II” is one of these few exceptions.
Released in 1987, a solid six years after the first film saw a release, the sequel took a new spin on the series by adding in a comedic tone to a horror story. Bruce Campbell returns to play the hero, Ash Williams, and Sam Raimi, who directed the original “Spiderman” series as well as “Oz The Great and Powerful,” returns to the helm.
The film begins with a hybrid of a recap and a remade version of the first film, “The Evil Dead.” In this version of the story, Ash ventures to a remote cabin in the woods with his girlfriend. While there, the two unleash an evil force that eventually claims the life of his girlfriend as well as taking a toll on Ash himself. This is quite different from the original, which has caused much confusion among fans. It almost leads us to believe that Ash wanders into the cabin on two separate occasions because the stories are so different.
The new plotline picks up shortly after his girlfriend dies and Ash’s story is continued. He is infected with the evil force and will do anything to cure it. This leads to one of the more disturbing scenes in the film where Ash decides that he must remove his hand, to which he has isolated the infection. Of course, because this is a comedy, the hand comes to life and leads to a hilarious confrontation between the two. The story continues with more people ending up at the cabin to fight the evil as well.
The film has just the right amount of ridiculousness, from Ash’s one-liners to his chainsaw hand. That’s right: he has a chainsaw hand. After the removal of his original hand, Ash decided to rig up a chainsaw to replace it. The movie concludes with a perfect setup for the third installment in the series, “Army of Darkness,” which is set in medieval times.
While more expensive than the original film, “Evil Dead 2” still had a relatively small $3.6 million budget. It has of course made that money back and then some. Over time, the “Evil Dead” series has gained quite a cult following among horror movie fans. Recently, a remake has been produced that offers many Easter eggs for fans of the series. There are also talks of continuing the series with an “Army of Darkness 2,” as well as a sequel to the remake.
Overall, “Evil Dead 2” is a worthy successor to the original. It added a completely new element to the series, which helped it gain a big following of fans. It appeals to a wide-ranging audience, which is an absolute plus for a B-movie. To sum up the entire movie in one word, “groovy.”
