Modern classic horror movie, released in
1987. Full title: "
Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn." Directed by
Sam Raimi and written by Raimi and
Scott Spiegel. Starred
Bruce Campbell as
dimwitted hero Ash,
Sarah Berry as brainy beauty Annie Knowby,
Dan Hicks as greasy hillbilly Jake,
Kassie DePaiva as skanky cowchick Bobbie Joe,
Denise Bixler as dancing corpse-to-be Linda,
Lou Hancock as sweet old lady Henrietta Knowby, and
Ted Raimi as horrific monstrosity Possessed Henrietta.
Part of its appeal may stem from the
gore factor, with
zombies,
flying eyeballs,
chainsaw mutilations, and gouts of
fake blood splattering all over the screen. Part of its appeal may stem from its
audacious direction (despite its low-budget
special effects), with the cameras chasing people through the
wilderness, rocketing alongside the
flying eyeballs, and
zipping from one corner of the room to the other. Part of its appeal may stem from its
quirky sense of humor, with
guffawing
deer heads and
table lamps, mirrors with a
'tude, and a
rubberfaced hero who beats himself up, cuts off his own hand, and gets off more
funny, quotable lines than your average
Tarantino flick. If you haven't seen it, you cannot yet consider yourself
Culturally Literate.
"Evil Dead 2" was followed, years later, by the less
scary, more
slapstick "
Army of Darkness."