The Evil Dead The Book Of The Dead Limited Edition

9 / 10
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The ultimate experience in gruelling terror
Certificate: 18
Running Time: 82
Retail Price: £24.99
Release Date:
Content Type: Movie

Synopsis:
Five college kids take a holiday in a remote log cabin where they find the mysterious Book of the Dead (The Necronomicon) and a tape recording that belonged to the owner of the cabin. In the surrounding Tennessee forest the evil dead lie in wait for the ancient incantation that will give them license to inhabit bodies of the living. Watch in horror as the five friends listen to the tape recording and unwittingly resurrect the slumbering demons. One by one, Cheryl, Scotty, Linda and Shelly are possessed by the spirits of the dead and turned into grotesque murdering zombies whose thirst for revenge is insatiable. As the night wanes, only one man remains: Ash (Bruce Campbell). He must now defend himself while trying to uncover the horrible secret of The Evil Dead.

This special DVD edition of Sam Raimi`s The Evil Dead is presented within the pages of The Book of The Dead, sculpted and illustrated by Tom Sullivan, who created the Necronomicon, dagger, and other special effects for the original film. Crafted to look like the nasty tree from that scene in the film, the jacket of the book is made to look as if it has been formed from flesh in weird spongy latex. Inside are illustrations of skulls, demons, decapitated bodies and mysterious symbols...

Special Features:
Audio commentary by Sam Raimi and producer Robert Tapert
Audio commentary by Bruce Campbell
`Fanalysis` - 26 minute documentary by Bruce Campbell
Discovering Evil Dead
Theatrical trailer
TV spots
Talent biographies
Easter eggs - previously unseen behind-the-scenes footage

Video Tracks:
Widescreen Anamorphic 1.85:1

Audio Tracks:
English Dolby Digital 5.1
English DTS ES
English Dolby Digital Surround
French Dolby Digital Surround

Subtitle Tracks:
English

Directed By:
Sam Raimi

Written By:

Starring:
Betsy Baker
Hal Delrich
Sarah York
Bruce Campbell
Ellen Sandweiss

Soundtrack By:
Joseph LoDuca

Director of Photography:
Tim Philo

Editor:
Edna Ruth Paul

Producer:
Gary Holt

Executive Producer:
Bruce Campbell
Robert Tapert
Sam Raimi

Distributor:
Anchor Bay

Your Opinions and Comments

8 / 10
The picture quality is pretty good overall. This film was made on 16mm and was blown up to 35mm so it was never going to look brilliant. The sound quality is also of similar quality. It`s nice to see a DTS soundtrack included and works surprisingly well since the film was recorded in mono.

There is a large amount of extra material on this disc. First up are two audio commentaries. The first features director Sam Raimi and producer Robert Tapert while the second has actor Bruce Campbell. The first commentary contains a lot of information on the film. The participants are fairly serious most of the time but do make fun of the film at times. Bruce Campbell`s commentary is the better of the two. It`s not only informative but very funny as well. Next up is a 26 minute documentary, Fanalysis, which features Bruce Campbell exploring the world of the genre fan ranging from casual viewers to crazed lunatics who legally change their name to that of their favourite sci-fi and horror characters. While not being totally relevant to this film, it`s a pretty enjoyable documentary neverthless. Discovering Evil Dead is a 13 minute featurette which interviews Stephen Wooley and Nik Powell of the now defunct Palace Pictures about their attempts to bring the film to the UK. This is another very good feature even though it is a bit short.

Next is 18 minutes of raw behind the scenes footage and outtakes. Although there is no commentary or any other kind of narration, it`s still worth a watch but it can get a bit tedious.
There is also two easter eggs. The first is a minute long effects test sequence while the second is a 7 minute Q&A session with producer Robert Tapert and actresses Betsy Baker and Sarah York which was recorded at a Halloween 2001 screening of the film. Also featured on the disc are a trailer, 4 TV spots, an extensive poster and stills gallery and talent bios.

The packaging for this DVD is probably the most unusual I`ve ever seen. The DVD is in a latex textured book in the form of the Book of the Dead from the film. The book features a note from artistt Tom Sullivan ( who created this package as well as the orginal book and many other effects for the film ) and some of the artwork that can be seen in the film.

Overall, this a excellent special edition for one of my favourite horror films. Essential for any horror fan and highly recommended to everyone else.
posted by dvd_man on 9/4/2003 21:42