In the early '80s, an unknown director (Sam Raimi) took a miniscule budget and crafted what would become the cult horror-comedy The Evil Dead. That movie is still fun to watch today for its ingenuity and its ability to juggle both straight horror elements and hilarious satire. But the gruesome dismemberments and multi-colored bodily fluids (not to mention a very disturbing, not-so-subtly-suggestive use of tree limbs) were enough to earn the movie an X rating (changed to an NC-17 when the X rating was laid to rest in the early '90s).
Raimi has of course reached stratospheric heights since then, crafting two larger-budget sequels and helming the massively successful Spider-Man franchise. Evil Dead star Bruce Campbell went on to relative fame as a cult-movie icon, using his leading-man looks and his impeccable timing to forge a career out of schlocky comedy genre-hybrids, such as Bubba Ho-Tep and the TV show The Adventures of Brisco County Jr..
Now, fans everywhere will have a chance to relive the old days of Evil Dead on a nation-wide scale. Comicbookmovie.com writes that Grindhouse Pictures plans to re-release the movie — uncut, by the way &mdash for midnight screenings across theaters in the United States and Canada sometime in 2010.
Of course, Campbell had a witty, tongue-in-cheek statement for the press:
Nothing can prepare an audience for what they are about to see, because nothing punishes an audience like Evil Dead — especially on the big screen. I'm really glad it's back. People are gonna be hurt.
To Bruce, we say: Bring the pain!
If you're not familiar with this masterpiece of campiness, check out the official trailer.