In 1981, Sam Raimi released his first film Bruce Campbell as Ash Williams, the film opens up on the Michigan State University students preparing to enjoy a weekend far from any distractions.
During dinner, the cellar trapdoor opens mysteriously and prompts Ash and Scott go to investigate. In the darkness of the cellar, they discover the Sumerian version of the Book of the Dead alongside an unknown archaeologist's report on the text also known as the Necronomicon. They play the audio recording and as the incantations are spoken aloud, they awaken an ancient demonic entity. Later that night, Cheryl becomes the first victim of the demon’s powers and possession.
What ensues is an all-out battle between humanity and the demons restrained within the Necronomicon who intend on devouring the Earth. As each member of the group becomes possessed, Ash takes on the task of defeating them all. As the Deadites attack him, Ash swiftly throws the book into the fireplace, successfully defeating them. He walks out of the cabin alone only to be attacked by the last remaining entity.
The Evil Dead Popularized Cabin In The Woods Horror Movies
The Evil Dead is one of the most important films in horror history. It successfully captures the fear of isolation, demonic threats, Lovecraftian themes and symbols, and created an entire sub-genre as a result. While Raimi’s film is not the first to feature a cabin in the woods, it did popularize it. Once the film released to theaters, it was an immediate success and other films featuring similar settings began to appear. These films persisted into the early 2000s with Cabin Fever (2002), and Antichrist (2009) took influence.
The film has retained its influence even in the twenty-first century, as the iconic cabin was recreated for the 2011 horror satire The Cabin in the Woods. Furthermore, Evil Dead received the reboot treatment in 2013 by director Fede Álvarez and spawned an all new wave of films that feature cabins in the middle of the woods such as What Keeps You Alive (2018). It is a popular setting in horror as it creates an air of isolation and fear of what lies beyond the dense trees.
Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead is an essential horror film that prompted a plethora of films to take influence from it, whether satire or not. It successfully captured the cabin in the woods setting and turned it into an entire sub-genre within horror with its sequels Army of Darkness (1993).