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Evil Dead II DIRECTED BY SAM RAIMI RELEASED: 1987 Why's it so good? The Evil Dead made him. Crimewave nearly broke him. And so, looking for a hit to rekindle his wunderkind reputation, Sam Raimi and his bessie mate Bruce Campbell went back the woods. It could have been a shameless retread of the first movie, but Evil Dead II takes care of that in the first five minutes. It then goes on to defy convention at every turn, with Raimi's restless camera and Campbell's bravura performance as the idiot-cum-iconic action hero, Ash, the key components of a film that makes you laugh, scream and laugh again, sometimes within the space of one shot.

How does it stack up to the original? There is no comparison. This is Sgt. Pepper's to Please Please Me. Evil Dead II is, arguably, the most influential horror movie of the last 30 years. Glaring error: It's only a ride, of course, but the powers and capabilities of the Deadites in spirit form change wildly from scene to scene. Curious... GAP BETWEEN SEQUEL AND ORIGINAL: 66 MONTHS 50 49 48 47 46 45 44 43 42 41 40 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

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