Army Of Darkness
When it came time for the third chapter in The Evil Dead Trilogy, Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell decided to dispense with the isolated horror theatrics and go forward with a sprawling epic (at 80 minutes) action comedy that continued the story and lineage already established by the ending of Evil Dead 2, when Campbellâs Ash found himself stranded in medieval times and tasked as âThe Chosen Oneâ meant to destroy the Deadites and liberate the people of that time. In doing so, it completed the character arc of Ash himself into a full fledged cult movie hero, pretty much widely considered the greatest of all time, and made Campbell himself a legend in the process, despite having had a B level career ever since greatly supplemented by appearances on the convention circuit. Now, Ashley Williams is a fully functioning, all purpose badass, being given some of the greatest one liners in movie history while still harboring a superior contempt for the very people that heâs trying to save, often referring to them as âprimatesâ or âprimitivesâ. After a (very) quick run through of the previous filmâs events (complete with a blink and youâll miss it cameo by Bridget Fonda taking over the role of his ill fated girlfriend Linda), we find Ash deposited and taken captive by a leader who may very well be King Arthur (Marcus Gilbert) and the beloved dimwit Ash attitude kicks in on full display. The film taking at least a partial page from Mark Twainâs A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthurâs Court (complete with a âWisemanâ character who may very well be Merlin) is nearly a masterstroke along with the very likely concept that people who actually lived from 400 to 1500 AD probably suffered on a daily basis from amazingly horrible supernatural terrors (possibly even worse than The Evil Dead) that were mostly suppressed from the pages of recorded history at that time help make the story actually somewhat believable, albeit for a few obvious liberties taken from a technological standpoint that nonetheless moves the story along. Ashâs bread and butter moments of course, amount to his fearless showdowns with the Deadites themselves, and we get plenty of that all the way up to the wild ending in modern times (a reshot ending as it were, meant to be more upbeat than the downer contained in the Directorâs Cut). One particular confrontation though, results in the birth and then resurrection of Evil Ash, who becomes the commander of the armies of the dead and furthermore reinforces the very cool idea that Ash was not only âThe Oneâ when it comes to saving the day but also when it comes to The Evil Dead themselves, who may very well have known from the first movie on that Ash was going to bring into existence their all powerful Antichrist leader that would intend to lead THEM to glory. And with Campbell obviously playing both key roles (albeit under heavy makeup as Evil Ash), it again makes this third chapter into a one man show, save for Embeth Davidtz bringing extreme beauty and grace as Sheila, a peasant girl who becomes Ashâs love interest before being kidnapped and delivered to his malicious doppelganger for proper transformation. Many may argue the merits of both versions of the film, the theatrical cut which is more of a goofy cult comedy or the Directorâs Cut which takes on a mildly more serious feel, but one thingâs for sure is that the whole enterprise is wildly entertaining, and Campbellâs brilliance both with comic timing and he-man heroics makes one wonder why Hollywood wouldnât just let him run with the ball and be one of their top main stars for years and years after (though it might have been Campbellâs own choice as well), but in many ways his place in cinema history was secured, and his legendarily cult, beloved status amongst the fans was cemented forever with this fast paced, anything goes, insane roller coaster ride of fun that closes out the trilogy just as it began, by refusing to repeat itself and keeping all attempts at recycling to a minimum and thus creating what can best be described as three separate but equal classics, a feat possibly only achieved by Star Wars, Indy Jones, The Godfather, and Lord Of The Rings, pretty lofty company indeedâŚ
10/10