HEFE'S REVIEW OF:
ARMY OF DARKNESS (1993)

OPENING THOUGHTS

    This movie is not for everyone, but dammit it should be! This is one of the most unique movies I have ever had the pleasure of seeing. It manages to combine horror, time-traveling, slapstick and special effects ten-years behind it's time all in one package! If you have gone your whole life without seeing this movie up to this point, I think it may be a time to take a good, long, hard look in the mirror and really think about your life choices so far. Then, of course watch the movie.

ACTING

    BRUCE CAMPBELL is classy as shit in this film. He plays Ash, and he is the truest reluctant hero of all-time, butt-chin and all. In all honesty he is not that great of an actor, but I would not have replaced him with anyone else. His flair for the ridiculous and cartoon face add something special to the character and to the movie. Whenever I watch this movie I feel like I am watching the best made student film of all time. If you are ever looking for a fun read you should check out Campbell's biography If Chins Could Kill. It is a nice litte distraction, just like this is a fun little character.
    EMBETH DAVIDTZ had quite the year in 1993, first she starred in this film, and then in Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List. Possibly the two most different movies you could ever conceive of. She plays the part adequately, her acting is probably a little bit better than Campbell's, but it was not nearly as enjoyable. I would have preferred a huge tittied damsel in distress with lots of nude scenes. But hey, that is just me.
    THE SUPPORTING CAST was pretty small. You had a knight with possibly the worst haircut I have ever seen, a blacksmith with one of the coolest mustaches I have ever seen, and merlin. That is pretty much it. None of them did anything worth mentioning, so I won't.

DIRECTION AND SCRIPT

    SAM RAIMI and IVAN RAIMI wrote this movie with Sam using his other hand to direct. This movie could easily be listed in the dictionary next to the word cheesy. But you know what, I love cheese. There I said it. Nothing about this movie was made to be believable, nothing was ever even attempted to be explained. This movie is what it is, a series of ridiculous events that are a blast to watch. If you expect anything more from this movie other than a good-time you will be violently disappointed. If you like the idea of time traveling back to the dark ages with an Oldsmobile, fighting an army of Three Stooges themed skeletons, and seeing Bruce Campbell fight several smaller versions of himself as much as I do then watch this movie.

THE VERDICT

    This movie's beauty is it's simplicity. Don't worry about having to think with this one, just worry about enjoying it. I recommend watching this the first time in the dark with a group of friends and an enormous goblet of alcohol. If you watch this movie under those circumstances and somehow manage not to enjoy it, then I would venture to guess that you need therapy.
 
 

RATING: B

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