Army of Darkness (1993) Universal/Horror-Comedy-Adventure RT: 96 minutes (Director’s Cut) Rated R (violence and horror, mild sexual content) Director: Sam Raimi Screenplay: Sam Raimi and Ivan Raimi Music: Joseph LoDuca Cinematography: Bill Pope Release date: February 19, 1993 (US) Cast: Bruce Campbell, Embeth Davidtz, Marcus Gilbert, Ian Abercrombie, Richard Grove, Timothy Patrick Quill, Michael Earl Reid, Bridget Fonda, Patricia Tallman, Ted Raimi, Noah Gillespie. Box Office: $11.5M (US)
Rating: ***
You can add Army of Darkness, the third Evil Dead movie, to the list of movies affected by what I call “The Curse of Three”. This means that any movie franchise that starts off with two great movies will usually yield an inferior third part. Please introduce into evidence these following titles: Superman III, The Godfather Part III, The Karate Kid Part III, Lethal Weapon 3, Terminator 3, Scream 3, Shrek the Third and Spider-Man 3 (to name just a few). Before you say it, I do acknowledge Return of the Jedi as the biggest exception to this rule.
Now I’m NOT saying that Army of Darkness is a lame movie. It’s NOT! It is, however, something of a letdown when compared to its two predecessors. I was disappointed that co-writer/director Sam Raimi went with a lighter, more comical tone for the final part of his Evil Dead trilogy. In fact, you can’t even really call Army of Darkness a horror movie in the same sense as the first two movies even though our not-so-dashing hero Ash (Campbell) once again fights those pesky demons (referred to as “deadites” here) that entered our world by way of the Necronomicon (the Book of the Dead).
As a fan of the Evil Dead movies, I was hoping for more of a blood-soaked horror film, but I kind of knew that Raimi had toned things down for this sequel. It’s the first one released with an MPAA rating as opposed to the “No One Under 17 Admitted” policy the first two movies carried. That’s mainly because it’s the first Evil Dead movie released by a major studio (Universal) who actually wanted a PG-13 rating for Army of Darkness. I’m pleased to see Raimi didn’t appease the studio on that point and delivered a movie that stays well within R territory.
Army of Darkness picks up immediately where Evil Dead II left off with Ash finding himself and his 1973 Oldsmobile transported to the Middle Ages (about 1300 A.D.) by way of a time portal opened by the Necronomicon. He’s been captured by Lord Arthur’s (Gilbert) men who believe he’s an agent for their archrival Henry the Red (Grove). They take him to Arthur’s castle and throw him into a pit where he fights off a deadite in front of everybody. They believe he is the man prophesized in the Necronomicon to come from the sky and defeat the deadites.
Ever the reluctant hero, Ash demands to be transported back to his own time. The Wise Man (Abercrombie) tells him the only way he can do this is by retrieving the Necronomicon from a nearby graveyard. Armed with his chainsaw and “boomstick” (a sawed-off shotgun), he heads off on his journey. He’s supposed to recite the phrase “Klaatu verata nicto” (a sly reference to The Day the Earth Stood Still) before removing the book from its resting place. Naturally, he botches it up and ends up causing all the dead to rise from their graves and form an army (hence the movie’s title). In the midst of all the madness, Ash finds the time to romance/sleep with Sheila (Davidtz, Fallen), the sister of a fallen knight.
All criticism aside, Army of Darkness is a fun movie. It plays like a collaboration between Ray Harryhausen (Jason and the Argonauts) and The Three Stooges. It’s so silly you’re bound to forget that it’s supposed to be a horror movie. I would even say that Army of Darkness would make a decent first R-rated horror movie for preteens.
I found myself thinking about all those great Saturday afternoon adventure flicks that featured special effects by Harryhausen (The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, Clash of the Titans) as I watched Army of Darkness unfold. Campbell turns in another good performance as Ash, that goofiest of demon killers. This guy can’t seem to catch a break. At one point, he finds himself fighting off several miniature versions of himself in a scene that resembles something out of Gulliver’s Travels. I’m also fond of the sequence where Ash and Arthur’s men prepare to do battle with the army of the dead with the help of science textbooks that Ash just happens to have in the trunk of his car. You should see how they modify the car. And yes, Ash does get to say “Groovy” during the course of the movie.
I’d like to note that there are two different endings to Army of Darkness. It all depends on which version of the movie you watch. There’s the more upbeat ending seen in the theatrical release and the non-upbeat ending seen on the Director’s Cut DVD. Me, I like them both. The former ending is a riot while the latter gives the movie a very twisted punchline.
As much as I enjoy Army of Darkness, I still wish Raimi had gone for a much darker tone. It’s simply too conventional for an Evil Dead movie. Raimi recently announced that there will be an Army of Darkness 2 (i.e. Evil Dead 4). From what I hear, the ultimate goal is a crossover flick featuring Ash and the heroine of the upcoming remake/reboot. Okay Mr. Raimi, you have my attention. Please WOW me!
