Encompassing both Sam Raimi’s classic trilogy and a 2013 remake, the Evil Dead franchise is a major one in horror, and here’s how its films stack up. The Evil Dead is a rarity for a horror franchise, in that the more comedic and less horrific it got, the more people seemed to like it. This can be chalked up mainly to the fact that star Bruce Campbell is a fountain of charisma, and the more he was allowed to let loose as Ash Williams, the more entertaining he became.
That’s not to say that Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness are devoid of horror, or even that the first Evil Dead is entirely humorless. But by Army of Darkness’ arrival, it was clear that Raimi’s series had stopped setting out to scare, and was now much more interested in getting laughs. Which made the 2013 Evil Dead remake all the more interesting, focusing as it did on scaring the hell out of its audience, and playing itself deadly serious for almost all of its running time.
Another thing that makes Evil Dead a bit of an odd duck though is that fans tend to love all the films to an extent, even the remake. Remakes are so often the target for ridicule, but Fede Alvarez’s Evil Dead was almost more of a companion piece to Raimi’s movies, and was even planned at one point to crossover its lead Mia with Ash. With a new Evil Dead movie in the works, here’s the four prior films, ranked worst to best.
4. Evil Dead (2013)
Unlike most horror series, which tend to have a clear dividing line between the beloved entries and the crappy ones, Evil Dead’s movies are all varying degrees of great. Thus, the fact that Evil Dead 2013 is at the bottom of this ranking is by no means an indictment of its quality as a horror film. Fede Alvarez’s remake reinvents some of the original’s ideas in fun new ways, pulls a clever lead character swap partway through the plot, is impeccably directed, features a great performance from Jane Levy as Mia, and sports enough blood and gore to make Evil Dead 2 blush. It’s a shame the teased sequel never happened.
3. Army of Darkness (1992)
Far and away the least horror of the Evil Dead franchise, Army of Darkness is still a classic on its own merits, and has become one of the most commonly quoted movies out there. Bruce Campbell is at his best as Ash, who by this point is in full-on macho jerk mode, albeit a jerk who invariably ends up trying to do the right thing. While a box office flop, Army of Darkness has since gotten its due, and plays host to iconic lines like “Hail to the King, baby,” “This is my BOOMSTICK!” and “Good. Bad. I’m the guy with the gun.” Sam Raimi’s director’s cut is also worth checking out, as it features a different, harsher ending.
2. The Evil Dead (1981)
Not putting Sam Raimi’s original Evil Dead film in the top spot will probably irk some diehard fans, but when pitting the two films together, it’s basically a toss-up. The Evil Dead is a relentless horror movie in which demons possess and pick off a group of friends one by one, while Evil Dead 2 is a masterful combination of gory kills, great monster effects, and Bruce Campbell’s tour-de-force physical performance as Ash. Neither is ever a bad choice for a horror fan to watch, and both are top-level entries in horror history. No matter which one chooses, things are destined to be groovy.
1. Evil Dead 2 (1987)
What really sets Evil Dead 2 apart from the original is the formation of Ash into the iconic horror hero that millions of fans know and love, cementing Bruce Campbell as a genre god along the way. In many ways, Evil Dead 2 is almost a remake of the first, as it’s set in the same location, and again features Kandarian Deadites possessing and killing the living. What it adds to the mix are absolutely hilarious bits of physical comedy from Campbell, Ash’s chainsaw hand, and more blood than a thousand vampires could consume. The special effects are also that much better, and Raimi has gotten even more talented behind the camera with more experience under his belt.
More: Evil Dead 2 Easter Egg Hints at Nightmare on Elm Street Connection
