MONSTERZERO NJ’S MOVIE MEMORIES: THE EVIL DEAD (1981)

That infamous cabin!

Tonight I went to see the fortieth anniversary screening of Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead and it took me back almost four decades, to when I first saw it with friends in a theater during it’s major release in 1982. It was wonderful seeing it onscreen again, complete with a fun and very funny opening introduction from the legend himself, Bruce Campbell. Most of all, it returned me to a moment in time when I was first introduced to this now classic horror…

A group of ill-fated friends about to experience a nightmare!

The Evil Dead is one of the most revered horror flicks in the genre and in my humble opinion, it’s one of the greatest horror flicks of all-time and certainly one of my top favorites. I saw it when it opened and have loved it ever since. I had no idea what to expect—there was no internet to spoil things in the 80s—save that Stephen King himself called it “ferociously original” and there was a bloodied-up guy with a chainsaw on one of the posters. Friends and I went on what I believe was a Saturday afternoon and what we saw blew us away. Up till then horror flicks were patterning themselves after Halloween and Friday the 13th with moderate paces and increasing blood and body counts, inspired by the latter. This flick was batshit crazy. It began atmospherically with a creepy old cabin and a bunch of friends finding an ominous tape recording and a very spooky book. Once it got going, it was paced like an action movie and the blood, gore and bonkers set-pieces came fast and furious. I’d never seen anything like it. The guy in the theater who kept calling out “dismember” in a sinister voice, didn’t hurt the experience either. It instantly became of of my favorite horror films and changed the horror genre moving forward, not to mention it introduced us to horror icon Ash Williams and his now legendary portrayer, Bruce Campbell. Raimi’s classic is a shining example of innovation and effectiveness on a small budget and he is still one of my favorite filmmakers and The Evil Dead, a movie memory I will never forget!

 

Future horror icon Ash Williams as played by future horror legend Bruce Campbell!

-MonsterZero NJ