SALON

Thursday, Jul 14, 2011 5:15 PM UTC

Remaking “The Evil Dead”: A conversation

With an unknown director at the helm and Diablo Cody doing the rewrites, there's no way this could go well, right?

By

Topics: Movie news, Diablo Cody, Horror, Movies,

Remaking Does "The Evil Dead" need an update?

So this is happening:

Sam Raimi and original producing partners Rob Tapert and Bruce Campbell (who also starred in the original franchise) are gearing up to remake their cult sensation THE EVIL DEAD through their long standing Ghost House Pictures partnership. Raimi and Tapert were such instant fans of Fede Alvarez’s short film “Panic Attack” that they set up a blind deal with the filmmaker and through that process have attached Fede Alvarez to write and direct the film. Alvarez wrote the script with Rodo Sayagues. Academy Award® winning screenwriter Diablo Cody is currently doing revisions on the draft.

The three producing partners commented, “We are committed to making this movie and are inspired by the enduring popularity and enthusiasm for the ‘Evil Dead’ series. We can’t wait to scare a new generation of moviegoers using filmmaking techniques that were not available to us thirty years ago as well as Fede bringing a fresh eye to the film’s original elements.”

Yikes? Or possibly yay? I think we can all agree that the phrase “blind deal” when it comes to remaking a cult classic is never a good sign (especially with a first-time feature director), but considering the low-budget appeal of “The Evil Dead,” maybe a reworking with some fresh blood wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world? My sister and I discussed it over breakfast this morning.

Drew: If I remember correctly, “The Evil Dead” wasn’t that amazing. It was kind of shlocky and campy.

Hannah: Exactly. So why remake them?

Drew: Well, because Diablo Cody can actually write pretty decent horror movie dialogue. “Jennifer’s Body” had a very tongue-in-cheek, female-Sam Raimi element to it.

Hannah: If she’s a good writer, she can go write her own original script. There’s no need to have such an influx of remakes. It’s sad to see that people can’t come up with their own ideas.

Drew: You just have a problem with remakes in general then?

Hannah: I’m just saying, where have all the original horror films gone? Why did we need a new “Halloween” or “Nightmare on Elm Street”?

Drew: The difference is that those two films were horror movie staples. They were classics, and remaking them … nothing could have been added to make them better. Who needed Michael Meyers’ back story? “The Evil Dead” was a cult films, but not necessarily a great film. It could have used a rewrite. The first half of “Evil Dead 2″ was basically just a remake of “Evil Dead” anyway. Essentially the same plot, with Bruce Campbell going into the cabin and discovering a Book of the Dead. Either he had terrible amnesia, or the sequel was a remake for people who hadn’t seen the first film.

Hannah: Fine. You can argue that point.

Drew: Although, if we were going to remake every cult film that could use polishing — “Pink Flamingos” or “Eraserhead” — I’d be pretty pissed off too. And in terms of horror movies, I agree that getting music video directors to sexify them up is dumb. But Zac Snyder’s remake of “Dawn of the Dead” was arguably … not horrible? Maybe there is room for a decent rewrite?

Hannah: OK, I’m done here.

Drew: But I think its silly to say this will introduce a whole new generation of fans to “The Evil Dead,” because the coda to that should be “… and piss off all the people who liked the movie in the first place.”

Hannah: …

Drew: I’m just glad this deal doesn’t include “Army of Darkness.” Diablo wouldn’t be able to make that script better.

 

So what do you think of the beginning of a new “Evil Dead” franchise? Love it or loathe it?

Drew Grant is a staff writer for Salon. Follow her on Twitter at @videodrew. More Drew Grant.

Next Article

Related Stories

More Related Stories

Featured Slide Shows

The week in 10 pics

close X
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11
  • Lisa Montgomery embraces her nephew Thursday after a tornado tore apart her home in Cleburne, Texas. The twister killed six people and destroyed entire swaths of the North Texas town.
    Credit: AP/LM Otero

  • Jack McMahon, the defense attorney for abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell, speaks outside the Criminal Justice Center in Philadelphia Tuesday. His client was convicted of killing three babies in his clinic, and will serve multiple life sentences.
    Credit: AP/Matt Rourke

  • A photo taken Monday captures Vice President Joe Biden's response to a Milwaukee second-grader's innovative proposal to end America's epidemic of gun violence. This guy!
    Credit: AP/Jenny Aicher

  • Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., flanked by a grouper-eyed Michele Bachmann, addresses the IRS' admission that it targeted Tea Party groups in advance of the 2012 election. In an op-ed for CNN Thursday, the Kentucky senator slammed the president for his faux outrage.
    Credit: AP/Molly Riley

  • Ousted IRS chief Steven Miller is sworn in on Capitol Hill Friday. Miller testified before the House Ways and Means Committee on the extra scrutiny the agency gave conservative groups applying for tax-exempt status.
    Credit: AP/J. Scott Applewhite

  • Attorney General Eric Holder pauses as he testifies on Capitol Hill before the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday. Holder is under fire, among other things, for the Justice Department's gathering of phone records at the Associated Press.
    Credit: AP/Carolyn Kaster

  • O.J. Simpson sits during an evidentiary hearing at Clark County District Court in Las Vegas, Nev., Thursday. Simpson, who is currently serving a nine-to-33-year sentence in state prison for armed robbery and kidnapping, is using a writ of habeas corpus to seek a new trial.
    Credit: AP/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Jeff Scheid

  • Major Tom to ground control: On Sunday astronaut Chris Hadfield recorded the first music video from space, a cover of David Bowie's "Space Oddity."
    Credit: AP/NASA/Chris Hadfield

  • When it rains it pours. President Barack Obama speaks during a news conference Thursday with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, inexplicably inspiring an #umbrellagate Twitter meme.
    Credit: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

  • A smoke plume rises high above a road block at the intersection of County A and Ross Road east of Solon Springs, Wis., Tuesday. No injuries were reported, but the the wildfire caused evacuations across northwestern Wisconsin.
    Credit: AP/The Duluth News-Tribune/Clint Austin

  • Recent Slide Shows

  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11

Related Videos

Comments

 15 Comments

Comment Preview

Your name will appear as username

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href=""> <b> <em> <strong> <i> <blockquote>

follow salon

Most Read

Popular on Reddit

links from salon.com

vote
Loaded terminology like "entitlements" and "welfare" skews the debate and alters America. How right-wingers use semantic tricks to kill government.
350 points351 points | 114 comments
vote
How right-wingers use semantic tricks to kill government -- "...much of the U.S. economic security support system consists of subsidies for the affluent in the form of tax breaks, like those for private retirement savings plans such as 401(k)s and private employer-provided health insurance."
63 points64 points | 3 comments
vote
Temple Grandin on DSM-5: “Sounds like diagnosis by committee.” When it comes to autism, Grandin argues we're paying too much attention to labels -- and not enough to individuals
35 points36 points | 2 comments
vote
Doug Henwood: Capitalism Thrives on Class Exploitation
34 points35 points | 4 comments
vote
Temple Grandin on DSM-5: “Sounds like diagnosis by committee.” When it comes to autism, Grandin argues we're paying too much attention to labels -- and not enough to individuals
36 points37 points | 3 comments

From Around the Web

Presented by Scribol
listener_new_rect The Listener: So long, Sookie Stackhouse

Recommendations