Martwe zło: Przebudzenie

I liked the opening and the brilliantly built-up finale, but between that, the new Evil Dead was nothing to write home about. What surprised me was that, compared to the film that started everything in 1981 (for a couple of bucks), this one is rather mild. What pleased me, on the other hand, was how they didn't mess around with it (thank you for the reasonable running time), and that there was no lack of black humour either. (09.07.2023)

Evil Dead Rise is a solid horror flick, but if you're familiar with the franchise, you'll just be mentally ticking off a list of must-haves. The setting of an old tenement house is not as atmospheric and interesting as a cabin in the mountains, and while the filmmakers attempted to bring evil to a new cramped location, they didn't miss the tried-and-true cabin, giving the film a framing device that's quite impressive but completely unnecessary to the main story (but at least it brought the best reveal of the film's title in years). The 2013 remake was far more impressive, engaging and entertaining in its reinterpretation of a well-worn formula; this one is just OK. (28.04.2023)

Evil Dead Rise honors the classic trio of Tapert, Raimi and Campbell and is unrelenting in its intensity, amount of blood and high technical level. For the first time outside of a cottage in the forest, but in the no less inhospitable environment of a social housing complex without a functional elevator or fire escape. The diabolical make-up and behavior of the demon-possessed victims are a proven fan-service trademark of the franchise. The characters don’t act as stupidly as they did last time and their casting and “rock-emo” stylization are properly unconventional and bring to mind the ensemble cast of the last Hellraiser. The mysteriously beautiful Alyssa Sutherland was born for her role as a demon. And we are well aware that this franchise has the most cunning demons ever. And this time, even a little girl is exposed to them! It’s a pleasure to see such an outstanding genre treat made with so much love on the big screen again. (23.04.2023)

The new Evil Dead is audiovisual porn and a brutal uncompromising ride. Lee Cronin has now risen decently into the big leagues and hopefully he'll stick to horror, he's certainly got something to offer. The change of setting in an apartment complex is welcome and refreshing. All the characters are likeable and surprisingly well acted (the little girl is amazing – a new child talent on the scene), the technical aspects with the cinematography are pushed to perfection – this is a TOP Tier 1 horror event – and the same can be said for the sound effects and make-up, there is simply no competition. The gore is well done, although I was honestly expecting more carnage, I wanted more neighbours on the meat grinder and the off screen kill was a surprise, but the only major complaint, and I'm not going to knock a star off because of that, as the final motorcycle-crusher gore combo ranks among the Top Gore scenes of any horror film ever. It's nice to see that not only the whole house is covered in blood from the roof to the basement, but also the parking lot along with the main character. There are some nice references (shotgun, chainsaw not to be missed), the reading of the pages of the Necronomicon is properly creepy, and the atmosphere, which is at times uncomfortable and properly creepy, is also done well. Alyssa Sutherland and her smile are definitely unsettling and a badass when all hell breaks loose. It's nice that even though there are kids featured, everyone gets their ass kicked. Some people complain about the lack of humour, but I honestly can't imagine any humour here, this is no light comedy splatter, but a dark, evil, atmospheric, brutal and uncompromising horror film where lightness would only take away from its power and intensity. We won't see anything more brutal in theaters this year. Watching it, I was reminded of all the hits from my childhood, from Inside to Martyrs, and the new Evil Dead is right in that variety. PS: Hopefully the film will make money, because 10 people at the premiere is sad. 9/10. (21.04.2023)

Sam Raimi produced and Lee Cronin directed Evil Dead Rise to make fans of the original as happy as possible. An audiovisually aggressive gore flick with great sound design and a lot of imaginative violence, it's a wild ride that goes by pretty damn fast even with its short running time. It also has fine heroes and even the derelict building setting works well enough to not mind that it doesn't bring much new to the table. I'm just not sure if a similarly off-the-rails horror film can capture audiences. (19.04.2023)