Canon, camp, and carnage

You will either love Evil Dead Burn’s extreme gore or despise it for the same reason.

There’s plenty to appreciate, but it walks the line between funny and “I can’t unsee this shit.”

I can handle some gore, but I’ve got a limit. Not only did Evil Dead Burn blast past it, but it also shocked the hell out of me. The stabbing of the dog was the first thing to make my jaw drop. Most movies imply rather than show, but we see the whole thing up close. When Edgar continues to shoot himself in the head over and over, I think I said aloud:

Oh my god, they let them show this?

The ‘70s gore in the OG Evil Dead is so much different than today’s CGI capabilities, which look too much like real life. I like a little distinction between reality and fiction. It seems like some of these extreme horror films are out to one-up each other for the goriest k*ll. That’s a race I don’t want to be part of.

Everything was sooooooooooo visceral. Grotesque.

(Given Alice is French, I have a feeling the director is pulling from the brutal French extremity genre.)

I’d probably write this movie off if it didn’t have redeeming qualities. If you read my Evil Dead Rise review, you’ll know I’m not an Evil Dead die-hard. Where Rise departed from canon, Burn brings it back with a vengeance.

The opening and credits scenes harken back to its predecessor. Demon Jessica, who opened and closed Evil Dead Rise, is still guarding the lake and taking it out on two men who are fishing. How clever of the filmmakers to have the cousin’s head she scalped get reeled in. And I was delighted to see they’re reprising Deadite Ellie, played by the amazing Alyssa Sutherland. I’m curious how they’ll bring her back, since she was liquified via woodchipper. I saw an urn get knocked down during Will’s coffin scene, which I am assuming is Ellie’s. If they can bring Ellie’ back, then they can bring anyone back.

That shelf of urns is just what the franchise needs: ideas. (LOL)

There are plenty of easter eggs to be found in Burn. My favorite one is the end fight between Alice and Will, where the camera pans to the chainsaw, but Alice ends up grabbing the jackhammer (which is foreshadowed as Alice drives past the construction site for Will’s funeral). I appreciate they actually tied the Necronomicon to the characters (Rise has a kid just hop in a hole to steal it), and we get a little more lore to add to the Evil Dead franchise.

It’s definitely a great canon entry for those who were pissed about Rise’s divergence from it.

This flick also brings back the camp. It’s not the Bruce Campbell kind, but the comedy certainly feels intentional, despite the ridiculous amounts of gore and the heavy subject matter. The grandmother role is almost entirely comedic, which is why she’s my favorite character. Watching her give the side eye while she’s slowly riding up the stairs in her stair-chair is fucking hilarious. She makes a great Deadite, too—using her leg as a weapon had me laughing. These little moments of levity are the only reason I could even entertain watching this movie again.

Some say Burn is about the cycle of violence, but really, it depicts it rather than pose any greater commentary about it. That makes the gore all the more horrific. As an abuse survivor, it’s difficult to witness, particularly because the victim of DV is just experiencing more of it. Her suffering isn’t for a greater purpose; it’s just for funsies.

I know it’s fiction. I know the violence on the screen isn’t real, and yet, my body reacts like it is. If it was this level of gore made in the ‘70s, I would be okay with it. It would be obvious and therefore comedically ridiculous. In this era, it’s realistic and gratuitous.

Yet that’s what some people are looking for: splatter. They go for the blood and guts, the grotesque k*lls, and squeamish moments. That’s cool. You do you. And if that’s what you’re looking for, you’ve found it in spades.

Evil Dead Burn is really for fans of the series who have grown to expect and love this level of splatter horror. I respect the film’s contribution to the series and its return to comedy, but this one’s a bit much for me.