Product Description

Ash (Bruce Campbell), the sole survivor of The Evil Dead, continues his struggle with the forces of the dead. With his girlfriend possessed by demons and his body parts runnning amok, Ash is forced to single-handedly battle the legions of the damned as the most lethal -- and groovy -- hero in horror movie history!

Welcome to Evil Dead II: Dead by Dawn, director Sam Raimi's infamous sequel to The Evil Dead and outrageous prequel to Army of Darkness! This unhinged horror classic is now fully remastered in state-of-the-art Dolby Digital 5.1 supervised by THX and packed with extras. So, sit back, strap in and rev up the chainsaw: Evil Dead II has returned...like you've never seen or heard it before!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3606 in DVD
• Brand: Anchor
• Released on: 2000-08-29
• Rating: Unrated
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, THX, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 84 minutes

Amazon.com
Writer-director Sam Raimi's extremely stylized, blood-soaked follow-up to his creepy Evil Dead isn't really a sequel; rather, it's a remake on a better budget. It also isn't really a horror film (though there are plenty of decapitations, zombies, supernatural demons, and gore) as much as it is a hilarious, sophisticated slapstick send-up of the terror genre. Raimi takes every horror convention that exists and exaggerates it with mind-blowing special effects, crossed with mocking Three Stooges humor. The plot alone is a genre cliché right out of any number of horror films. Several teens (including our hero, Ash, played by Bruce Campbell in a manic tour-de-force of physical comedy) visit a broken-down cottage in the woods--miles from civilization--find a copy of the Book of the Dead, and unleash supernatural powers that gut every character in sight. All, that is, except Ash, who takes this very personally and spends much of the of the film getting his head smashed while battling the unseen forces. Raimi uses this bare-bones story as a stage to showcase dazzling special effects and eye-popping visuals, including some of the most spectacular point-of-view Steadicam work ever (done by Peter Deming). Although it went unnoticed in the theaters, the film has since become an influential cult-video favorite, paving the way for over-the-top comic gross-out films like Peter Jackson's Dead Alive. --Dave McCoy

Customer Reviews

A Looney Tunes Horror Film.
Up until this past year's hilarious "Shaun of the Dead," this film, "Evil Dead II," really had no competition whatsoever for the funniest Horror film ever made. It would be easy to rave about this Cult Classic filled with trick photography, stop-motion animation, over-the-top gore-soaked casualties, Bruce Campbell's charming chin, and one of the most underrated endings in film history, but I will point out why this particular DVD is exceptional instead. What makes this DVD rock is that the sound has been digitally remastered into THX surround sound. The sound-effects in this film are essential to magnify the humor and horror to its great heights. The other reason to get this DVD is the commentary which includes writer-director Sam Raimi, star Bruce Campbell, co-writer Scott Spiegel, and special make-up effects artist Greg Nicotero. I swear that listening to these guys self-deprecate and otherwise rip on themselves and the movie is as much fun as watching this film for the very first time. No kidding. I was rolling with laughter. For the quintessential backstory on this film may I recommend Bruce Campbell's thoroughly enjoyable book, "If Chins Could Kill," which is loaded with reminiscences about his time before, during, and after making this landmark Horror film classic. "Evil Dead II" is a necessary purchase for any Horror film afficionado. Highly recommended.

DVD LIMITED EDITION REVIEW
It comes in a groovy little tin with the European poster style on the top and inside has the booklet, a little ad for the video game and the dvd itself.

The booklet claims to have "rare photos", but it's just pictures from scenes throughout the movie that we've seen before- nothing special, but has some good insights from the special effects guys and Bruce.

Now for the DVD

I was really pleased with the extras- the commentary was a lot of fun- I enjoyed it more than the first Evil Dead special edition because Sam Raimi actually throws in a lot more tidbits with Bruce and friends to back him up. There were no long pauses, everyone had something interesting to say and it's just a lot of fun listening to them mock the dialogue and point out the mistakes. Plus, there's only four people on the commentary so no one is overwhelmed and we can hear everyone talking- I think too many people on commentaries can be frustrating. Also find out what Kurt Russel's fav. line is from "Evil Dead 2" in a quite hilarious memory Bruce brings up.

"The Gore The Merrier" featurette was very cool- it's lengthy too so we get to see a lot of the cool effects being made and used in the final product. We also see Raimi, Campbell and the rest of the crew clowning around and also a ridiculous/funny little skit that the special effects team came up with- about a baby that comes back from the dead for revenge. The documentary was shot with a crappy camera, but back in '86'87- home video cameras sucked anyway so I wasn't surprised- it's fine though- just a little grainy.

The theatrical trailer was edited very well- I hadn't seen it before and I was pretty impressed how spooky they made it.

The video game preview is awesome- like a teaser trailer, but it's really neat- gotta see it for yourself.

The bios only consist of Bruce and Raimi, but they're better than most bios you find on dvds.

Photos- no big deal- some candid shots.

Widescreen and full screen formats- sweet. Love it when they have both.

And...sound is great. Overall, nearly poi-fect dvd- I just would've liked some out-takes- cuz we know there was a lot of laughing going on from the reminiscing we hear on the commentary.

Buy it- definately worth it- great menu too, pretty much everything is worth mentioning!

Ash is dealt another Bad Hand! A Classic Horror Film!
Bruce Campbell is back as Ash, the loveable, gun-toting S-mart employee turned demon killer overnight. After a slight, altered rehashing of what happened in the first Evil Dead we get to see Ash kill more demons spawned from idiots who read/listen to the Necronomicon! But wait, there's more! When Ash's hand gets "possessed" he has to take drastic measures, and that's where the true fun begins! The fight scenes involving Ash's hand have to be some of the funniest instances of pure comic genius ever put on screen. Bruce Campbell is the reigning King of Horror heroism and the Evil Dead 2 is a must for any Horror fan's collection. Any movie where someone attaches a chainsaw to his arm as a prostethic replacement needs to be watched over and over again! So if you haven't bought this movie yet do it now, who knows when you'll be in a deserted cabin fighting demons for your very soul! Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn, pure classic Horror!