Interview with Laura Vandervoort

Marcella Papandrea: Hello Laura, thanks for taking some time out to have a chat with Killer Film.

Laura Vandervoort: No problem.

MP: Have you been having a good day so far at Armageddon?

LV: I have yeah, I just got to Adelaide last night and we did a meet and greet with some of the fans that was really cool. I’m here today and I hope I get to see a little bit of Adelaide. I’ve toured around Sydney for the past couple of days which was great. You know the energy here is great, I like the feel and the vibe here it’s been great doing the shows.

MP: How does this Convention compare to the ones you’ve attended in the States?

LV: This one just feels so relaxed and quaint in a good way. The one in Sydney was wonderful too, everyone is always so friendly at Conventions. (laughs) No one has ever been mean. People are just so enthusiastic, it’s nice.

MP: Can you tell us anything about Smallville, with the season and series wrapping up very soon?

LV: Yeah it is the last season and I just shot my last episode, it’s called ‘Prophecy’. I can’t say what number it is, I am not sure they have announced it yet. It’s going to be great, we’re going to wrap up Kara’s storyline and hopefully give the fans what they’ve been looking for. It was sad to say good-bye to everyone, everybody was kind of upset that the show was ending, the crew and the cast everyone’s a family. It’s been a great show, a good experience and I was sad to say good-bye to Kara and let her go because I feel like she’s my little creation. Mind you she was created before me but I spun her into what I wanted her to be.

MP: It was a different take on the character.

LV: Yeah and I put a bit of myself in her. Coming to the Conventions I’ve talked to the fans about what they wanted to see in Supergirl. So it is a combo of the fans wants and needs and what I wanted to make her. That’s how she grew.

MP: Was it difficult stepping into the show after six seasons and playing such an iconic character.

LV: Yeah, and when I was cast I looked up Supergirl and Supergirl information, background info, and researched everything. But I was intimidated as I had seen Smallville growing up, and they are a well-oiled machine and for me to jump in and be the new person and that was difficult. Especially as it was one of my biggest jobs at that point, on top of that she’s already an iconic character and I had to make sure I filled those boots properly and that skirt (laughs). I think because everyone was so friendly and the team over at Smallville was so welcoming I was able to relax into it. Now I feel like its second nature to play her.

MP: What was it like to work with Helen Slater who was the original film Supergirl back in the mid 80’s?

LV: Helen is fantastic, again I was intimidated because she was the original and I didn’t want her to hate me or think I was doing a horrible job with what she had done. But so to they are both very different characters. She’s beautiful, she was graceful, she’s an amazing singer, and we had a few chats about playing Supergirl. But over all she’s just a wonderful person, and a wonderful person to work with.

MP: What are you able to tell us about V? It is currently in its second season, some juicy story-lines are happening.

LV: Well I don’t want to give anything away, yes it is getting juicy and my character is getting to do a lot more. They are writing a lot more for her in terms of who she’s interacting with and where her storyline is heading. She’s got a backbone now, she’s got an opinion, she has to choose which side she’s on. I’m not sure where you guys here are at with the show.

MP: We’re actually only a few days behind, so yes I am up to date.

LV: She’s joined the fifth column so she’s finally chosen a side. It’s nice because Elizabeth Mitchell’s character Erica is sort of becoming a mother to her and showing her compassion and helping her along the way, whereas Anna has become more of Tyler’s mother. And now we have Jane Badler on the show now from the original. Yeah there’s going to be some major deaths in the finale, of main characters. There’s some character interactions that haven’t happened before, explosions, romance, so a bit of everything really. It’s really amping up.

MP: I’m looking forward to it.

LV: Yeah so am I, I haven’t seen the finale yet.

MP: We’ll have to wait a while to see it.

LV: (laughs) Yeah unfortunately, but that’s part of the fun of television. I promise you that it will be awesome. No one will expect what is coming.

MP: The show’s been on a roll, and your character especially has come a long way, she’s been developed so well.

LV: Yeah she’s gone from like the low cut top girl and nothing more to more than I ever could have hoped for in a character. She’s got so many layers, so much stuff going on right now.

MP: You’ve definitely crafted her into an interesting character to watch, it’s been great to see her development.

LV: Yeah she’s a great character, she really considers her options and I like that about her. She’s got the weight on her shoulders of being the next queen, saving the humans, killing her mother, grandma shows up (laughs).

MP: A lot going on.

LV: (laughs) Yeah exactly.

MP: Do you have anything upcoming that you are able to discuss?

LV: Yes well I did the last episode for me of Smallville, I did a movie called This Means War with Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, Tom Hardy, and it was just a little role for two days. It was more of a comedic role for me. And I did a movie with Ray Liotta that should be out later this year. And there’s a few things going on as well that I can’t really reveal just yet. I don’t want to count my eggs before they hatch (laughs).

MP: Thank you so much Laura.

LV: My pleasure.

Many thanks to Laura, it was great to have the time out to have a chat. She was a great addition to the Convention; it was a real pleasure to have her there.

Interview with David Anders

Marcella Papandrea: Hello David, thanks for coming and having a chat to Killer Film, how has Armageddon been so far?

David Anders: Thanks, yeah it’s been great, I’ve been great, having a blast. I have never been to Australia before, this is my first time.

MP: Welcome, hopefully you’ve been enjoying your stay here.

DA: Thanks, yeah definitely it’s an awesome country, it really is. The people have been great, and the sites are great, Sydney was great. I’ve been really enjoying my time in Adelaide, it’s been fun.

MP: Adelaide is a little more quieter than Sydney.

DA: Yeah but it is so relaxed and there is a lot going on too. Very cool.

MP: Can you tell us about what you are currently working on with The Vampire Diaries?

DA: Yeah, The Vampire Diaries. We’ve got like three episodes left to shoot for this season. Yeah we worked out that I wasn’t actually in the episode that is filming now which allowed me to come here.

MP: How has your time been on the show?

DA: It’s been so great.

MP: You play an interesting character.

DA: Yeah yeah … he is interesting, Uncle John … well, Papa John actually (laughs).

MP: He’s really all sorts of things (laughs).

DA: (laughs) Yeah he’s a badie, he wants all the vampires dead. But suddenly that makes me the bad guy (laughs).

MP: It’s so complicated.

DA: (laughs) It so is right.

MP: I mean when you look at it, how are you the bad guy when you want to kill vampires, aren’t they meant to be the villains?

DA: (laughs) Yeah well that happens when the vampires are your heroes.

MP: The dynamic automatically changes.

DA: Yeah, you’ve got your good vampires and your bad ones. But Uncle John comes from the school of ‘they are all bad’.

MP: I guess if you look at it from a different perspective he isn’t really a bad guy.

DA: (laughs) Exactly.

MP: Has it been a lot of fun? It seems like it!

DA: Oh yeah, it’s such a great group there. We have fun, we shoot in Atlanta, Georgia, which is a fun town. We have a great group of actors and crew, we have a lot of fun.

MP: Looking forward to seeing what happens on the show.

DA: Yeah me too.

MP: It’s at that ‘very interesting’ stage.

DA: Yes it really is, where are you guys up to here? Up to speed?

MP: Yes we are, it airs Thursday over in the States and they screen it here the following week. Which is great, it’s changed where we had to wait an entire year for a show to start.

DA: Yeah right that’s great (laughs). No spoilers then! (laughs) I never know what to say, usually I can not say too much anyway.

MP: Were you surprised your character was brought back this season?

DA: No not at all, I mean once it was revealed that ‘she was my daughter’ you know that’s a good reason to come back. But naturally I didn’t know what my fate was after last season when I had my fingers chopped off and stabbed I really didn’t know if I was going to live. But when they did keep me alive I knew (winks) that I’d be back.

MP: Is it weird for you to be on this show and not have an accent?

DA: (laughs) I know right? It is kinda actually, it really is. I am used to playing an Englishman.

MP: In my mind I was almost expecting you to have that accent (laughs).

DA: (laughs, puts on English accent) Oh, just wait a minute and I will.

MP: I guess you’d be so used to it that it just comes naturally now?

DA: Yeah it is, its funny like that. The directors and stuff are more convinced that I can’t play an American now. And I’m like ‘Look me up bro, I’m not faking my accent right now’ (laughs). I do like playing (changes accent) an Englishman. Something I can almost hide behind, and it does give me more of a character to get into.

MP: Do you feel that now you’ve got this role as John Gilbert who is American and not English, that this could help open up more doors for you to get those American character roles?

DA: I hope so, I hope I am establishing myself as an American actor. It is fun though, I love it. It does really versify my cannon of work.

MP: Are you just working on the show right now?

DA: Yeah just the show, but hopefully during the summer I can do a movie or something while the show is on its break.

MP: Are you thinking about possibly perusing roles where you do get to be the good guy? Or are you loving being the bad guy?

DA: (laughs) Oh I’d love to be the good guy.

MP: Bad guys sometimes tend to have to more appeal though.

DA: Yeah you know I think everybody has a dark side, and it’s fun to tap into that.

MP: Offered that hero role, you’d take it?

DA: Sure, you know I’d love to do comedies too. But you know playing the villain or bad guy those characters have led me down this road and I am happy, it has been fun. I’m like in the villain part of my career (laughs).

MP: There you go, you might find yourself doing some different roles.

DA: Yeah, well it’s like the guy who play the protagonists want to play the antagonist and vice versa (laughs). But you know, I’m not going to say no to work (laughs). It’s all good.

MP: Do the best that you can do.

DA: (laughs) Exactly, and I do my best and it’s so great.

MP: Looking back at everything you’ve done, playing so many different characters, which has stuck out to you the most?

DA: Yes Stark on ALIAS. That was my favourite, it was my first big role too.

MP: Sentimental favourite?

DA: (laughs) Yeah that really is a sentimental favourite, but still it was the best. He was a cool character to play, it was different every episode. Like where in The Vampire Diaries it can be the same sort of thing, saying the same things over and over ‘Vampires, vampires, vampires, vampires’ which is fine (laughs) but I do like when it changes up which is what ALIAS and Stark did from episode to episode. But yeah at the same time Vampire Diaries does throw me some curve balls.

MP: Well yeah, fingers cut off, got a daughter, those are definite curve balls.

DA: (laughs) I know right? Yeah that was all very surprising. Nina and I called each other when we found out and were just like ‘WHAT?’ (laughs).

MP: Keeps the show interesting.

DA: (laughs) Yeah it does, it’s great I love it.

MP: Thank you so much for having a chat to us David.

DA: Appreciate, it was a pleasure meeting you.

A big thanks to David for his time, he was a lot of fun to chat to and he made Armageddon a great show along with the rest of the guests. We all certainly had a lot of fun watching through-out the weekend as Patricia Tallman put her artistic skills to good use and made a collage using his guest poster. In turn, David decided to do the same to Patricia, Laura’s and Lance’s posters. You can see their work at the bottom of this post.

Interview with Patricia Tallman

Marcella Papandrea: Hello Patricia, thanks for coming to have a chat with Killer Film.

Patricia Tallman: Thank you so much as well.

MP: How are you, how are you enjoying the day here at Armageddon so far?

PT: I love it, I’ve been so happy to be here in Australia. I am having a fabulous time.

MP: When you got contacted for the event were you excited to come down?

PT: Yes! I have tried to get down here a few times but it didn’t work out and this time it all came together. This was meant to be!

MP: Being from Adelaide originally …

PT: You are? This must be great for you to see the Expo has finally come here then?

MP: Yes I am, I think everyone is really happy to have it here. I know a lot of people from Adelaide travel around to see Armageddon when the time comes. Nice to have it in the home town.

PT: Yes, it’s nice for Adelaide, its fantastic. It’s so beautiful here and so far there’s been a really nice turn out. Oh have you seen any of the wrestling yet?

MP: Not this time, I have seen it all at every other Convention it always gets a huge turn out (laughs).

PT: (laughs) Yes it’s pretty fun they have that here. They’ve made it a total family event. At the last one we had like bumper cars, it was great. They really do have a lot of stuff to do it is very cool.

MP: Can you tell us about what you have been up to, what you have been working on lately?

PT: Oh yeah, I just finished a film called Dead Air, that was a lot of fun. It is a horror film, with a bit of a zombie flavour to it.

MP: I’m so there, you said horror and zombie!

PT: Fantastic, I think it has some great stuff that fans like yourself will enjoy. We are selling the DVD here and it is available on Amazon. It has been getting great reviews, so please check it out if you get the chance. Corbin Bernsen directed it too.

MP: Do you have any highlights when you look back over your career?

PT: Oh yeah. These might be fan favourites too, but Night Of The Living Dead was a great experience, it was really wonderful. Working with a lot of people that I already knew, it was very much a family feeling. Everyone was very happy for me because it was my first leading role in a film. So that was pretty exceptional. And then working on Babylon 5, to be on a series for that long and have such incredible writing and an incredible concept. Everybody involved was just fantastic, the actors and the crew it was so fantastic. So those were definite highlights, even though you know those are also fan favourites (laughs). I also had a good time working on all the Star Treks, I was part of the so called stunt team, and part of the stunt regulars on those shows. Dennis Madalone was the stunt co-coordinator and he’d bring us in whenever it was appropriate and that was a lot of fun, we did a lot of work together. Not quite as awesome as Babylon 5 but nothing can quite top that (laughs).

MP: I think Babylon 5 came out at the right time for sci-fi, with Star Trek kind of being the frontier series for the genre. Babylon 5 I think helped shape the standard of things to come.

PT: Yes. I think you are spot on with that, you’re right. It was one of those times where I read the script, loved it and then I didn’t think I’d get it. I thought they’d go with some big star or something (laughs). You know I also did enjoy working on Jurassic Park too, we didn’t really know what we were working on. We hadn’t seen the effects, the effects hadn’t really existed yet, so we had no idea (laughs). So when we saw the final product, we all sat in the audience and it was just like ‘Wow’.

MP: Yes for me seeing that film at the cinema was one of the best moments, I sat there wide eyed.

PT: Yes I know, it’s like the first time you saw Star Wars. I am sure you remember the first time you saw that.

MP: Yes of course!

PT: See I’m old enough that I saw Star Wars, the first Star Wars in the movie theaters. I stood in line with my little brother, he and his friends wanted to see it too so I drove. And I stood in line with him for 45 minutes, which at the time was just unheard of. You know like standing in line for a movie at that time, like any length of time no body did that. The fact that we did that was like beyond geeky. But I remember sitting in the audience, which was packed, and they had this new thing called surround sound. It was a new thing then and we were like whatever (laughs). Then the music started and it was all around us, and no body has experienced this before, and then the ship goes over head and it was like the coolest thing ever.

MP: Yes, Jurassic Park was really like the Star Wars of that time, there is no comparison.

PT: Yeah and there are some films you just have to see in the theater. Like Avatar, that’s the first thing I can think of more recently over the past 10 or so years that was as astonishing as that first moment with Star Wars. And (laughs) I wasn’t in Avatar, but going back yes Jurassic Park would probably have been the most astonishing thing I have seen that I was apart of.

MP: How about Army of Darkness, what was that experience like?

PT: Army of Darkness was fun, it was also really hard, it was really hard work. It had very little money, it was not a big budget production. The make-up affects were really extensive, I had to wear very uncomfortable make-up for long periods of time. But it was fun seeing it, that was one of those films where you see it and go ‘Ahh okay, I get it’ (laughs).

MP: It is such a fun film to watch and every time I watch it in the back of my mind I am thinking about how much work went into it all.

PT: Yeah it really was, and you know watching Bruce Campbell is so much fun, he’s so great. It’s good to see him do his thing, he’s so talented.

MP: I doubt there would have been an Evil Dead series without him.

PT: Exactly, you know it was created around Bruce, you know Sam and he are really good friends. Sam knew exactly what he was doing with Bruce and the films, he knew how to create this around Bruce.

MP: Did you have any other projects you were able to tell us about?

PT: Oh yes, I am working on a project with Joe Straczynski who created Babylon 5, and I am very excited about that, it is going to be amazing. I can’t talk about what it is just yet but as soon as I can I’ll be telling everyone about it.

MP: Thank you so much Patricia it was a pleasure to chat to you.

PT: Thank you it was a pleasure, and you can all find me on Facebook and Twitter, I’d love to hear from you.

Many thanks to Patricia for the interview, she entertained us all with her fantastic artistic skills during the weekend. She started an art project with David Anders’ guest poster, and by the end of the Expo it was an amazing piece of original art. You can check out the photos of it below.

The Film:

When will there be an Evil Dead 4? Who cares, really, because as time has worn on two things are readily apparent and one is that there’s no way after the three Spider-Man film successes, the closest thing director Sam Raimi would step back and give horror fans wouldn’t be a return to the cabin in the woods, but close enough stylistically, was Drag Me to Hell (here). Second, and most importantly, there’s no need for a fourth Evil Dead when a wonderful company like Anchor Bay reissues the films countless times, so revisiting The Evil Dead on Blu-ray is a minor revelation.

Sam Raimi’s debut film went from him hoping to show it on a few drive-in screens in Michigan to these countless rereleases, and it’s quite amazing when you think about it. There’s not too much to interepet again to the fans of this film; you love it for it’s gritty, true-blue do-it-yourself filmmaking that just isn’t the same today as it was back then in 1980. It’s the definitive “grab some friends and a camera, and go shoot something in the middle of nowhere” film out there. Often copied, rarely duplicated. And in all actuality, while it’s a blast, and for all of the iconic stories and the Birth of the Chin, The Evil Dead isn’t a well-crafted film. So?

While that’s not the point, there’s been far better examples of young filmmakers making their first ever movie. But The Evil Dead was the first and it was rewarded by a guy named Stephen King when he lended a quote to the film’s poster (The most ferociously original horror film of the year…), that instantly made it a must-see for horror and drive-in fans. With that, no matter how green the actors were, how primitive the FX were, the energy and full-on gusto of the camera, the rest -as they say - is (horror movie and career beginning) history. Join Us…

The Blu-ray:

Audio/Video: Starz/Anchor Bay stops reissuing more Evil Dead DVDs for the film’s first HD release, and it’s pretty good when you consider the source materials and that’s why I said it was a mini-revelation. After seeing this film countless times on a slew of releases on various formats, should I be cliche and state that this is the best I’ve seen the film? Well, it is. Despite the apparent softness from the old, cheap print stock, the colors are bold, the blacks and shadows deep, and a decent level of detail. Horror fans have been questioning these types of films getting HD treatments and if they’re needed or not. For Evil Dead, it’s impressive, when you really think about it and see it.

Anchor Bay also allows for fans to view the film in two seperate formatting selections. One is the film’s original 1.33:1 – its fullframe OAR, and the other is Sam Raimi’s approved 1.85:1, which will fill your HDTV completely, but the image is zoomed in the achieve this. Is it correct? I don’t know, but Raimi loved it and if seen in this format, many won’t notice anything different other than just enjoying the film. It’s great to have these two selections for the die-hard Evil Dead fans to determine how they want to see the film. Either is fine in my book. They do chat about this on the disc’s new commentary.

The audio is Dolby TrueHD 5.1 that Anchor Bay likes to do and it’s really good. Dialogue is crisp and the bass and surrounds, while slightly limited, never drowned the vocals out.

On the Blu-ray disc, there’s only one extra and it is an all-new Commentary with director Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell, and Robert Tapert. What’s new? I don’t know, it’s more of the same chatting about the film, yet again, it’s really enjoyable just hearing them remember the stories and the time it was made. Most of what they say has been repeated, but what do you expect from their 50th commentary track on the film? Oh, and they joke about that, too!

The rest of the extras have been ported over from other releases onto a seperate DVD. Not everything from prior releases are here, but the better ones are. Sadly, still no Within the Woods short that they did as a fundraiser to get this one made. Maybe we will never see it…

One by One We Will Take You: The Untold Saga of The Evil Dead: Running an hour long, this is a great documentary on everything you ever wanted to know about this film from the cast and crew. Lots of good stories, fun insights, and talk about the sequels, should make for required viewing for fans.

The Evil Dead: Treasures from the Cutting Room Floor: Here’s a collection of deleted scenes and extended takes of scenes running an hour! Fans should enjoy that something like this still exists and that you can see them, even if they’re in rough shape.

The Ladies of the Dead Meet Bruce Campbell: Nearly two decades after the initial theatrical release, this feature has The Chin talking to the film’s ladies in a fun look-back.

Discovering The Evil Dead: This little piece focuses on the reception of film in the UK and the historical lineage of the film.

Unconventional: Ted Raimi chimes in the the crew about the film for a fun 20 minutes.

A Reunion Panel filmed a bit ago at Flashback Weekend, another Deleted Scene of Ash looking through the book, Make-up Test, Trailers, Photo Gallery, and a brief look at the film’s rerelease At the Drive-In conclude this edition of the film on its first Blu-ray.

Conclusion: For its first HD appearance, it’s great. Nobody has done the DIY film better than The Evil Dead.

Check out Blu-ray reviews for Evil Dead II here and The Army of Darkness here.

The Film: Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

The Blu-ray: Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

The Film:

I remember back on the weekend of August 24th, 1990 my uncle and I attended a showing of Darkman, a film from a then-budding young director who just got a little studio help to deliver a horror-camp-filled superhero film. Of course, then I was barely in 6th grade, so I sort of liked everything, but the one thing I remember was exclaiming “Look! There’s Ash!” at the end of the film, when Darkman used Bruce Campbell’s face as he disappeared back into the crowd of people when Frances McDormand went after him. Hey, so what? I grew up on Evil Dead II and Army of Darkness. But as I kid, I really connected with this character of Darkman, even having my uncle one Halloween spending a ton of money, for a black trench coat, hat, gauze, and elaborate make-up so I could take the gauze off and reveal my burnt face!

Darkman isn’t a particularly original or even great movie, but it’s a lot of fun, perhaps memorable for its zaniness, and a film I doubt Raimi will ever make again.

There’s something bittersweet about Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man successes. On one hand, it’s neat to see him rise from an aspiring Michigan boy who grabbed a camera and shot a movie, to messing around with huge studio budgets, but on the other hand, due to those swinging successes, I don’t think he’ll ever really go back to his crazed, throw-everything-at-the-wall to see what sticks attitude and style of film making, that made Evil Dead films and Darkman so much fun. He came desperately close will Drag Me to Hell, but lovingly Darkman was a film from a guy that was eager to make a Spider-Man, which is a lot different from the man that did.

While Darkman takes its 90 minutes from a slew of other films, notably any superhero film not named The Dark Knight and the old Universal Monster movies from the 1930s and 1940s. This cobbling together attitude will signal to some that it’s being derivative, but to others it plays much like a homage to those films. After witnessing his lab be totally destroyed, his face and body horribly mutilated, and the love of his life believing he is dead, taking his research to a whole new level, Peyton Westlake (Liam Neeson doing his best Bruce Campbell impression long before he became the Liam Neeson we now know) uses these life-like masks of people to pit his enemies against each other. One part any typical superhero origin, another part Phantom of the Opera, it’s all strung together by Sam Raimi’s balls-out mentality, that adds a lot of zip to each scene, that any other director who not have had the luxury of.

The film never shows its serious face and having us to believe it should is wrong. Darkman is a step-child of Evil Dead who slept with Spider-Man, only to have had Boris Karloff’s child. It’s not Raimi’s best film, but for a warm-up into the studio system, it’s a lot of fun, for things I doubt now days a studio would allow. Long live Darkman!

The Blu-ray:

Audio/Video: After making an early appearance on the defunct HD-DVD, Universal finally releases the film to Blu-ray as a catalog title. I was an early adopter of the Blu-ray format, so I can’t compare the two, but judging from the transfer, the 1080p video looks really good, yet I suspect it’s a port from the HD-DVD release. There’s a few print anomalies,  but nothing serious. The details are really good, the colors are fine, the blacks are dark enough without being gray or bleeding. Considering I doubt Universal went all out on a new transfer, this release, that features a swell DTS track, is what I call an average HD release. It’s good, as most fans will be happy, yet it’s far from a best attempt I’m sure was possible. It certainly doesn’t ‘wow’, but you won’t be bummed with the results.

For Extras, well, there are none-again. Darkman has always been neglected on home video, and it continues sadly, here. Not even a HD Trailer! Maybe one day someone will give us something worthwhile for this fun movie.

Conclusion: The film is still fun even after all of those years. While the Blu-ray is an okay release, the lack of extras hurt it.

The Film: Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

The Blu-ray: Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

The Film:

Army of Darkness was my first film seeing Bruce Campbell on the big screen. The B-movie hero doesn’t appear to many times on the silver screen, but after my uncle exposed me to the Evil Dead series, my anticipation was high on seeing what is essentially Evil Dead III. To me, the film delivered, and in hindsight, and this might be controversial, it isn’t a good film per se, but it remains a fan favorite for one simple reason: Bruce Campbell.

The Chin rules, and Army of Darkness is the definitive Bruce Campbell performance, even though he was better in Bubba Ho-Tep (obviously) and in Burn Notice. It’s the tour de force performance that we get occasionally, and it’s so outrageous, that only a ham like Campbell could pull off. Having worked with Sam Raimi before, and while Evil Dead II created the star of Bruce Campbell, it’s the gung-ho, wild, bonkers Three Stooges one-man show, that iced the cake for The Chin to be a star. Raimi gives Bruce plenty of hero shots, from low angles, to the thrilling climax. The film is a bit clumsy in its storytelling, but again, Bruce saves it. Without him, the film would have been one of those odd, sort of fun film you’d forget. Instead, it’s one of the most released DVDs of all-time.

As if Bruce does not shine enough in the anti-hero role of Ash, he doubles, or triples the role in Evil Ash, as well as the mini-Ash’s. Evil Ash is a fun villain. He’s just as bubbling as Ash, but Bruce revels in the duality of the good side and bad side of the Ash character. Once again, Army of Darkness is Bruce’s show, and he never for a second disappoints. He’s funny, and for a brief time, a solid action star. It’s a shame studios never saw what we did in this film, and what Raimi saw too in casting him. Sure, they’re friends in real life, but Raimi is a goof, and Bruce visualizes the goofiness of Raimi. Good. Bad. I’m the guy with the gun. We all love Bruce, and this is his finest effort.

Back when Army of Darkness hit VHS, I remember renting it and I invited my buddy over to watch it. I don’t know if we watched it or worshiped it. We watched it three times back-to-back-to-back, reciting every one-liner, every scare, laughing and hollering. I was just in junior high, but this was such a great movie to me. I think, even though now it’s pretty campy (part of its charm), scenes like the Pit, where we see a geyser of blood, the hero shot of Ash reclaiming his famous chainsaw, and the Pit Witch, remain a lot of fun still. The whole graveyard sequence with the flying Necronomicons and of course, the Mill scenes are just a blast, and one of the key reasons we as fans have re-watched it so many times. The film is not a lick of scary, but it’s a blast from start to finish. Clatto Verata N… Necktie… Neckturn… Nickel… It’s an “N” word, it’s definitely an “N” word! Clatto… Verata… N- [coughs] There’s just one final question you have to ask yourselves: how many times have you watched Army of Darkness? I’m nearing the 100,000 mark.

The Blu-ray:

Audio/Video: Like most of you, I imagine you’ve owned Army of Darkness a few times on VHS and DVD. So the big question is if this new Universal Blu-ray is worth the upgrade. Well, at least in the visual department, the high def transfer is noticeably improved. It’s not awe-inspiring, but the age and the low budget nature stalls it from being a superb transfer. But don’t yet that deter you either. Details are high, contrast is sharp, and colors are accurately reproduced. Don’t let the opening Evil Dead II recap worry you, all in all, this is best the film has looked on home video.

The DTS track is decent too. Full, bass heavy, and some good directional activity. This is the biggest improvement over the countless DVD incarnations.

Creating the Deadites: This all-new featurette shot in 1080i, runs about 20 minutes and it a loving look at KNB Effects who did the creature effects for the film. Greg Nicotero and Howard Berger are always good sports in talking about their work, and you can see the passion in their voice for what they do. They interviews are new, and they show some old behind-the-scenes work too. Fans should dig this.

Alternative Ending: Sadly, in 480p, but this was an interesting deleted ending idea. Fans have seen this before, but it’s a nice inclusion.

The fun Trailer and Universal’s U-Control feature round out the extras.

Conclusion: So do you need another Army of Darkness disc? Up to you, but I was pleased with its first Blu-ray release. This would have been a prime time for an end-all-be-all edition, so fans wanting more extras will be disappointed.

The Film: Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

The Blu-ray: Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

I thought it be time to write a list about the genre I cherish the most, which is of course the horror genre. There are many things to appreciate about the genre such as scares, jumps and gratuitous nudity; however one of the rare treats in the genre is the random cameo that appears out of nowhere. Sometimes these surprise cameos invoke cheers and sometimes they invoke uncontrollable laughter, but either way it is most definitely appreciated in the genre. (Unless of course we’re talking about Gary Busey’s chicken-f*cking cameo in the god awful A Crack in the Floor. Good Lord!) Here is a list of my favorite cameos in horror! Hope you enjoy the list and feel free to comment on your own fave cameos as well!

20. William Sadler-BORDELLO OF BLOOD

Bill Sadler is my favorite character actor of all-time. He’s so good that when teenagers were foolishly wasting their money to see Katie Holmes and James Marsden in the horrendous box office flop, Disturbing Behaviour, I was sneaking into the theatres just to see William Sadler in his thankless role. (Normal 14 year old girls don’t do this. ) Being a fan of Sadler in Demon Knight, I thought I would never see him haunt the Tales from the Crypt universe again after he died violently in the series’ first theatrical film. Although, I was pleasantly surprised to see him again in the sequel as the Cryptkeeper’s “frenemy”…even if he was just a mummy.

19. Jay and Silent Bob-SCREAM 3

Jay and Silent Bob may have stumbled onto the fake set of Scream 4 in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, but they quite literally stumbled onto the real set of Scream 3 as well. It’s probably the most random cameo in a horror film since Roseanne Barr and Tom Arnold appeared in Freddy’s Dead, but it definitely got some laughs.

18. The ‘STAB’ Cast-SCREAM 2

After Scream became a sleeper hit at the box office and became even a bigger hit on video, everybody who was hip and happening wanted to be apart of the sequel.  It was so big that director Robert Rodriguez directed the film within the film, Stab. This faux film contained a slightly more disturbing re-enactment of the death of Casey Becker, (now played by Heather Graham) and casting Luke Wilson and ironically enough Tori Spelling as Billy Loomis and Sidney Prescott was just a slice of genius.

17. The FireFly Family-THE HAUNTED WORLD OF EL SUPERBEASTO

For anybody that was sad after seeing the demented Firefly family gunned down by the police to the tune of Free Bird will be somewhat pleased to hear that Baby, Otis and Captain Spaulding all make appearances as cartoons in Rob Zombie’s animated The Haunted World of El Superbeasto. There’s no need to question how they appear in the feature as none of the movie is supposed to make sense.

16. Scott Baio-CURSED

Cursed is known for many things. It’s known as Wes Craven and Kevin Williamson’s biggest flop, it’s known for a vaulted alternative version that people still have yet to see, it’s known as the reason for the delay of Jesse Eisenberg’s now rising acting career. It’s also known for the most random cameo in horror history. Yup, somehow and somewhere the producers of this werewolf flick thought casting Scott Baio in a cameo would somehow excite teenagers.  The same teenagers that when hearing about ‘Joanie Loves Chachi,’ immediately think it’s a show about a lesbian named Joanie that likes to go muff-diving.

15. John Fallon-100 FEET

It’s not everyday you get to see one of your good friends and confidantes in a film, but last year I had the pleasure of seeing my former employer John Fallon from Arrow in the Head in a scene with Famke Janssen and Bobby Carnivale in Eric Red’s 100 Feet. He may not be a household name YET, but he definitely has a cult following in the online community. It is by far one of my favorite cameos in a horror film. (Yes, the bragging rights of having my mentor in a film does have something to do with it! )

14. Bradley Cooper-MY LITTLE EYE

Bradley Cooper may be known for his breakout role in this year’s The Hangover, but that role was not the role that I first recognized him. Before The Hangover and Wedding Crashers, Bradley Cooper made a brief appearance in the Canadian cult horror film, My Little Eye. His role may have been small, but his scenes were very memorable as one of the film’s twisted killers.

13. Janet Leigh-H20

Seeing the original Scream Queen onscreen with her real-life “Scream Queen” daughter, Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween: 20 Years Later definitely was touching. However, the same car she drove in Psycho (that also appears in H20) may be considered the bigger cameo out of the two.

12. Prince-SCARY MOVIE

I don’t know how much money Dimension Films ended up paying to get Prince in a horror parody, but God bless them. It was easily one of the most unexpected cameos this horror aficionada has ever seen.

11. Wes Craven-THE TRIPPER

Now most people would think Courteney Cox’s shameless cameo in her husband’s directorial debut, The Tripper would be note-worthy for a list like this, but the real cameo in this movie is director Wes Craven himself.  Wes Craven has appeared in far more recognizable cameos in his Scream trilogy and New Nightmare, but seeing him randomly appear as a top hat-wearing hippie in The Tripper definitely caused me to laugh harder than when I first saw him as Fred the janitor in Scream.

10. Harry Knowles-THE FACULTY

In the online community, Harry is and will always be considered the “Godfather” of online film critics. He paved the way for other movie geeks to pursue careers in the blogging universe. So when seeing Harry Knowles sitting silently with the rest of “The Faculty” in Robert Rodriguez’s sci-fi horror film for no reason at all, I couldn’t help but smile. Harry’s head also makes a brief cameo appearance in the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre…but most of you guys probably knew that already.

9. Eli Roth- 2001 Maniacs

2001 Maniacs saw the infamous return of Justin, (played by Eli Roth) the goatee-wearing and pot smoking hitchhiker last seen in Roth’s breakout directorial debut, Cabin Fever. I loved this dude and how his trusty dog also made a cameo.

8. The “Celebrity Cameo”-ZOMBIELAND

I will not give away the cameo in Zombieland because there are quite a lot of you that have yet to see it. However, I will say this: it’s hilarious and if I ever meet the dude, I would hope to expect the same “west coast hospitality” Woody Harrelson and Emma Stone got from him. 

7.  Edwige Fenech-HOSTEL II

Any male fans of the Italian horror genre probably will list Edwige Fenech as the number one contributor to their “spank-bank” collection.  Eli Roth convinced this beautiful actress for a small role in Hostel II and it was amazing to see how gorgeous she still looks.  (If only we could all be so lucky.)

6.  Jane Weidlin-CLUE

When I was a kid, I was obsessed with the group, ‘The Go-Go’s,’ but I was most partial to the singer/guitarist, Jane Weidlin who left the group in 1984 to pursue a solo career. In 1985, the most successful thing she had to show was her very brief stint in the murder mystery movie, Clue as the singing telegram who gets shot after two seconds of screen time.  I always rewind this part at least 5 times when I’m watching it.

5. Dario Argento-INNOCENT BLOOD

In John Landis’ 1992 horror-comedy Innocent Blood, fans were able to see cameos from horror greats of all kinds. We saw Sam Raimi as the butcher, Tom Savini as the news reporter and even Clive Barker made an appearance in the film.  But it was Giallo great, Dario Argento who was able to tickle my funny bone as a random paramedic at the scene of a crime.  Seeing him try to comfort the patient with his very strained English still cracks me up to this very day.

4.  George Clooney-RETURN TO HORROR HIGH

Before George Clooney became the most sought after man in the planet, he started his career in being apart of really bad horror films.  In this 1987 nonsensical slasher, George appears in a very small role as a cop that is the first to get killed. Hey…we all have to start somewhere.

3. Bridget Fonda-ARMY OF DARKNESS

In Evil Dead and Evil Dead 2, audiences saw unknown actresses cast as Ash’s doomed girlfriend, Linda.  Although, for 1993’s Army of Darkness, Sam Raimi was able to convince rising actress, (at the time) Bridget Fonda to reprise Linda for not even a minute of screen time.  Sometimes it’s good to have friends in high places.

2.  Alice Cooper-PRINCE OF DARKNESS

Who knew that Alice Cooper’s cameo would be one of the most memorable parts in this classic John Carpenter film?  As the homeless zombie leader, Cooper kicked some serious ass in his lack of screen time and even used one of his recognizable props from his concerts to kill one of the characters. There are no words to explain how awesome this man is.

1. Freddy’s Glove-JASON GOES TO HELL

There is no better cameo than the surprise appearance of Freddy Krueger’s glove at the end of Jason Goes to Hell. It made most fanboys/girls go nuts for years only to be left disappointed by the mediocre Freddy vs Jason 10 years later. However, the moment when Freddy’s glove comes out of the ground is something a horror fan will never forget.

Questions or comments? Email them to serena@killerfilm.com

The Film:

At the time I was introduced to Evil Dead II, my knowledge of horror was limited to the Universal classics, the ’50s sci-fi flicks, and a few other standards like Night of the Living Dead. I was young, but not to young, and when I watched it for the first time, I was just shocked. In a way, I never processed that a horror film could be more than just scary at that time, but Sam Raimi’s film was filled with comedy. How could a horror film, with some gross out moments, also make me laugh?

For a young guy at the time, eyeballs popping out, severed hands, and blood were scary, despite the quaintness of the effects now, but I was also laughing and quoting the one-liners. I was so excited to re-watch the film, I invited my friend over for my birthday to see what I was raving about. About halfway through, he gets up and leaves the room. After a few minutes later, my uncle said I should go see where he went. Apparently, he was so scared, he left and was sitting with my grandma! He would later finally see it all the way through, and became a huge fan, especially of its sequel  Army of Darkness, but that’s the special nature of Evil Dead II.

It’s a wild 80 minutes. There’s little story, and the film doesn’t really have much to tell. It’s a showcase for the screwball comedy of Sam Raimi, and of course, the birth of The Chin as an icon. Bruce Campbell is game for the abuse Raimi puts him through, acting essentially by himself for most of the film, even talking to himself. I think for fans of the film, without Bruce’s gung-ho attitude, would we have watched, yet alone continued over the years to continue to watch? No, absolutely not. It was Bruce’s coming out party, a love letter to the Three Stooges style of comedy, but set within a horror setting. As much as Bruce shines, the film is also noted for Sam Raimi’s camera work. A lot of what he does in this film, will become his signature style that he will be noted for in future films. For a couple of buddies with some cash, a camera, and some blood, they put together perhaps the most zaniness piece of 80 minutes even put to film.

Who doesn’t love Evil Dead II? If you’re one of those very few, I really don’t want to know you. It might not be a good horror film, but it’s a blast from start to finish. Groovy!

The Blu-ray:

Audio/Video: Anchor Bay loves to release Evil Dead II, so it makes it a no-brainer that they will choose this title as part of their initial first Blu-ray releases. Probably, due to the film stock Raimi used, but the Blu-ray video isn’t that good. Grainy, rough at times, a filled with edge enhancement issues, fans will be bummed. The picture is brighter than the DVD, and in faces of the actors the detail is high, but that’s the only positives.

Given the film’s budget, the sound was never that good, but the Blu-ray audio shines with this knowledge. Dialogue and music are clear and never step on each other, and surprising there are some bass heavy moments.

Having seen all of Anchor Bay Blu-ray releases, Evil Dead II is sadly their weakest release.

All of the extras are from previous editions.

Commentary: This is a really fun track. We get Bruce, Sam Raimi, Greg Nicotero, and Scott Spiegel, and they are all passionate about this film. So this leads to a lot of great info and fun comments. Fans will probably listen to this numerous times.

Film Fast Facts: This is a pop-up trivia track, that is fun, but I recommend using it during the commentary, although there isn’t anything new given that you didn’t know already.

Behind-the-Screams and Gorier the Merrier: These two making ofs are in 480p and are pretty good. Filled with old footage, fun moments, it’s the rare type of making of’s that are worth watching.

Finally, the Trailer rounds out the extras.

Conclusion: Yes, Evil Dead II is a seminal film. We know each word, every scene, and seen it a zillion times. But is the Blu-ray worth owning? Not really, but you can find it for pretty cheap, if you’re so inclined.

The Film: Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

The Blu-ray: Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

You could just feel it. Sam Raimi was running out of gas in Spider-Man 3. His heart didn’t seem to be in it, and whatever visual boredom he was experiencing, it was reflective in his work. Raimi needed a breather, maybe even an exorcism. He has always been a journey man in film, shuffling from one genre to the next, but horror is what we know and love him for. After playing around with a blank check for his Spider-Man films, what else could a man do with mainstream success? Go back to one’s roots. Sam Raimi did just that with Drag Me to Hell, a much-needed breath of fresh air for him, and a definite bit of fresh air for us horror fans. It’s the kind of balls-to-the-wall, everything goes, low budget zaniness that made him a film star with the Evil Dead films, that makes Drag Me to Hell a blast.

You’ve seen the trailers. They don’t even come close to selling this film, so it’s a good thing we don’t review them. Everything you love about the Evil Dead films is here, but he’s not just copying past glory, he adding a fresh spin to it, that’s all for the story, that makes Drag Me to Hell his antidote to the boring and lifeless Spider-Man 3. It’s hard to imagine Ellen Page was cast (but later dropped out) in the lead role. As much as I like her, and I like her a lot, she would’ve been woefully miscast. Alison Lohman is the perfect Raimi hero; she’s like a female Bruce Campbell. Likable, goofy, isn’t ahead of the situation, and most importantly, she can take a beating like The Chin. That’s important because Raimi beats the hell out of her. Sorry for that pun.

Lorna Raver is great too as Ganush, the mad, cursing witch that plans to send Christine (Lohman) straight to hell after being shamed. There’s this fight between Ganush and Christine in a car that has that “everything and the kitchen sink” feeling to it, that is tops in pure bonkers. Head buts, staplers, biting with gums, goo, all complete with that Raimi possessed camera work he made famous 30 years ago in Evil Dead. There’s hardly a dull moment in Hell. Raimi successfully builds up the situations and characters. We like them, hate them, root for them, and packs it with an unseen craziness that horror has lacked recently. I don’t know if the film has a lick of scariness to it, but it’s absolutely fun, a word gone too from current horror. It’s a subtle mix of madness and humor, that made something like his last horror film, Army of Darkness, a blast regardless of scares or gore.

It’s a lean and mean 90 minutes, no doubt. Anchoring it all in, is a fun old school horror score by Christopher Young (Hellraiser). In fact, as much as the term “old school” gets thrown around way too much now days in horror, Drag Me to Hell is reminiscent of the good old creature features from the 80s, and maybe even a step back from the 50s. You get this feeling within the first five minutes, of that warm feeling of the fun a B-movie use to bring. If anything, the fact that Drag Me to Hell isn’t a bloody sequel or blasted remake, but an original horror film, coming from a studio to the freaking theaters is a massive cause for a celebration. Sam Raimi brought an old friend back: the fun horror film. Oh, how we have missed you.

Oh, and Mr. Raimi…come back soon.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Yes Man comes to Blu Ray April 17th

Quentin Tarantino‘s first scripted film True Romance arrived on Blu Ray on May 26th

Sam Raimi‘s classic and hilarious Army of Darkness comes on Blu Ray this May 19th

Ron Howard’s The Da Vinci Code comes to Blu Ray April 28th

What Doesn’t Kill You comes to Blu Ray April 28th

May 12th all six Star Trek films arrive on Blu Ray in a collection as well as sold separately.

Anne Hathaway’s The Passengers arrives on Blu Ray this May 12th

Eminem’s 8 Mile comes to Blu Ray this April 7th

Ryan Gosling’s Fracture arrives this June 16th

May 13th Criterion brings Akira Kurosawa’s Ran to Blu Ray

The dog from Marley and Me will arrive on Blu Ray this March 31st

Jason Stathom’s Transporter 3 comes to Blu ray on March 10th

April 17th The Day The Earth Stood Still remake arrives

April 21st all 3 X-Men arrive on Blu Ray

S. Darko the DTV sequel to Donnie Darko comes to Blu Ray April 28th

Personal favorite The Princess Bride shows up on inconceivably on Blu Ray this March 17

April 14th The Spirit shows up on Blu Ray…..sorry