Evil Dead Rise (2023) Review

Evil Dead Rise (2023) Review

 

Evil Dead is a weird franchise. The original was a fantastic low-budget horror experience, and the sequel was a textbook example of how to make a follow-up that was better than the original in nearly every way. The third film, Army of Darkness, went bigger and aimed more for comedy than horror, but was still a unique and entertaining way to cap off the trilogy. Then the franchise laid dormant for over two decades, and a remake produced by the creators of the original trilogy brought it back to relevancy again, returning to the pure horror roots of the first film and updating the effects and the horror. It led to a TV series continuation of the original trilogy, Ash vs. Evil Dead, which ran three seasons, and now there’s Evil Dead Rise. Is it a remake, a reboot, or a sequel? Well, I think it’s a little bit of everything.

When I first heard about Evil Dead Rise it sounded even less interesting to me than when the remake from ten years ago was first announced. The big difference this time was Ash vs. Evil Dead: that show gave me everything I could have asked for in a continuation of the original films, and even though I was a bit disappointed when it ended after thirty episodes, it left me satisfied enough that I eventually accepted the idea of never seeing Bruce Campbell’s character Ash Williams in a new movie or show ever again. Campbell remains firm that he has retired from the role of Ash, but original writer/director Sam Raimi and he remain the caretakers of the franchise, as does original producer Robert Tapert, so the fact that all those guys are still keeping their own franchise going at least keeps me intrigued. Irish filmmaker Lee Cronin was selected by Raimi himself to write and direct, and even though it changes some things up, lacks the character of Ash, and has no direct connection to the TV series or the remake or the original trilogy, I can say right now that Evil Dead Rise is still a true Evil Dead film.

Fans of the franchise have come to expect a few things: insane levels of gore, unrelenting terror, and creative scares. In a similar way to the 2013 remake, Evil Dead Rise goes primarily for pure horror without any explicit comedy, but there are points where what is happening is so over-the-top and shocking it almost becomes humourous. The intent is clear: Evil Dead Rise is a slow build-up of horror, with some blatant perversions on the themes of motherhood and family bonds. It doesn’t start off with a bang like the remake, instead using a narrative framing device that doesn’t end up serving any purpose other than possibly setting up a sequel. Without spoiling anything, the opening and closing scenes were my least favourite parts. The movie really starts when main character Beth, a guitar technician, goes to visit her recently-divorced sister Ellie and her three kids at their rundown apartment in L.A. The kids find the Book of the Dead beneath the parkade floor when an earthquake fractures the building. One of them plays some old records with recordings of the incantations being read aloud, and this is one of my favourite scenes. Even though it’s the same basic thing we’ve seen happen multiple times before, it’s done in a new, effectively scary way, and comes off as far more believable than the remake’s version of this scene.

Evil Dead Rise doesn’t just trade in the traditional cabin in the woods setting for an apartment building. The setting is already dim and creepy before the book unleashes hell, then it gets even creepier. There isn’t as much to do with the building itself being evil like how the cabin was evil in Evil Dead II; the evil is more concentrated on the characters. The new setting gives the filmmakers the opportunity to reference other horror classics from around the same era as the original such as Nightmare on Elm Street and The Shining, but the ties to the previous films range from subtle and clever to overt and trite. Overall, though, it’s basically the same premise as the original/remake, just with new characters experiencing the same kind of terror in a new setting. In the same way that both of those versions came up with enough excuses to keep the characters trapped in the cabin for ninety minutes, there is enough thought put into the characters being trapped in the building to make it an acceptable twist on the premise.

The biggest distinction Rise makes from the remake, though, is the cast of characters. This is not a group of teenagers, nor is it a final male or female hero situation, either. Nearly every character in the main cast is female, all played by solid actors (even the kids), and all of them being related makes what happens even more disturbing and grueling. The family dynamic keeps it interesting and frightening in a new way compared to previous entries. You think at a point early on there might be a limit on how many deadites there will be, but this film doesn’t have the same moral compass as most horror reboots: not even the prepubescent kids are safe from the mutilation and agonizing terror. Alyssa Sutherland as Ellie is the highlight. She terrorizes her kids and sister with upsetting dialogue and horrific violence. Sutherland demonstrates great physicality and expressions, and is clearly having a great time in the role.

In terms of the horror, I appreciated how it built up slowly but never held back or peaked too soon. The gore is almost entirely practical, without too much distractingly-fake CGI, and it is sickeningly convincing and creative. A new abomination introduced in the finale is one of the sickest and scariest forms of evil yet seen in one of these movies. On a budget of only 15 million (two million less than the remake) Cronin managed to make a film that’s arguably even slicker and better-looking than any Evil Dead movie before it. I don’t really fault Evil Dead Rise for doing a lot of the same things we’ve seen before in the franchise. Most of my issues with it are small things that bugged me, like when many characters slip into Aussie accents (it was shot in Australia and multiple cast members are Australian), or when they are seemingly unaware of what’s happening in the next room despite the noise, or how they just stand there and watch horrific things happening in front of them (to their family members, no less) instead of running away or going into a catatonic state of shock.

Evil Dead Rise will more than satisfy fans of the franchise, but I also think that for anyone brand-new to Evil Dead it will seriously traumatize them because they will have no idea what they’re in for. I thought it was a solid reboot in spite of its sometimes wobbly attempts to refresh the premise and material. I don’t care for the generic title (is it possibly referring to the high-rise building it’s set in?) but if this remake/sequel/reboot means the franchise will rise again with another sequel sooner rather than later, I hope they can maintain the quality while forging ahead with a more unique story. If they don't they’ll run the risk of tarnishing this weird little horror movie franchise with an entry that’s actually bad, because as far as I’m concerned, five movies and three seasons of a show later, it still hasn’t happened. Yet.  

Related: 

The Evil Dead Review: https://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2018/10/the-evil-dead-1981-review.html

Evil Dead II Review: https://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2018/10/evil-dead-ii-1987-review.html

Army of Darkness Review: https://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2018/10/army-of-darkness-1992-review.html

Evil Dead remake Review: https://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2018/10/evil-dead-2013-review.html

Ash vs. Evil Dead Series Review: https://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2018/10/ash-vs-evil-dead-2015-2018-series-review.html