More Horror Series Should Be Fearless Enough To Swerve Like Evil Dead And Army Of Darkness

(For the 30th anniversary of Sam Raimi's "Army of Darkness," we're looking back at some scary and funny anecdotes about the movie this week.)

Sequels — especially horror ones — have a bad reputation for repeating the original story. Part of this has to do with the rise of slashers during the 1980s. When the audience is there to see Michael Myers or Freddy Krueger, it's easy to follow the same beats of them killing teenagers in movie after movie, with only the window dressing changed.

However, the '80s were also the decade of Raimi's "Evil Dead," one of the wildest horror franchises out there. Now, "Evil Dead II" does have a similar story to the original — Ash Williams (Bruce Campbell) and co. are stuck in a cabin in the woods, menaced by undead summoned via the Necromonicon. The sequel opens with an abbreviated version of the first film's events.

What is different is the presentation. Raimi lets loose his love for "Looney Tunes" and "The Three Stooges" and turns "Evil Dead II" into a slapstick horror comedy. For instance, the headless corpse of Ash's possessed girlfriend Linda (Denise Bixler) rises from the grave and dances outside the cabin. Meanwhile, Ash can't trust his body once his hand is possessed by the Deadites. As his hand tries to kill him in an array of physical comedy, he eventually cuts it off with a groovy chainsaw, with blood splattering across his face.

Not since James Whale's "Bride of Frankenstein" had a horror sequel been so daring. That is, until the third "Evil Dead" film, "Army of Darkness," came out in 1993.

"Evil Dead II" has a surreal ending: the Necronomicon opens a time vortex, sending Ash back to the Arthurian era. "Army of Darkness" retains the horror and the slapstick, except in a totally different setting from the first two films. The first two films had a confined setting, but Ash has to go on a quest to get home this time.

This quest becomes more and more surreal as the film goes on. Before departing, Ash receives a metal hand to replace his chainsaw — unfortunately for him, his groovy new armament doesn't come with dignity. When he takes refuge in a windmill, a mirror shatters. Ash's reflection gives birth to about a dozen mini-duplicates who menace him in a sequence right out of "Tom & Jerry." The Mini-Ashes ram a fork into Ash's behind, drop a bucket on his head and trip him so his cheek falls flat on sizzling metal. Even after he crushes one, the clone gets the last laugh by puncturing his foot with a nail.

While he's gotten more physically capable, Ash in "Army of Darkness" is also noticeably dimmer than in the first two movies. When he finally retrieves the Necronomicon, he forgets the incantation needed to take it — "Klaatu barada nikto" — and causes the titular undead Army of Darkness to rise. It's not just the universe itself kicking Ash around, he's creating his own problems too.

It takes a bold director to make a film like "Army of Darkness" after starting with a rather normal horror movie like "The Evil Dead." More horror directors could take lessons from the approach of Sam Raimi.