Film review: Evil Dead

Jane Levy in Fede Alvarez's Evil Dead. TriStar Pictures

Evil Dead
Director: Fede Alvarez
Starring: Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Jessica Lucas, Lou Taylor Pucci
**

When Sam Raimi burst onto the scene with his 1981 debut, Stephen King dubbed it “the most ferociously original horror movie of the year”.

It’s unlikely he’d feel the same way about this remake from Uruguayan Fede Alvarez. Keeping the same basics – demons get unleashed, dismemberment ensues – the twist on the original comes as David (Shiloh Fernandez) and his friends arrive to help his drug-addled sister Mia (Jane Levy) go cold turkey – offering a more credible reason why they’re keen to stick around this spooky locale.

Despite numerous visual winks to the original, Alvarez sacrifices its camp, crass humour for lashings of slick, sick gore. Hard-core fans may love it. But, much like those demons, it’s rather soulless.

Follow us

Follow us on Facebook for discussions, entertainment, reviews, wellness and news.