Ash vs Evil Dead Season 3: Final Goodbyes

Posted on 31 oktober 2018 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

After the terrific second season, I thought it was over for the chainsaw wielding Ash and his compadres. But my favorite show of the last couple of years returned for one final round of evil ass kicking. April this year, Starz announced it was now cancelled due to a drop in viewers. Bruce Campbell had this to tweet about it:

So now it’s over for real. But with a legacy this good – three movies (not counting the inferior remake) and three TV-seasons, who’s complaining?

Season 3 starts off with a brilliant commercial in which Ash, retired as a demon-killer, now slashes prices instead of zombies in his new hardware store. Off course, it doesn’t take long for evil to return. And if that isn’t enough, he finds out he is a dad. Will his daughter Brandy turn out to be an evil asskicker, just like her daddy ‘Ashy Slashy’?

The usual ingredients are all here: slapstick humor, buckets of gore and dazzling camera moves. A definite highlight is the battle in a sperm bank (in episode 2), where Ash has been donating his superior seed for quite a while. It is in over-the-top scenes like this when the formula of laugh out loud humor and gory horror shocks is at its most effective.

Like in the previous season, Ash gets excellent support from Pablo and Kelly (Ray Santiago & Dana DeLorenzo) who really managed to become essential characters in the revived Evil Dead Universe. Lucy Lawless makes a strong main villain as Ruby, one of the original Dark Ones who wrote the Necronomicon and thus started all this deadite trouble. We meet the other Dark Ones as well this season for the first time! And does Ash get to fight that big ass monster that’s on the awesome cover above? Find out for yourself. This show is not to be missed.

I wish Bruce Campbell a happy retirement. Ash – a guy with a chainsaw as hand – has been the role of his lifetime. As King of the B-actors, he couldn’t get a more suitable legacy. This is the stuff of true legends.

Ash can finally lock away his chainsaw and boomstick.

My 10 Favorite Horror Movies Ever

Posted on 10 augustus 2018 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Checked and double checked. Darlings killed! This is it:

10. Bad Taste (1987)

Peter Jackson’s inventive low budget debut film is a delight in gory horror and awesome humor. It’s about aliens coming to New Zealand to set-up a supply chain in human flesh for their intergalactic fast food restaurants. What they didn’t count on was secret agent Derek (played by Jackson himself) and his team! Great to see that the visionary director behind The Lord of the Rings trilogy started his career with this hilarious B-movie.

Greatest Moment: The vomit scene: ‘ahhhh, l think the gruel is ready!!’

09. The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)

Back at the old days, they made great films too, you know. And the Universal Monster Movies are not to be ignored when you’re rating your all-time favorite horrors. The beautiful gothic scenery, spot-on art direction, excellent make-up effects, the universal themes, the humor (the monster smoking a cigar!)… The Bride of Frankenstein is the best in its genre and at least as impressive in the time it was made as its contemporary counterparts. Ehhh, which contemporary counterparts by the way?

Greatest moment: The monster and the hermit.

08. Army of Darkness (1992)

You want some more Evil Dead? Come get some! Ash is back with a chainsaw attached to his wrist and a boomstick on his back. This time around he’s kicking Evil’s ass in medieval times. Isn’t it groovy? Well, yes it is. Besides Raimi’s action-packed script and trademark camera tricks, fans can enjoy a brilliant turn from B-Movie star Bruce Campbell. With his masterful comic timing, loads of one-liners and his lady man skills, he makes Ash a truly lovable hero. Not to mention a horror icon. Hail to the King baby!

Greatest moment: The pit.

07. Scream (1996)

This postmodern take on the slasher genre is both an incredible homage and superb addition to the genre. The screenplay by Kevin Williamson is masterfully written and director Wes Craven finds exactly the right balance between suspense, teenage stupidity, humor and extreme violence. Followed by three decent sequels (and a tv-show), but this first one is the best by far.

Greatest Moment: The revelation who the killer is.

06. Predator (1987)

The first Predator is an unique movie that holds a very special place in my heart. The concept is fairly simple (mysterious alien hunts and kills soldiers and mercenaries in South American jungle), the execution is flawless. It features the greatest team of warriors ever assembled that faces off against the greatest alien ever created for cinema. It’s just awesome in every way.

Greatest moment: There are many great scenes featuring the predator, but Schwarzenegger’s team butchering an entire guerrilla army is so bad-ass that I have to pick that one.

5. Dead Ringers (1988)

Two bodies. Two minds. One Soul. Separation can be a terrifying thing.
No monsters or killers are needed to make a creepy film. The human psyche can be terrifying enough by itself. Jeremy Irons gives an Oscar worthy double performance as a pair of twins who become mentally intertwined together. Brilliant psychological horror by master of bodily transformation, David Cronenberg.

Greatest Moment: The superbly creepy credit sequence and the unsettling ending.

04. Psycho (1960)

Psycho is such an inspirational film that it spawned an entire genre of slasher / serial killer movies. With its groundbreaking narrative techniques and tension building it’s hard to deny the importance of Hitchcock’s masterpiece in cinema history. Janet Leigh is a joy to watch and so is Anthony Perkins in his lunatic performance.

Greatest moment: The shower scene off course, which is completely shocking to this day.

03. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

The scariest horror movie of my childhood and frankly an almost traumatic experience. I recently saw it and even though the scare effect is weakened down somewhat, it is still a deeply chilling experience. Master of Horror Wes Craven takes all the terrible emotions the worst nightmares can cause and uses them to maximum effect.

Greatest moment: The protagonist Nancy has a number of terrifying dreams.

02. Evil Dead II (1987)

Groovy! Comedy and scares are effectively combined in this sequel to Raimi’s classic The Evil Dead*. Yes, it is a sequel, the beginning is just an altered summary of the first flick. Bruce Campbell makes Ash a true horror icon as he chops up his girlfriend and fight his own hand. Slapstick humor and rapid chainsaw action make this a true classic in the genre and Raimi’s best film. They don’t make ‘m like this anymore. Classic.

Greatest moment: In the cellar with sweet Henrietta. Complete madness.

01. Dawn of the Dead (1978)

This is it, my all-time favorite horror movie. What makes it so good? It is just a trip to become part of Romero’s apocalyptic zombie world for a couple of hours. When used properly as in Dawn of the Dead, zombies are really a marvelous invention. They can be sad, scary, or comical and at the same time serve as a metaphor for the consumerist society. The shopping mall as a zombie survivor stronghold works incredibly well. The movie features well written characters, appropriately disgusting special make-up effects by Tom Savini and great music. It is the most atmospheric horror film; very rich in ideas and horrific imagery. I love it.

Greatest moment: Going shopping off course!

*OMITTED:

The Evil Dead (1981)

In 1980 three friends went out to shoot a cheap horror movie that was destined to become a genre classic. The handsome one, Bruce Campbell, became the actor of the group. ‘He was the one that girls wanted to look at.’ Sam Raimi later became a top director in Hollywood (directing Spiderman). And finally, Rob Tapert became a successful producer. The Evil Dead is still a very effective horror flick to this day with many unforgettable moments, such as the tree rape scene and blood-soaked finale.

Greatest Moment: The gory climax in the cabin.

Ash vs Evil Dead 2 Kicks Evil’s Ass Literally

Posted on 10 januari 2018 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

After the magnificent season 1 I thought it couldn’t get any better, but I was DEAD wrong. The sequel to the glorious return of director Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell (B-movie star and author “If Chins Could Kill”) contains even more inventive humour, massive amounts of gore and ultra stylish visuals. Groovy!!

After the heroic, but self-serving Ash made the completely selfish deal with half-demon Ruby the Dark One – original author of Necronomicon aka Book of the Dead that has awoken evil on earth once AGAIN – he and his dear friends Kelly and Pablo have been enjoying life in Jacksonville. Ash no longer uses his chainsaw to dismember deadites, but to open new vats of beer and to impress hot girls (“What a pleasure for you to meet me”). But when evil shows up anyway, this is a dealbreaker. They gave peace a chance, now it’s time for war.

The trio head towards Ash’s hometown in Michigan, where Ash’s dad still lives, like his son a lady killer. Once there, they attempt to retrieve the necronomicon before Ruby’s evil spawn can use it to make earth a living hell. This is the start of a whole series of outrageous challenges. First Ash has to fight a possessed anus in a morgue (“There is only one asshole in this town, and that asshole is me!” BLEM!) Next is a battle against Ash’s beloved car and his resurrected sister Cheryl (awesome return of Ellen Sandweiss).

Finally, after escaping from a loony asylum and slaying many deadites, Ash and Kelly (Pablo is temporarily dead) return to the 1980’s, so they can obtain the book from the cabin before Ash will ever find it as young man. And guess who still lives in the fruit cellar of the old shack? That’s right:

Sweet Henrietta

Ash will need all of his superior wits and tools to get out of this one. But no need to worry. This is Ash we’re talking about after all, perhaps the greatest hero who ever lived. Season 2 does seem to be the end of the Evil Dead revival, but even if it is; this is one hell of a glorious return. Like the movies, this show is already a classic. So if you she-bitches are ready, then let’s go!

15 coolest (or most ridiculous) DVD packages

Posted on 18 januari 2017 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Everything is streamable nowadays, but for real movie collectors like myself, nothing beats the good old DVD in your closet. Below are 15 of the coolest and weirdest collector’s DVD’s I’ve come across. Check it out.

15. The Walking Dead