Jan. 2024 Reviews | We Watch Movies
Rewatch: The Evil Dead (1983)
This is the Cabin in the woods horror film. The original Evil Dead is a snapshot in everything horror fans love! The Gore, The monsters, The atmosphere, all of it kicks off my personal favorite Horror franchise!
Starring Bruce Campbell as the Coward turned Deadite ass kicker and directed by Sam Raimi (Who would later go on to do the Toby Mcguire spiderman movies.) in his breakout film. The Evil Dead was so Gruesome that it received the Beyond R, X Rating on release. While most of the splatterstick can be deemed “campy” in the modern day, the showing seams of the filmmaking process only serve to help show the dedication of Raimi and his crew though a hellish production.
What surprised me the most on this re-watch is how often the film would set up an obvious scare; that would be short lived in a lesser movie, only to hold or save it for later on. Obvious window or mirror shots would hold for long periods of time. Then something would take precedence over the current suspense building, leaving the audience to stew in the anticipation of where a deadite might appear next. Then later on, perhaps with a different character that set up pays off with the horrific actions of the demon possessed young folk. AKA the Deadites.
The most insane creatures to ever appear in cinema. The Deadites A creature whose goal is to torment are characters into insanity before possessing and as they would quote in later installments “swallow your soul”. With five installments in the series, The Evil Dead films are a perfect weekend marathon. Going from playing straight horror into equally straight played Dark-comedy.
If you are a filmmaker you need to watch this movie at least once so you can see what inspiration and creativity can accomplish! Even in the hands of a couple of Twenty-two year olds. Rami and Campbell have discussed creating a new entry into the series every few years and I say as long as the series stays equal parts gameful and grotesque; May the Evil Dead live on.
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First Viewing: American history X (1998)
How would you give a swastika tattooed white supremist a redemption arc?
That is the Question posed by Tony Kaye and Edward Norton’s “American History X”. Where we watch the construction of a Neo-Nazi, His hate crimes, the rage, and where it all comes from.
His deconstruction, Through experience and exposure, And ultimate realization the he will still have to suffer the consequence of his action.
MINOR SPOILERS:
The ending of the film is especially shocking and sincere. Attempting to show the effect of hateful ideology on more others going even beyond the perpetrator and the victims.
END SPOILERS :
Ultimately I think this film is a fantastic character study. Completely succeeding on educating any audience on what creates a Monster and how that Monster can change. A mirror to someone who might not have ever seen their real ugly face.
Filled with memorable characters (both for their good and bad), A slow moving but never sluggish story. Difficult to achieve performances and a strong character arc for our main protagonist. I would say to check it out.
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New Release: Old Dads (2023)
Comedian Bill Burr (One of the few comedians to not turn into a huge douche and move to Austin). takes to your Netflix feed with his newly released “Old Dads'. A comedy based around Burr’s real life experience of becoming a dad in his 50’s. Old Billy himself takes the starring role taking a drastic turn from the more seriously toned performances we’ve seen him take on in shows like “Breaking Bad” and “The Mandalorian” where he gives one of the best performances in the entire franchise. However, if you’re familiar with Bill Burr you know that he is a very energetic comedian and the stage work shows on screen.
Overall I think this movie was made specifically for fans of Burr’s comedy with most of the dialogue feeling like the one man improv ramblings that he’ll often go on during his podcast. However, I don’t think that is a particularly bad thing in this case. Other comedians have tried to translate their style to screen and failed; but Burr’s film feels honest.
Burr made a reality and hyperreal world that might seem strange to us but feels like it might just be how the world feels to him. On a lot of levels it’s very relatable and on the parts that don’t, well, it's just funny.
I won’t call it the next “Caddyshack” or “National Lampoon” but there is some honesty and heart in this movie that I think could be very beneficial to some viewers. I would say check it out or maybe watch it with your Old Dad.
