THE EVIL DEAD

A group of friends decides to spend the weekend in a secluded cabin deep in the woods of Michigan. Once inside the house, the five young people rummage through the moldy debris in the basement and find an old book and a tape recorder: when the voice of an archaeologist reciting a magical formula emerges from the recorder, the terror begins. In the forest, the forces of evil come to life, causing the death of the unfortunate youngsters who become possessed, transformed into horrifying metamorphoses, and forced to attack each other. Only Ashley manages to survive until dawn, and when everything seems to be over... An eternal cult classic of horror masterfully directed by Sam(uel) Raimi, who involved some friends (Bruce Campbell, Robert G. Tapert) in the realization of the project. Initially, the title was "The book of the Dead", and in some takes of one of the "Home-video" versions, this title can even be seen, eventually translated into the famous Evil Dead. The film showcases Raimi's talent as a director, capable of immersing the audience in a state of shock through gory scenes and nightmarish atmospheres; all achieved with limited resources but a great deal of creativity. Considering the limited budget of $350,000 and the 16 mm format with which Evil Dead was filmed, it's hard to believe. The special effects, made impressively despite their low cost, enrich the film. Within the movie, we can witness the astonishing mutilations of the characters' bodies as they transform into ferocious demons. The use of the camera for the subjective perspective during the forest chase revolutionized a certain way of filming horror and, along with the tricycle scenes in The Shining, set new standards for films to come. Bruce Campbell's performance (Ashley) is nothing short of spectacular, and the actor will also star in the sequel "Evil Dead II", also directed by Raimi, as well as in the unofficial third chapter of the series, "Army of Darkness". Sam Raimi was inspired to shoot "The Evil Dead" following the outcome of a history assignment when he was a literature student at Michigan State University. The assignment was to read "The Book of the Dead". Intrigued by the title, Raimi wrote an initial screenplay titled "Within The Woods". Later, with his childhood friend Bruce Campbell and university companion Robert Tapert, he gathered the $1,600 needed to film a roughly half-hour cinematic work based on that screenplay. Trivia: the film was shot during an intense weekend on a farm in Michigan. The result was a pilot film in super8, which Raimi used to seek funding for the feature-length film. Friends, neighbors, supermarket owners, and real estate agents financed the operation with the first $90,000.