Evil Dead reboot | Machine Mean

The New Evil Dead

What? You thought you were going to get away without having me say something about the upcoming DVD, Blu-ray release of Evil Dead (laughs hysterically!)? The most surprising thing for me right now is how its only been about three months since this “new” take on Sam Raimi’s masterpiece was released to theaters. A quick turn around considering the movie is more than likely still showing somewhere. But i’m not complaining. The moment news broke that Evil Dead was going to be released in July, my jaw hit the floor in greedy anticipation. Back in April, and leading up to the theatrical debut, there was a lot of doubt whether the film would disgrace the good work Sam and Bruce had done way back in the 80’s. However, after the red band trailer hit the airways, a lot of doubt was cast aside. Thomas‘ worldwide through in the towel and became true believers, watching the trailer over and over with morbid curiosity. To be honest, the trailer freaked me out, and because there is something fundamentally wrong with me, I became instantly hooked. I needed to see this movie.

If you missed Evil Dead in theaters and are waiting beggarly for Tuesday to finally come around, no worries, i’m not planning on spoiling anything for you. But I will say, the casting was great (lesser known’s could have only pulled this off. Casting an already “famous” person would have been too distracting). The story and script were sound, keeping to the original in spirit, but adding a deeper level of struggle and conflict. And the gore, still so true to Raimi’s unique and unusual tastes. Above everything else, Evil Dead proved to countless horror nerds that reboots can be done correctly and respectfully, keeping as much to the original as possible, whilst also taking it deeper and adding different twists and turns for a newer audience. Back in April, after the credits rolled, in my lounged theater seat, I pondered over which Evil Dead was best. Let me be the first honest fanboy and say out loud that the remake is, in my humble opinion, (slightly) better than the 1981 original. I know, I know, how can I say such a thing? Well, its true. The original is indeed a masterpiece, for its generation. Considering its been over thirty years, this reimagining, against all odds, took Sam’s vision and added to it, sticking to the lower budget feel, but jiving it up for a newer audience. Now, remember, i’m only talking about the 81′ Evil Dead, not the famous chainsaw induced, limb removing sequel, Evil Dead II. Groovy? Okay, moving on.

Here’s a list of special features that will be included in either/or both DVD, Blu-ray release:

Commentary featuring stars Jane Levy, Lou Taylor Pucci, Jessica Lucas, Director Fede Alvarez and writer Rodo Sayagues (Blu-ray exclusive)
“Making Life Difficult” – The Intense and Physically Exhausting Creation of the Film
“Being Mia” – The Physical and Psychological Transformation into “Evil Mia”
“Directing The Dead” – Director Fede Alvarez re-imagines a cult horror classic
“Unleashing The Evil Force” – Exploring the origins and design of the new Book of the Dead (Blu-ray exclusive)
“Evil Dead the Reboot” – Cast Rehearsals, Bruce Campbell, Deadites and more! (Blu-ray exclusive)

If your asking yourself, “What? That’s it? No ‘Directors Uncut’ version?” Than you and I are on the same page! Yup, looks like this “first” release is just going to be the film and a couple of extras. And I say, “first” release because we all know these guys are going to double dip and release another version sometime down the road. My bet, some time around October. Does this make me instantly hate them? Am I now going to refuse the release and boycott all sales? Nope, not in the slightest. I’m just going to sneer and complain while at the same time purchasing my DVD copy; the Blu-ray can wait till something “uncut” comes out. Yeah, whatever, you know you’ll be doing the same thing!

If you somehow missed all the hype and haven’t bothered to watch the red band trailer, here it is below: