Summary
1981’sThe Evil Deadhas influenced the future of cinema in ways both large and small. This includes birthing the career of director Sam Raimi, who made the movie as an expansion of his 1978 short filmWithin the Woods, and that of star Bruce Campbell, who played the beleaguered survivor Ash Williams. Both would go on to major projects both in and out of the horror genre, with Raimi helming projects including theSpider-Mantrilogy andDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madnessand Campbell starring in titles such asBurn Notice,Sky High, andXena: Warrior Princess.
However, the movie has proven to be even more influential in the horror sphere.This includes birthing an entire franchise that now includes fiveEvil Deadmovieswith more on the way, a three-season television show, a stage musical, and multiple video games and comic books. In addition to being the beginning of a sprawling franchise, the iconic horror classic has spawned a legion of largely unrelated horror movies that have paid homage to it in various ways over the decades, either in their settings, their tones, or in even more direct references.
Evil Dead Movies In Order & Timeline
Watching the Evil Dead movies in order can be difficult because the Sam Raimi horror franchise has a confusing timeline, but we break it down here.
Edgar Wright drew inspiration from many iconic undead movie when crafting his seminal horror-comedy classicShaun of the Dead, most notably the works of George A. Romero, including 1978’sDawn of the Dead. While theoriginalThe Evil Deadis about ancient demonic forces rather than more traditional zombies and thus isn’t referenced frequently throughout the 2004 movie, it is still subtly mentioned during one early moment when Shaun mentions that his coworker Ash is out sick.
The influence of Sam Raimi can be felt more in the snappy pace of the editing and visuals of the movie rather than the zombie pastiche, especially in the moments when Shaun readies himself for battle, which take place in a series of quick cuts that exhibit the kinetic energy and vibrant creativity of Raimi’sEvil Deadmovies.
Every Classic Horror Movie Referenced In Shaun Of The Dead
Edgar Wright’s zombie comedy Shaun of the Dead has homages, references, and Easter eggs to a bunch of classics of horror cinema.
Bubba Ho-Tep
Cast
Bubba Ho-tep presents an imaginative tale involving an elderly Elvis Presley, living in an East Texas rest home after switching identities with an impersonator. Alongside a companion claiming to be John F. Kennedy, he battles an ancient Egyptian mummy threatening the residents' souls.
One of the best ways for anEvil Dead-influenced movie to wear its intentions on its sleeve is to cast Bruce Campbell.An even better way is to cast Bruce Campbell as iconic rock ‘n roller Elvis Presley, who has secretly remained alive in a retirement home after swapping places with a lookalike in in the 1970s. With the Bruce Campbell character in place, the “evil dead” element is secured when an ancient mummy is unleashed upon the retirement home. The two must do battle, and a variety of macabre hijinks ensue.
It nevertheless also showcases some of the fearlessly creative low-budget innovation that fueled the original movie as well.
The movie, which comes from Sam Raimi contemporary Don Coscarelli (Phantasm) features horror-comedy stylings that take after the slapstick nature of the sequelsEvil Dead IIandArmy of Darknessmore thanThe Evil Dead, but it nevertheless also showcases some of the fearlessly creative low-budget innovation that fueled the original movie as well.
The horror-comedyTucker & Dale vs. Evil, which stars Tyler Labine and Alan Tudyk in the title roles, has a lot of different subgenres on its mind when it comes to the tropes it has set out to lampoon.Primarily, this involves the “hicksploitation” subgenre, which includes movies as wide-ranging asDeliverance,The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, andWrong Turn, by having college kids assume that a pair of well-meaning hillbillies are backwoods murderers.
However, director Eli Craighas specifically stated that it was his intention to evoke the cabin fromThe Evil Deadwhen it came to designing Tucker and Dale’s West Virginia vacation home. While this doesn’t necessarily mesh with the primary hicksploitation theme, it evokes the “cabin in the woods” subgenre that the 1981 movie helped cement and thus folds perfectly into the overall pastiche of the 2010 title.
Every Horror Movie Reference In Tucker And Dale Vs. Evil
Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil is a satirical spoof of the horror genre, flipping tropes on their heads and creating a comical new narrative.
Demons
Demons is an Italian horror film directed by Lamberto Bava. Released in 1985, the movie centers on a group of individuals trapped inside a West Berlin cinema. As demonic entities infest the theater, the humans must confront the growing threat as the demons kill and possess them, escalating their numbers.
Known asDèmoniin the original Italian,Demonsis a 1985 outing from director Lamberto Bava(A Blade in the Dark) that follows attendees of a movie screening who are transformed into evil, zombie-esque demons. The rules by which the demons operate can be a little bit unpredictable, but they almost always come attached to heaps of gruesome special effects.
While many subsequent movies that were influenced byThe Evil Deadattempted to meld the Raimi movie with more Romero-influenced flesh-eating zombies,1985’sDemonsis one of the best evocations of the 1981 movie’s Kandarian demons.Not only do they meld the tropes of undead horror and possession horror, they possess their hosts with a gleeful, anarchistic abandon that can result in unpredictable terror as much as it may delight, depending on the audience members’ individual reactions.
Night of the Demons
Night of the Demons, released in 1988, is a horror film centered on a group of teens who host a Halloween party at an abandoned funeral home. Their séance inadvertently awakens a malevolent force, leading to a night of terror as the partygoers confront a deadly supernatural presence.
1988’sNight of the Demonsis another movie that evokes the tone of 1981’sThe Evil Deadperfectly, though it is much more possession-forward with very little undead element.On top of that, it also centers the element of potent isolation that the original Raimi movie features at its core.While the movie’s birthday party gone wrong doesn’t take place at a cabin in the woods, it does happen at the abandoned mortuary Hull House, where the participants are separated from any possible aid.
This is another outing that embraces shock and delight in equal measure, with special effects moments that are designed like magic tricks to invoke whatever reaction they possibly can.Its similiarity toEvilDeadmay indeed be one reason that it spawned a minor horror franchise, which now includes two sequels and a remake at the time of writing.
The Cabin in the Woodsis a deconstruction of the “cabin in the woods” subgenre in general and uses its meta approach to analyze horror and its audience from a broad perspective.This includes bringing in plenty of tropes that don’t exist in the originalThe Evil Deadincluding “The Harbinger,” a common character that warns prospective victims away from their doom like Crazy Ralph in theFriday the 13thfranchise.
Additionally, “Angry Molesting Tree” can be seen on a board of possible monsters that could be set upon the group of young people in the cabin,
However, the movie nevertheless contains a multitude of references toThe Evil Dead.This includes the design of the cabin itself, which owes a great deal to the original 1981 classic.Additionally, “Angry Molesting Tree” can be seen on a board of possible monsters that could be set upon the group of young people in the cabin, referencing one of the more controversial sequences from the Raimi movie.
Wither
Wither follows Ida and Albin, a couple journeying to a cabin in the Swedish woodlands for a holiday with friends. Unbeknownst to them, a malevolent force lurks beneath the floorboards, poised to be unleashed, turning their getaway into a harrowing ordeal.
While the 2012 movieWither, titledVittrain the original Swedish, is essentially a remake ofThe Evil Dead, it is not actually considered a remake in any official capacity.Although it contains strong story, setting, character, and atmospheric ties to the 1981 movie,nobody involved in the original classic, including Sam Raimi or producer Robert G. Tapert, are credited in the contemporary project, and there are significant dissimilarities that prevent there from being any major copyright issues.
Thus,Withercan be considered an homage to the Raimi classic rather than a remake like the 2013Evil Dead,which followed the Swedish movie to theaters by just eight months. As a movie about an ancient Swedish evil lurking beneath the floorboards of a cabin that threatens to rip a couple apart both literally and figuratively, it is perfectly poised as a successor to the 1981 classic.
my name is bruce
My Name Is Bruce is a comedy film featuring Bruce Campbell, who is mistaken for his cult character Ash from the Evil Dead series. In this 2007 release, Campbell is coerced into confronting an actual monster threat in a small Oregon town.
My Name is Bruceis a cult movie that owes such a great debt toThe Evil Deadthat it takes place in a world where the 1981 movie existsand inspires a young man to kidnap the real actor Bruce Campbell (playing himself, in addition to directing the movie, which was written byFalling Skies' Mark Verheiden) in a desperate attempt to help save his town from a rampaging supernatural threat.
While Raimi himself was not involved, the project proves that Campbell learned a great deal while on the set of the 1981 classic and many of the filmmaker’s subsequent projects.
In addition to making reference to the fact that Campbell is known as a horror hero thanks toThe Evil Deadlaunching his career,the movie evokes the no-holds-barred Raimi approach to both the horror and the comedy.While Raimi himself was not involved, the project proves that Campbell learned a great deal while on the set of the 1981 classic and many of the filmmaker’s subsequent projects.
Dead Snow
Dead Snow is a Norwegian horror film that follows a group of eight medical students on a ski vacation in the mountains. They inadvertently awaken a horde of Nazi zombie soldiers from World War II who threaten their survival in the remote, snowy landscape.
Of the many movies that pay homage toThe Evil Deadin various clear and distinct ways,Tommy Wirkola’s Nazi zombie epic,known asDød snøin the original Norwegian, is one of the only ones to directly reference the 1981 classic in dialogue. There is a moment in the first act when the group of young campers are traipsing up to their isolated mountain cabin when the character Erlend references how their situation mimics the beginning of a “cabin in the woods” horror movie, citingThe Evil Dead,Evil Dead II,Friday the 13th, and (incorrectly)April Fool’s Day.
The character’s misremembered slasher trivia aside, his citation ofThe Evil Deadis a clear callout to the fact that the bloody “cabin in the woods” zombie epic about to follow owes a great debt to the Raimi classic that came before.
One of the earliest features from a pre-Lord of the RingsPeter Jackson,Dead Alive(also known asBraindead) is a propulsive gauntlet of practical gore effects and stylized monster mayhem. Jackson has admitted that the work of George A.Romero and Sam Raimi was at the front of his mind when making the movie, which features a character using a lawn mower to cut down a horde of zombies in a manner reminiscent to the chainsaw-wielding Ash.
This is another movie where the influence of Raimi can be felt most strongly not in the material but in the way that it is brought to life, though it can be fully felt in both. The handcrafted, rubbery nature of the special effects and the way they are given pride of place while being both grotesque and inviting is what gives the movie the strongest ties to the iconic horror director’s early work.
