Evil Dead II (1987)
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A man's vacation to a remote cabin turns into a nightmare when he plays a mysterious tape that unleashes demonic forces.
The story
Ash Williams and his girlfriend, Linda, take a romantic getaway to a seemingly abandoned cabin in the woods. While in it, Ash plays a tape of archaeologist Raymond Knowby, the cabin's previous inhabite, reciting passages from the 'Book of the Dead', Necronomicon Ex-Mortis, which he uncovered during an archaeological dig. The recorded incantation unleashes an unseen evil force, known as the Kandarian Demon, that kills and possesses Linda, turning her into a 'deadite'. Ash must then contend with the demonic presence and the physical manifestations of the evil force while trying to survive the night in the isolated location.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After Linda is possessed and turned into a 'deadite', Ash defeats her but is later confronted by his own possessed hand. He is joined by others who arrive at the cabin: Annie Knowby, her partner Ed Getley, and a couple, Jake and Bobby Joe. They find Ash trapped and the cabin filled with undead threats. The group discovers the truth about the Necronomicon and the demons it summons. After a series of violent encounters where characters are dismembered or killed by 'deadites', Ash manages to modify a chainsaw to attach to his arm. He eventually defeats the possessed Henrietta and, with Annie's help, performs a ritual to banish the demon. The ritual opens a temporal vortex that sucks Ash and his car into the Middle Ages. There, he is initially mistaken for a demon but eventually becomes a hero to a group of knights.
- Original title
- Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn
- First release year
- 1987
- Runtime (minutes)
- 84
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Sam Raimi
- Writers
- Sam Raimi · writer; Scott Spiegel · writer
- Cast and characters
- Bruce Campbell · Ash Williams; Sarah Berry · Annie Knowby; Dan Hicks · Jake; Kassie Wesley · Bobby Joe; Denise Bixler · Linda; Richard Domeier · Professor Ed Getley; John Peaks · Professor Knowby; Lou Hancock · Henrietta Knowby; Ted Raimi · Possessed Henrietta
- Genres
- comedy; horror
- Themes
- survival; supernatural horror
- Tone and mood
- humorous; violent
- Premise and plot tags
- sequel; time travel; demons
- Source material / true-story basis
- The Evil Dead
- Franchise connections
- Evil Dead
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film was widely acclaimed by critics for its humor, direction, and acting, and is considered one of the greatest horror films ever made. It also gained a large international cult following.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 72 · scale: 100 · review count: 18
- Production trivia
- The film's title was originally intended to be 'Evil Dead II: Evil Dead and the Army of Darkness'.; The character of Bobby Joe was inspired by actress Holly Hunter.; The film's production included a reference to the film 'A Nightmare on Elm Street'.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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