Review of Army of Darkness (1992) by Ben L — 22 Nov 2016

I was a bit leery of this film, only because I was concerned that the horror elements would not be to my liking, and I would need to see the first 2 Evil Dead movies to fully appreciate this one. I did not need to be concerned about either of those things. The horror is played for laughs, and Army of Darkness gives you a quick rundown of what happened before. The structure of this film is very scattered, as though they were trying to create a Monty Python vibe where they jump from one sketch to the next. Sadly, I didn't find any of the scenes all that funny, so instead of laughing I was just shaking my head in confusion. It's strange with comedies like this, as I'm never sure how much of the terrible effects I'm supposed to write off because "that's what makes it funny!" But every time there was someone flying, or walking skeletons, or whatever strange thing they needed for this weird world it was blatantly obvious how they pieced together the effect, which comes off as sloppy.

Another big frustration of mine is that they never set up rules or explain how the evil forces work. It's as if we're just supposed to know that dismembering, beheading, stabbing, and whatever else is done to Bad Ash is ineffective but explosion does the job. And if you're in a windmill that's in the evil place it makes sense that tiny mirror versions of yourself will show up, or you might grow a doppelganger. I'll admit there was some enjoyment to be had in the story, and I'm sure I chuckled a few times. But the climax feels exactly like a child staging a fight with his toys. It might have moments that are fun, but it isn't good story-telling. Clearly I've missed the boat on Army of Darkness, because it has a legion of fans. I think there are moments that work, it had potential to do more, and Bruce Campbell isn't a bad lead. However, it definitely didn't click with me and I will probably never feel the urge to explore any more of Evil Dead movies.