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Year:    1987
Studio:  De Laurentiis Entertainment Group/
         Renaissance Pictures
Feature: 2/5
DVD:     3/5

Evil Dead 2 eseentially follows up right at the end of the first movie, when the evil force finally got to Ash (Bruce Campbell). The first bit of the movie is a quick retelling of the original, except with only Ash and his girlfriend, omitting the rest of Ash's friends.

After Ash is possesed we have about 20 minutes of Ash fighting the evil force that threatens to engulf him, starting with right hand which he has to cut off. But then new people arrive at the remote mountain cabin. Annie (Sarah Berry), who is looking for her father, is here with her boyfriend and a couple of hicks.

At first they think that Ash murdered everyone. Then the evil force strikes and they relialize that they're all going to die. It's a desperate battle as they try to find a spell that will banish the evil force. Eventually it's a souped-up Ash (with a chainsaw hand and shotgun) versus the evil force monster.

Evil Dead 2 is a much better picture than the original. It has a bigger budget, better special effects, a more seasoned production team. The story is funnier and wittier though the horror aspects are more or less standard. Really what sets the Evil Dead series apart from other horror pictures is their wit and comedy and Bruce Campbell.
The DVD has a commentary track with director Sam Raimi, actor Bruce Campbell, and a couple of other people. There is also a 30-minute behind-the-scenes featurette, "The Gore the Merrier". Overall this is a much better movie and DVD than the first one.
Copyright (c) 2004 Kevin C. Wong
Page Created: November 21, 2004 Page Last Updated: November 21, 2004