Army of Darkness (1992)

ARMY OF DARKNESS (1993)

Rating: 4/5 stars

REVIEW BY JOHN ULMER (Copyright, 2004)

His name is Ash. He is played by Bruce Campbell as the ever-reluctant,

tired hero who just wants to get home. "Army of Darkness" marks his

third adventure in the "Evil Dead" series, where he has found himself

trapped in a cabin with his girlfriend, attacked by risen skeletons,

and so on and so forth. Some people claim that "Evil Dead II" was

basically a remake of the original with some extra comedy -- what

Campbell describes as "splatstick," har-har. Campbell himself also

claims that "Army of Darkness" is nothing like its predecessors,

abandoning gore for silly slapstick laughs, not even riding the median

like the second film, but becoming a sort of all-out comedy (which it

really isn't). Campbell comes across as a mix between Hugh Jackman and

Jim Carrey--charismatic and able to contort his face into the

strangest shapes I've ever seen. In one sequence (which is actually

not really Campbell's complete face), Ash's entire head gets stretched

like rubber, and he has to shake off the effect to return to normal.

This particular scene evokes the limitless physical exploration of the

Looney Tunes characters. "Army of Darkness" is not a horror film. It's

not even really that much of a comedy, when you look past the surface.

It's very short, with the actual film itself clocking in at only 75

minutes (the credits, apparently, take up another seven, just barely

meeting the unofficial bare minimum of movie lengths). So what *is*

"Army of Darkness"? I'll quote another pretty famous movie: "You have

to see it for yourself."

Basically, it resurrects the one-handed Ash character from the

previous films (whose right arm happens to be a chainsaw). Campbell

claims that the film is entirely different from its predecessors, and

the only link is the skeletons and the hero. The similarities seem to

stop there.

It picks up right after the second film. Ash has been time-zapped back

to somewhere around 1300 A.D. Don't ask me why. There's something to

do with a Book of Dead, or something like that with a complicated

name, perhaps from the earlier films, perhaps not, and Ash has to find

it so he can be sent back to his own time. Why? Who knows? Like anyone

actually pays attention to a plot like this? The whole time travel

thing should be the first indication that you're not meant to be

analyzing it very deeply on a basis of reality. That being said, it's

still a load of fun. Just don't pay attention to the plot. Or the

acting. Or the special effects. Or the entire premise. Other than

that, it's great!

The movie was directed by Sam Raimi, whose best realistic outing has

been "A Simple Plan," and who met Campbell in the mid-'70s, at some

sort of pantomiming class ("He sucked, which may explain why he became

a director," Campbell explains). The two have reunited with many

projects, but their most famous collaboration has probably been "The

Evil Dead," which was released more than a decade before "Army" and

became a cult classic. Campbell became one of the most unusual heroes

of all time--wise-cracking, witty, brutal, and blunt. An everyday guy

who gets caught in the middle of something pretty big and relies on

one-liners to lighten the situation. As the sequels increased, the

humor grew, and by "Army of Darkness," Campbell's iconic hero had some

of the worst--but most suitable--lines ever spoken on-screen: "Gimme

some sugar, baby." "This is my boomstick!" "Groovy." That's only the

beginning. Sometimes, in this particular film, Campbell's self-aware

dialogue gets a bit annoying (especially when he starts speaking to

himself about what he's going to do and why, which is really for the

audience), but for the most part he delivers a performance that makes

or breaks the film. It makes it. Campbell is likable, a big-jawed

actor who just has the appearance of a rugged humorous action star.

He's got screen presence but doesn't take himself too seriously. "Army

of Darkness" is like taking a bunch of your friends out into a

Hollywood set and making a movie. It just looks like a lot of fun.

"Army of Darkness" was made with an $11 million budget and barely

recuperated its losses at the box office, where it raked in just over

that same amount in the US. Why the small reception? Perhaps the fact

that the film had been shelved for quite a while turned off some of

the fans. The trailer wasn't superb, either, giving the impression of

a very goofy comedy with action. Interestingly enough, that is sort of

what the movie is like, only...different.

"Army of Darkness" gained a huge cult following thereafter, becoming

the most statistically popular entry of the "Evil Dead" series, if not

the best (most people seem to think the second is the greatest). Its

technical aspects are horrible, yet it is considered a horror-comedy

classic. Why? What separates it from shelved disasters such as the

recent "Envy"? Probably because "Army of Darkness" is very self-aware.

It knows it's ridiculous, and likes to occasionally poke fun at its

own ideas.

The movie received some complaints when it was released. Some critics

found it childish and poor. That is true. The movie seems to appeal to

youngsters, but it also appeals to older individuals on deeper

levels--those who appreciate satires of horror films, with likable

lead heroes and silly subplots. Let's face it: "Army of Darkness" is

rather poorly made, at best. The dialogue is stiff. The plot is

ridiculous. The romance is absurd. The accents are dire. The creature

effects are corny and laughably inconsistent--one minute they're

stop-motion and the next minute they're played by humans walking

around in skeleton suits. (This was, after all, post-"Terminator 2,"

and quite incompetent.) It's all quite manipulative and silly--but it

makes for a good story mainly because of Ash. And let's face it: Even

though the very end is rather abrupt and cheesy, it's downright

satisfying, and we all laugh when Ash is asked, "Who the hell are

you?" by a possessed witch, and he replies, "The name's Ash.

Hardwares." So stupid but yet so funny. And that pretty much explains

the entire movie.

Notes: "Army of Darkness" has recently been re-released on yet another

DVD, this one a 2-disc "Boomstick Edition" with both the theatrical

cut and the extended director's cut, which features an added fifteen

minutes of footage and commentary by Campbell, Raimi and his brother

Ivan. A lot of the special features were taken from previous DVD

releases, such as the strict Director's Cut (for which the commentary

was originally recorded), and some of the trailers/documentaries,

etc., are also available on previous DVD releases. So far, "Boomstick"

is the best, but unless you don't own any of the previous releases,

it's really not worth the upgrade. There will probably be another

around the corner soon. And what is most unfortunate is that although

the DVD is satisfactory (especially if you don't own any other

releases of the film), much more could have been added, if Anchor Bay

was really interested in what fans want (such as the split Raimi and

Campbell commentary available on one of the earlier DVD releases). The

back of the DVD cover explains that it is being released yet again due

to popular demand by the fans. Which ones? Those who didn't already

buy the other six, seven, or however many DVDs are out there? It seems

that Anchor Bay is milking a cult movie for all its worth. And worst

of all, and what above all else indicates sloppy work and profit

interests, is a major typo on the back cover of the DVD. Here's a fun

game: See if you can spot it!

- John Ulmer

http://www.wiredonmovies.com

e-mail: johnulmer2003@msn.com

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X-Language: en
X-RT-ReviewID: 1283868
X-RT-TitleID: 1042254
X-RT-SourceID: 1382
X-RT-AuthorID: 6769
X-RT-RatingText: 4/5