Tagarchief: Necronomicon Ex Mortis

Ash vs Evil Dead 2 Kicks Evil’s Ass Literally

Posted on 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!

Ash vs Evil Dead: 5 Greatest Moments

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

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Ash is back in Ash vs Evil Dead

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Ash: man, I missed this guy! Bruce Campbell is back in the role that made him King of the B-actors. And he looks as good as ever and his humour is still as dry as a bucket of Sahara sand. In 23 years (since ‘Army of Darkness’), he hasn’t changed much. He still has a lousy job in a store as stock boy, he is still picking up chicks, and he still has his chainsaw and boomstick lying around for emergencies. And they’re needed, because it takes only 10 minutes before Evil shows up. Bigtime…

So what are the best moments in this epic first season? (spoilers obviously)

5. Shoot First, Think Never
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Ash has looked deep inside himself with a guided ayahuasca tour and found the core of his being: whatever you do, don’t think. Ash is most effective when he doesn’t think at all and that’s how he defeats the horrible demon Eligos.

4. Two of Us
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When Ash goes back to the cabin, the place where it all began, the series goes back to its roots also: nerve wrecking terror. He faces several evil entities including some evil kid (‘someone needs to wash your mouth kid and that someone is me’). But equally great is his fight against another Evil Ash. He is often his own worst enemy. Luckily Good Ash always has some tricks up his sleeve.

3. Trailer Trash
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Ash takes on the possessed Vivian – his trailer park neighbour. It is in this classic battle that Ash is reattached to his beloved chainsaw plus he gets to use his BOOMSTICK! “Yo granny, hope you took your Geritol. Because it’s time to dance”.

2. Summoning up a Total Nerd
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Ashley Williams is at his best when he’s acting like a complete idiot. Like the time he purposefully wants to summon a weak demon to get rid of evil.
Ash: Lionel, have you found a wimpy demon yet?
Lionel: I have found a minor demon named ‘Eligos’. Possesses knowledge of hidden things. A demon of the mindscape.
Ash: Well perfect. Sounds like a total nerd. Okay, get him out.

When Eligos appears it doesn’t look much like a wimp. Classic Ash.

1. Calling up Spirits
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Ash messed up things before, but how he manages to summon up demons this time must be his greatest (and funniest) fuck-up. Ash is getting high with a hooker and she tells him she finds poetry so damn sexy. Ash says he has something lying around. It may not be French, but Necronomicon Ex Mortis (which he keeps in his house because…?) will have to do. Soon they’re citing passages and laughing their asses off. Superb comedy.

Can’t wait for the second season. Loved this one.

Raimi, Tapert, Campbell: bring it on!

Army of Darkness

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Director: Sam Raimi
Written by: Sam Raimi, Ivan Raimi
Cast: Bruce Campbell, Embeth Davidtz, Marcus Gilbert, Richard Grove

Year / Country: 1992, USA
Running Time: 85 mins.

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.

Some horror fans have argued that this third and final entry in the Evil Dead series is too comical to be considered horror. While this notion might be true, Raimi should be applauded for taking his franchise in this direction. This movie is hilarious! And there is plenty of horror as well.

We literally get sucked into the action when our hero Ash disappears into a vortex. He is transported to the age of King Arthur where he is captured and mistaken for an ally of Arthur’s enemy Henry the Red. Arthur sentences him to a one-way ticket to ‘the pit’. After he has shown the primates some of his fancy tricks and gadgets they believe him to be the chosen one, who is to deliver them from evil.

Ash is sent on a holy quest to find the occult book Necronomicon. He finds it, but screws up the book lifting procedure and Evil is awoken. An army of deadites head towards Arthur’s castle to retrieve the book. Now Ash has to lead Arthur’s men into battle while he simultaneously has to rescue his girlfriend Sheila, who has been kidnapped by the evil forces.

Army of Darkness contains some fantastic set-pieces around which dynamic action scenes take place. My personal favorites are the pit and the S-Mart finale. The skeleton army is also an impressive accomplishment. Stop-motion pioneer Ray Harryhausen would certainly approve.

Besides Raimi’s action-packed script and trademark camera tricks, fans can enjoy a brilliant double turn from B-Movie star Bruce Campbell as Good Ash and Bad Ash. 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!

Rating:

Biography: Sam Raimi (1959, Royal Oak, Michigan) started making 8mm films when he was around ten years old. In his teenage years he first collaborated with his good friend Bruce Campbell, who would later appear in almost all of his films. The style of Raimi is influenced by the Three Stooges, of whom he is a huge fan. By making the short movie Within the Woods he managed to raise the required funds to make his first feature; the outrageous horror flick The Evil Dead. After that he made similar films with varying commercial success. In his films Raimi displays a great talent for creating inventive visuals. Most of his movies also feature slapstick and comic book elements. In 2002 Raimi made Spiderman, his biggest film to date. It was an enormous box-office success and Raimi would go on to make two sequels. Throughout his career Raimi has also produced many films and TV-series, mostly in the horror/fantasy genre. He remains a director with a huge fan base and many exciting future prospects.

Filmography (a selection): It’s Murder! (1977, short), Within the Woods (1978, short), Clockwork (1978, short), The Evil Dead (1981), Crimewave (1985), Evil Dead II (1987),  Darkman (1990), Army of Darkness (1992), The Quick and the Dead (1995), A Simple Plan (1998), For Love of the Game (1999), The Gift (2000), Spider-Man (2002), Spider-Man 2 (2004), Spider-Man 3 (2007)

The Evil Dead

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Director: Sam Raimi
Written by: Sam Raimi
Cast: Bruce Campbell, Ellen Sandweiss, Richard DeManincor, Betsy Baker

Year / Country: 1981, USA
Running Time: 85 mins.

Sam Raimi’s first feature film is a low budget horror shocker that would find an enormous cult support and send its creator to the Hollywood directors A-list. It would also spawn two sequels, comic books, lots of toys, a number of videogames and even a musical.

The story is simple: five friends take a holiday to a deserted cabin in the woods. Over there, they find a morbid archaeological artifact; Necronomicon Ex Mortis, the book of the dead. They also find a tape-recorder and –stupidly– play the recordings. The professor’s voice on the tape utters spells from the book and thereby resurrects the evil spirits in the forest. These spirits quickly head towards the cabin to possess the living. Once a human is possessed, bodily dismemberment is the only way to beat the demon that inhabits the body.

The execution of this gruesome tale is nearly flawless. From a slow and suspenseful build-up to the gore-drenched ending. In the meantime it provides more scares than a truckload of other eighties horror flicks. The young cast performs well. As opposed to many modern horrors the viewer can genuinely believe that these people are terrified. Raimi also creates tension with good use of sound and dazzling camerawork. The Evil-POV shots are especially a brilliant invention. The special make-up and gore effects are impressive considering the shoestring budget.

There are also some scenes of controversy. Most notably of course the tree-rape scene. Although the envelope in horror has been pushed further over the years, this remains a shocking scene when viewed today. Bruce Campbell’s character Ash is still fairly undeveloped at this point. Something that would drastically change with the follow-up Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn.

Rating:

Biography: Sam Raimi (1959, Royal Oak, Michigan) started making 8mm films when he was around ten years old. In his teenage years he first collaborated with his good friend Bruce Campbell, who would later appear in almost all of his films. The style of Raimi is influenced by the Three Stooges, of whom he is a huge fan. By making the short movie Within the Woods he managed to raise the required funds to make his first feature; the outrageous horror flick The Evil Dead. After that he made similar films with varying commercial success. In his films Raimi displays a great talent for creating inventive visuals. Most of his movies also feature slapstick and comic book elements. In 2002 Raimi made Spiderman, his biggest film to date. It was an enormous box-office success and Raimi would go on to make two sequels. Throughout his career Raimi has also produced many films and TV-series, mostly in the horror/fantasy genre. He remains a director with a huge fan base and many exciting future prospects.

Filmography (a selection): It’s Murder! (1977, short), Within the Woods (1978, short), Clockwork (1978, short), The Evil Dead (1981), Crimewave (1985), Evil Dead II (1987),  Darkman (1990), Army of Darkness (1992), The Quick and the Dead (1995), A Simple Plan (1998), For Love of the Game (1999), The Gift (2000), Spider-Man (2002), Spider-Man 2 (2004), Spider-Man 3 (2007)