During October, my typical schedule revolves around which classic horror movie I am rewatching. Around a week ago, I realized I have yet to watch one of my favorite films ever: The Evil Dead! Released On October 15, 1981, the movie centers around a group of college students who find a demonic book inside the old cabin they rented for the weekend. And upon playing the tapes, they also found the book awakens the evil spirits and demons in the world. The group must then survive the night while the demons (named Deadits) try to take their souls. 

The first film is simply amazing. The camera shots of the evil in the forest on the hunt still chill me to this day, not to mention the atmosphere created on such a low-budget film. The cast is a perfect match for the story and the script. It is one of those movies that may not have been a hit at the time but now has such a beloved audience because of how unique it is. I grew up with the Evil Dead trilogy, and my dad always showed me his favorites, which is how I found this fantastic film. 

Some parts seem humorous or even dumb when I watch now, but considering it comes from the 80s, there’s bound to be some form of corniness. But that is what makes it unique, I believe. Once the second and third films are introduced, everyone knows that it’s time to sit down, watch Ash save the day, and enjoy the sometimes odd jokes and insane levels of gore. 

In 2013 a remake was released; it followed the same storyline and setting. Having loved the original movies, my family all sat down to try and enjoy what we thought would be a good movie. But only getting halfway through, we were disappointed. First, it was a remake that lacked the original spirit and uniqueness that the original had. While the movie wasn’t impressive, I did enjoy the cinematography itself. But being biased to the original, I knew I wasn’t going to love the film entirely, but I hoped it would make the same feelings. But it failed in that attempt and regurgitated what had been done before. And for me, the casting choices just didn’t fit, so the acting was out of place at times. 

I’m no movie critic, but when a cult classic is redone, everyone can become critical. The 2013 version further proved that when studios grow bored or need some extra funds, a remake or sequel is ordered. And as a society, people like to be spoon-fed content, and they just want to be entertained. Unfortunately, there is a common theme of easy money and entertainment throughout mass media. When a character gets too complex, people don’t like them simply because they don’t fit their instantaneous expectations. We need to start coming up with original ideas so that watered-down versions of our favorites don’t pollute a generation of people.