Evil Dead (2013) ***
Despite the buckets of blood and gallons of grue in Fede Alvarez’s 2013 Evil Dead reboot, there’s something too pristine about this version. Both in the cast with their perfect skin and immaculate looks and in the crisp, clean cinematography.
Arriving 10 years after the solid 2003 Texas Chainsaw Massacre reboot (and the same year as the abysmal Texas Chainsaw 3D), ED ‘13 doesn’t feel that far removed from Marcus Nispel’s film (both in look and tone). It gives me that same sense of shoulder-shrugging “Yeah that was decent, but was it necessary?” that I so commonly experience with reboots. None of the characters are particularly compelling. Sure it’s grosser and has a bigger budget but part of the charm of the first two Evil Dead films (my reviews of those here and here)—for this viewer at least—is the homegrown quality and lack of finesse (along with the humor).
This was my third viewing of ED ‘13, which I saw in its theatrical release and again when it arrived on Blu-ray. I’ve never been overly impressed with the film. 10 years later, I can’t say I feel any different—I don’t hate it and I don’t love it but I do like it overall. On the plus side, there are some fun, squirm-inducing gore gags, the finale is wild (it literally rains blood), and Jane Levy does a truly commendable job of being tortured and dishing out nastiness for most of the runtime.
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