I am torn. When the 2013 reboot of the Evil Dead concept came out, swapping campiness for the starkly horrific, I applauded. I am quoted as saying the series benefits from excising the camp elements. The subsequent Evil Dead Rise reintroduced them, and I argued it diminished the horror potential of these films. Well, with Evil Dead Burn I feel I need to recant my claim and beg the gods for absolution, as this film doubles down on trauma and gratuitous gore; jettisoning any semblance of fun in favor of survivor’s guilt and the result is a resounding: sure, okay.
To be fair, there’s malicious humor at play at forcing the protagonist through an endurance test of uncomfortable family dynamics and some decent zingers throughout. It is very ambitious in its filmmaking, with a number of inspired shots and moments. Fans of this franchise and most gorehounds will likely love this entry, it provides some of the most horrific sights and sounds the series has delivered thus far. While not fun, it is an extreme and effective horror film.
What’s intact is the signature malice of the Evil Dead films. The franchise is always mean to everyone in the series, but especially the protagonist. If there is the sketch of a sympathetic character, trust the worst will happen to them in a viciously uncompromising manner. But there’s no reason to really connect with these characters beyond the sympathy earned towards the grieving and they’re basically mad-libs of archetypes with one defining trait each. And for the majority of them, that one defining trait is far from anything likable even before they become possessed.
Evil Dead protagonists aren’t necessarily meant to be likable, but engage on virtue of charisma or competence. Here she’s a little of both, and while the actress delivers phenomenally she’s shackled by a script that thinks it can shorthand complex themes and disappoints in the final confrontation. Yep. The true villain was the generational trauma we met along the way. This is a story of grief and abuse wrapped in a Deadite wrapper, but nothing in the script really explores the themes beyond superficial lip-service. It is far more enamoured with delivering the next gross-out shock.
Regardless, this franchise consistently delivers as advertised and in a stage of success where it can afford to be experimental. There are hints towards a long-term game and plan, unifying all the disparate entries into a cohesive narrative. There is new lore introduced and potential towards ambitious ends and even introduces an interesting notion of the Deadites at cross purpose and antagonistic towards each other. As an individual film, this is simultaneously one of the best crafted yet least engaging entries, but as a building block for future efforts, I eagerly anticipate the horrors to come.