Seen: Numerous Times
Format: VHS, DVD
Rating: 9
An Anecdote:
When I finally bought the DVD version of Army of Darkness, I had no real reason to hang on to my VHS copy. I had a friend who worked with his wife at home making jewelry. Their kids were home schooled and they all spent a lot of time watching movies, mostly as background noise. His wife loved horror films and had tons. I figured that Army of Darkness belonged to them. I was right. It became their 3-year-old's favorite film
Army of Darkness is probably the most widely quoted film in the world after Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Its dialogue was used extensively in the Duke Nukem video game.
After making and remaking Evil Dead with his brother, Sam Raimi finally got the opportunity and budget to do it "right", which being an Evil Dead film, means twisted and strange.
Army of Darkness is a camp epic heroic time-travel demon possession horror film. Which is mouthful and mostly accurate. Bruce Campbell made his small mark with the Evil Dead films and is in full form here, returning as the one-liner spewing, shotgun and chainsaw wielding Ash. No Hero before or since comprises the full-bore braggadocio, idiocy and romantic catastrophe which Ash embodies. He's truly the hero for the new Millennium, at least given the role models young women are presented with today.
Army of Darkness is high camp. If you want your films to always make sense, if you grimace and carp about plot holes and continuity, if you abhor inconsistent characterization and dialogue, go see another film. If not, you may have found nirvana, as Army of Darkness is a disjoint collection of over-extended pratfalls, sight gags, one-liners and twisted movie references, all held together by the thin plot of an undead army wiping out a mortal enclave. Film references are mixed and mashed with abandon. One sequence contains elements from Star Wars, Indiana Jones and every Kung Fu flick you've ever seen.
If you can lower your brow and appreciate camp, this is one for the ages.
The Good: Bruce Campbell romps through a thin plot spewing one-liners and making hash of the horror genre.
The Bad: Effects were a bit sketchy even at the time the film was made. Perhaps this is intentional.
The Ugly: Ash's alter ego making out with Sheila (Embeth Davidtz). So right, but so wrong.
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