4 out of 5

Director: Sam Raimi

Right. Evil Dead 2 *is* genius… on an introduction to horror, the transition from the campy creeps of Evil Dead to the 3 Stooges-esque one-liner-delivering Ash of Army of Darkness is amazing, and as you travel through the key points of cult horror, ED2 stands out as a shining example of originality. But on a second view, years later, this wasnt Raimi at his best. Dont get me wrong – ED2 has some amazing creativity in its scenes and some great shots, but because it is partially a hitchy, quick remake of #1, and partially because of the gore-avoidance for the censors, once you know what to expect, the ride is a little uneven. Plot? Couple goes to cabin, unleashes demons, have to rescue pages of an old-book to recite a banish demons spell. Because the focus is more on laughs here, we dont really get a character or mood buildup, but rather a compressed review of how we got to where we are. And dont get me wrong – its great, and its hilarious! Bruce Campbells physical comedy, the silly monsters, the cheese music placement, but – while Raimis career trumps Peter Jacksons 10 to 1 in my opinion – Dead Alive nailed the comedy / zany gore horror format, and Army of Darkness finalized and perfected the switch to silly horror. Years later, Raimi would use all of this experience to deliver Drag Me to Hell – a gorgeous example of laughs and scares and blood. But ED2, while deserving of all of its praise and amazing for how many people it inspired, is a little uneven after all this time… but still, you havent seen it yet? Youd better get on that.