Army of Darkness

Rating:
Summary: Do Not Be Confused
Review: I'd like to preface my short review by saying that this is one of my top 5 movies of all time, and that the "4 star" rating does not reflect the movie (5 stars), simply the DVD.

On to the DVD....

I own 2 of the 400 different Army of Darkness releases: the Original Army of Darkness DVD, and the Bruce Campbell vs. Army Of Darkness - The Director's Cut (Official Bootleg Edition) [Whew! Thats a long title!] I DO NOT own the "Boomstick" version of the film, and this review is not for that DVD release....Do Not Be Confused with the version you are buying.

Each DVD release has their own quirks. Having a 57" Hitachi Projection HDTV and a Harmon Kardon DVD player, I was stunned to see that the image quality of the Bootleg Edition was exceptionally poor. It is so poor in fact, that I prefer to watch the original DVD release. It is, however, formatted to fit 16:9 widescreen format.

The original DVD release of course does not include additional footage the "way the Director intended", and although it is "widescreen", is not formatted for 16:9 monitor's.

Like I said, I do not own the "Boomstick" version, so I can't speak to that. I hope they fixed all the aforementioned problems in it though.

Rating:
Summary: The Definitive Army Of Darkness DVD
Review: Army Of Darkness is the third part of the Evil Dead trilogy, of which I love since I was 4 years old. Just as Book Of The Dead Edition is the definitive one for the first film and the THX Mastered version is the definitive DVD for the second film, this Boomstick Edition is the definitive DVD version of Army of Darkness.
Army Of Darkness Boomstick Edition is a 2-DVD Set. The first disc includes the U.S. Theatrical Version of Army Of Darkness (the one with the S-Mart/She-B**** ending) with both 5.1 and 2.0 sound, awesome video quality, and you can choose between Widescreen and Fullscreen to watch the Theatrical version of the movie. The first disc also includes the Theatrical Trailer and a featurette called "The Men Behind The Army", which is basically a docummentary about the movie's make-up effects; Talent Bios and the Original Ending of the movie, the one really meant to be, but separately from the original movie.
The second DVD includes the Director's Cut version of Army Of Darkness, the one Sam Raimi first showed to Universal Pictures, and was refused because it was too long (it's 15 minutes longer then the Theatrical Version) and had a depressing ending (yes, this "depressive ending" is the original ending also presented in Disc 1, but this time it's presented together with the movie, not separately). This time you can only watch it Widescreen and 2.0 sound, there aren't any more audio or video options avaliable for the Director's Cut. The second disc has some extras too, like the hilarious audio commentary by Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell and Ivan Raimi; 4 deleted scenes, not presented in any of the movie's versions (there are also audio commentaries for the deleted scenes) and a very nice feature that, like a subtitle, as you watch the movie, storyboards of that scene you're watching just pop up in the lower part of your screen, so you can see what the director meant for that scene to be, and that's highly enjoyable.
Overall, this edition is very worth your money. There are some things I didn't like, though: the fact that the DVD has a paper case, not a plastic case; there are no subtitles or Close Captions for either versions of the movie; and the lack of audio/video options in the Director's Cut version. But those are not very important and they won't let me rate this DVD less than five stars. You must also know that there is a booklet inside the case, which is basically the part where Bruce Campbell talks about Army of Darkness in his book "If Chins Could Kill" (which I highly recommend). No need to say the movie itself rocks, and no need to say you must buy this DVD. Come get some (fun), and hail to the king (Bruce Campbell)!

Rating:
Summary: You need this!!!!!!
Review: Before I start let me say this has nothing to do with Evil Dead 2
(this is Evil Dead 3 if you did not know). Anyway, this movie was
great. I think this is Bruce Campbells best movie. If they remade this(with Bruce Campbell still as Ash)with better special
effects it would be the best moment in movie history.This movie
is a horror/comedy,like Scary Movie? No, this is nothing like scary movie becouse it makes up it's own comedy instead of taking
sceanes from other movies. The plot is about Ash(Bruce Campbell)
who get the book of the Dead and is sent back in time were he brings back an undead army. the only bad thing is Ashes cach phares like "Groovey" this DVD is really good

Rating:
Summary: Hilarious
Review: For those who worship cult movies, this is great. But if you love bad special effects and cliché one-liners, you will love this too. You can look at this movie two ways, either a cool horror movie or a bad-budget movie with random one-liners from Bruce Campbell. I looked at it the latter, and I fell off the bed laughing so hard! It's so bad, it's hilarious!

Rating:
Summary: Great set
Review: ARMY OF DARKNESS is the third entry in Sam Raimi's THE EVIL DEAD TRILOGY. It is a great comedy that mixes genres and has some of the best one liners in cinema history. This BOOMSTICK EDITION is the 1,000 time the film has been on DVD and is the definitive version. Here are the bonus materials:
-Director's Cut: Along with the original theatrical version is the director's cut which runs 15 minutes longer. Of the two, I prefer the theatrical version. Although I love the alternate ending in the director's cut, I think the humor in the theatrical ending is more in tune with the rest of the film. The other added scenes are good but the final battle now goes on far too long with there being long periods of no laughs or even interesting action.
-Commentary (only on director's cut): By Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell, and Ivan Raimi. A very funny and informative track.
-Featurette: A good featurette that goes into the makeup and monster FX of the movie. Although it would've been better as a full documentary.
-Deleted Scenes (with optional commentary): Some good scenes that should've been in the director's cut but might've brought down the pace of the film.
-Storyboards: You can view the director's storyboards as you watch the film.
-Photo Gallery: Concepts of the monsters.
-Trailer: A very funny trailer.
Also included is a booklet written by Bruce Campbell, making this one of the best horror/cult movie releases on DVD.

Rating:
Summary: Hail to the King, Baby!
Review: It's probably the Greatest Movie Ever Made... and it stunned critics across the land! On its release, few people knew what to make of it, and for a Dino Di Laurentis production, its promotion and release were rather limited.

One critic from "People" magazine dismissed the film as abhorrent and complained about the character Ash killing "an old lady" with a sawed-off shotgun. Talk about being misunderstood, that takes the cake.

Years later, it's the cult favorite that keeps winning new beleivers.

"Bruce Campbell vs. Army of Darkness" is a classic comedy of errors, one of my top ten favorites of all time. Nothing about this film can be taken seriously.

If you don't have a good sense of humor, you'll dismiss this film as a lot of schlock, which basically, it is. However, it's also high camp. Bruce Campbell, an astonishing comic actor, creates the persona of Ash by systematically giving an excellent impersonation of himself, which is very amusing. Embeth Williams is also good as Sheila.

Sam Raimi does an excellent job of stringing a lot of silliness together and making it work, but it's Campbell, as sort of a failed Jimmy Stewart type, who really carries the film.

The alternate endings are great. While I like the "Back to the Future" ending, I'm not sure that it would have worked that well as a sequel. As a purist, I think the final cut of the movie, complete with K-Mart ending is the better of the two.

If you don't have a sense of humor, you won't appreciate this movie for what it is. Thanks, Sam and Bruce!

Rating:
Summary: SHOP SMART. SHOP S-MART. YOU GOT THAT?!
Review: Although it technically marks the end of the "Evil Dead" trilogy, 1993's "Army of Darkness" is clearly meant to stand on its own. Unlike 1987's "Evil Dead II," which was a gargantuan bloodbath, this movie is a light, action-packed comedy. Very little blood is spilled here, and Bruce Campbell's Ash character displays many personalities: he's a chainsaw-wielding bad boy, a slapstick clown, and a melodramatic lover all at once. In addition, "Army of Darkness" pays homage to the Three Stooges, "Jason and the Argonauts" and "The Day the Earth Stood Still." (the latter first created the phrase KLAUTU BARATTA NIKTO!)
After attempting to eliminate the demon forces in the previous movie, Ash is transported to Europe in 1300 A.D. With a battered car, a chainsaw, and a 12-gauge, double-barreled shotgun in his possession, he's caught in the middle of a feud between the villages of Lord Arthur (Marcus Gilbert) and Duke Henry the Red (Richard Grove). Meanwhile, an old Wiseman (Ian Abercrombie) prophesises Ash to be The Promised One, the only man who could rescue the kingdom from the terrors of the Deadites. It's a role which Ash is VERY reluctant to accept. His only ticket home is hidden is the pages of the Necronomicon, which he later retrieves from an unholy graveyard. But in an idiotic move, Ash forgets to recite the correct magic words; when he removes the Book, he accidentally awakens the Army of the Dead! Now, despite the fact that he desperately wants to go home, Ash decides to put his selfishness aside and help defend Lord Arthur's castle against the armed skeletons! With Sam Raimi's shaking camera motion, cheesy monster makeup, bone puppets, and hilariously bad acting, "Army of Darkness" is sure to please cult fans everywhere!
So why did I choose to rate 3 stars for the Boomstick Edition? On the first disc's U.S. version, TOO MUCH footage was removed. Not enough room was provided for needed jokes and dialogue, and the overall nature of the film felt incomplete. The Director's Cut Edition on Disc 2 is much better; 15 minutes of deleted footage is placed back into the film. However, during the climax's battle scenes, the visual quality became extremely poor; it became dark and cruddy during the final confrontation between Ash and his Evil Self. It's almost as if the movie wasn't at all remastered, and that's a shame. Finally, the original ending of "Army of Darkness" was far too silly. I can best describe it as a Rip Van Winkle scenario. Basically, Ash isolates himself in a cave and (after swallowing one too many drops of a potion) sleeps for 7 centuries and wakes up in the year 2000. He grows a huge beard and ends up looking like a cast member from Monty Python's Flying Circus!
I only recommend this DVD for those wanting to see "Army of Darkness" IN ITS ENTIRETY. Otherwise, you might be better off taping it from the Sci-fi Channel.

Rating:
Summary: Fun Horror at it's best
Review: Don't let people trick you into thinking this is only something a cult fan could love. If you like horror flicks, this is the pinnacle of the Evil Dead trilogy. Get all 3 movies, and watch the transition from bloody hellish horror to fun family oriented skeleton fighting ala Jason and The Argonauts. The director later went on to make such films as The Sixth Sense, and Signs. This film series is what got him discovered. Get Evil Dead 1 & 2, and Army of Darkness. If you aren't into a bloodfest film, then just get Army of Darkness.

Rating:
Summary: B Entertained!
Review: There are two types of B movies.
One that is so bad, it is actually unwatchable,and closer to X Y Z than B.
The other type, is a film that does not take itself too seriously,made by talented filmmakers,and closer to A than B: Army Of Darkness,the third installment in the Evil Dead trilogy falls squarely in the latter type.
To describe the film as horror however is a bit far fetched. Army of Darkness is essentially a comedy, absurd, over the top,and chaotic, but a comedy nonetheless.Even the blood and gore and those evil skeletons chasing our hero Ash (an excellent Bruce Campbell) have a comic feel to them, and this is exactly why the film works so well.The horror/comedy genre is a very grey area, and many a director has failed to get the right balance between the two,and as a result his/her film would be lost in predictable suspense and cheesy one-liners added for humour.However Sam Raimi,(like Spielberg and Tarantino,a director who has started his career early, driven by his passion for cinema),succeeds in sticking to absurd comedy,all dressed up nicely in the tension of the 'horror' atmosphere.
This edition is the best to own, because it includes Raimi's original movie, butchered at the time of its release by the studio.This saddens me to no end, to see executives who have no artistic or creative bone in them, deciding what the audience would like or not, and tampering with the director's own vision,(sometimes relying on a 'test audience'-but they are to creativity what a mosquito is to a good night sleep, a bloody nuisance).A very recent example of this,on the set of Exorcist 4 :The Beginning,is replacing one of the best director/auteur in American cinema,Paul Schrader with Renny Harlin, because the studio and its test audience thought Schrader's copy was too psychological and did not have enough 'pea soups'!! what a scandal!
Anyway, back to Army of Darkness,
the studio version, which is 15 minutes less than the original film, has a sentimental happy ending, while Raimi's cut is more 'Planet of the Apes' apocalyptic, which gives an appreciative depth to the film.A lot footage was cut also from the battle scene, which although is not Lord of the Rings, it is quite well made for its budget.
So, Army of Darkness is a very good and hilarious B movie that you will immensly enjoy.Buy it and B entertained!

Rating:
Summary: so much fun
Review: the classic evil dead series comes into the trigyes most fun man i wish they made horror movie[some of them anyway] as fun as this its not as gory the second or the blooidiest movie of all time evil dead the efeects are good sometimes the skeltons look real some time they look clash of the titans ish otherwise veryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy enetertaining very fun to watcyh over and over and has to of the best line ever

GIMME SOME SUGGA BAVY
AND HAIL TO THE KING BABY