The Evil Dead (1981) vs The Evil Dead (2013)

[Robocop]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxLjqazSmQo
There's the trailer guys.

Um... No one hurt me for what I'm about to say, but It doesn't look bad. I think it has potential to be decent. And this is coming from a guy who has The Evil Dead in his top 5 favorite films of all time.

I like some of the imagery, but it looks a bit generic with the same old character stereotypes and general plot cliches that most modern horror movies endorse. I also get the feeling that its going to take itself super seriously with none of the well timed black humor that made the orignal so memorable.

I do hear that there is very little CGI being used which for horror in this day and age is a giant tick, I just hope with regards to the violence they don't try to make it too slick or overly realistic.

[Jim H]

O...kay the trailer does make it look decent. I might actually watch this; however, I will be disappointed if it follows the remake trend of making pretty well all the characters completely unlikable.

Yeah, seriously, what is up with that?  All the new remakes, I can't recall a single highly likable character.  It's a pretty big issue really. 

I also get the feeling that its going to take itself super seriously with none of the well timed black humor that made the orignal so memorable.

It's not to say I don't laugh a few times, but from what I can gather there's actually not any intentional black humor in the original.  At least, I seem to recall Raimi saying they were going for pure horror (aside from the light character bits in the first third). 

BTW, there is hope for this remake, far more so than the other remakes.

Several factors.  First, Evil Dead is creator owned - that is, Raimi, Tapert, and Campbell decided to have it remade, and they produced it.  It was not purely done due to studio interest.  This doesn't inherently mean it'll be good, but it means the vision of the creative minds behind it will probably have more leeway.  This is especially true with the films (by Hollywood standards) very low budget of $8 million.  For reference, the original film's budget in adjusted dollars is somewhere south of a million.

Second, they did something interesting and flew in an untested first time feature director from South America.  You may have seen his short.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dadPWhEhVk

Fede Alvarez created the above short for around $300, working in his spare time for a long period of time.  The guy can do visuals, and apparently has made numerous short films in his spare time for years outside of the studio system in Uruguay.  He's a guy who seems to have genuine talent (though we'll see if it extends to feature-level storytelling), and was evidently given wide latitude to write and direct the remake by Raimi and the rest. 

I don't know if we'll get a classic, but it looks like we will NOT be getting a bland rehash of the original - we'll be getting, at the very least, a unique take on the original film. 

[RCMerchant]

I dunno-I liked the KING KONG remake-it looked good. It really did.
I think you lose something when you remake a film-the freshness of the original -you KNOW whats gonna happen,already-ya know?
Of course I'll rewatch the '33 KONG a billion times -the new version-nah.

[Criswell]

I like some of the imagery, but it looks a bit generic with the same old character stereotypes and general plot cliches that most modern horror movies endorse. I also get the feeling that its going to take itself super seriously with none of the well timed black humor that made the orignal so memorable.

Trailers can lie about that though, It could have quite a bit of humor in it.

[JoeTheDestroyer]

The main reasons I will see this movie:

1. It's Raimi's brainchild.  He's wanted to remake ED for over a decade now, even if he wouldn't be the one directing it.  As it turns out, he's a producer.

2. Bruce Campbell and Rob Tapert are also producers.

3. The trailer actually looks decent.  While I am a little sick of the "gritty, realistic take" on older horror movies, I may just suspend my nausea for this one.

Finally, you have a direct quote...

"The remake's gonna kick ass -- you have my word!"
-Bruce Campbell on Reddit

If it does suck, we all know who to lynch.

[the ghoul]

This is, at best, totally unnecessary.

[the ghoul]

"The remake's gonna kick ass -- you have my word!"
-Bruce Campbell on Reddit

Haha sounds like it came from Ash.  -No problem, I know the damn words!...............Klaatu barada....necktie!

[fulci420]

I think horror remakes are unfairly maligned a lot of the time. Sure their are a lot of terrible ones out there but that is true for horror films in general. I would say that the ratio for good to bad horror remakes is the same or better than horror originals these days. Alexander Aja's two remakes have both surpassed the originals IMO. And it's not like remakes are some new invention either look at Carpenter's The Thing and Cronenburg's The Fly both remakes and both among the greatest horror films of all time. As for this trailer it looks pretty good, I think this one has a lot of potential.

[Chainsawmidget]

And it's not like remakes are some new invention either look at Carpenter's The Thing and Cronenburg's The Fly both remakes and both among the greatest horror films of all time.

Yes, you have movies like those, but they tend to take the basic idea and go a completely different direction with it to the point where you can barely call them "re-makes" at all.

On the other hand, you have movies like the remakes of Psycho, Nightmare on Elm Street, or Friday the 13th where they basically say "Let's make the same movie again, but with a bigger budget and more modern effects!"  Those typically aren't that great. 

I remember hearing quit some time back that Raimi was going to redo Evil Dead WITHOUT the Ash character, because he wanted to try something new with it and didn't was "Ash" it to be unfairly compared to the older movies with Bruce.  I wonder what happened to that idea?

[JPickettIII]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxLjqazSmQo
There's the trailer guys.

Um... No one hurt me for what I'm about to say, but It doesn't look bad. I think it has potential to be decent. And this is coming from a guy who has The Evil Dead in his top 5 favorite films of all time.

I watched the trailer and it does not look bad, I might see it.  The first will always have a special place in my heart. 

[ulthar]

Yes, you have movies like those, but they tend to take the basic idea and go a completely different direction with it to the point where you can barely call them "re-makes" at all.

Thank-you.  I was going to bring up that very point.

The term 're-make' I think used to be used as "another take;" not so much anymore.  Now, it's "let's just shoot the same story, with the same characters, again, only with 'better' visual effects and cooler, modern music."

Right.

There have been TONS of 'remakes' that were new adaptations of the same source material (a slew of "Dracula" movies come to mind...how similar is Hammer's version The Count to NOSFERATU?).  That's a WHOLE different ballgame to what we have seen in the last decade of movie making, especially in America.

Oh, and by the way...I should add that I'm not a big fan of American 'remakes' of foreign films, pretty much just to get them in English with popular/known actors.  LET THE RIGHT ONE IN and RINGU come to mind as examples.  What's the point of that?

No, there are 'remakes' and there are 'remakes.'  To me, the defining line of "acceptable" vs not is the level of creativity that goes into the production.  It's a personal choice, to be sure.

[SynapticBoomstick]

On the other hand, you have movies like the remakes of Psycho, Nightmare on Elm Street, or Friday the 13th where they basically say "Let's make the same movie again, but with a bigger budget and more modern effects!"  Those typically aren't that great. 

In the case of Psycho, I can't even come up with a brainstorming senario that explains this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJRqt96RuUM

What... cow...?

[God the Worms]

No.

[skuts]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxLjqazSmQo
There's the trailer guys.

Um... No one hurt me for what I'm about to say, but It doesn't look bad. I think it has potential to be decent. And this is coming from a guy who has The Evil Dead in his top 5 favorite films of all time.

Looks like the same old same old. Didn't Cabin in the Woods pretty much skewer this haunted cabin genre to death?

[Chainsawmidget]

On the other hand, you have movies like the remakes of Psycho, Nightmare on Elm Street, or Friday the 13th where they basically say "Let's make the same movie again, but with a bigger budget and more modern effects!"  Those typically aren't that great. 

In the case of Psycho, I can't even come up with a brainstorming senario that explains this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJRqt96RuUM

What... cow...?

Maybe the director was traumatized by cattle as a child.