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- Evil Dead - Book of the Dead Edition -  UK DVD - 

There are not many films that have courted as much controversy, nor have as
many versions of, than this film.
They range from heavily cut versions, poor picture, sound adequate, or a decent
picture and sound but no extra's to warrant the price of the DVD.
There has yet to be a definitive version. By far, this version must be it.
Not to be confused with any previous releases of "The Evil Dead", this is 
the very special and very limited "Book of the Dead" edition.
But before we get ahead of ourselves, here is a brief synopsis of the film 
for those that have yet to see any version of the movie. Now stop laughing at
the back, there are still a few who have never experienced the terrors of this
horror masterpiece. 
So, for all you "Evil Dead virgins", here we go.
A group of four friends travel to a log cabin in the middle of nowhere which 
they have rented for a holiday. Once there, they find a cellar.
Deciding to explore it they discover a strange knife, an even stranger book 
and an old tape recorder complete with tape. Playing the tape, they hear the 
voice of a professor who stayed at the cabin previously. The Professor speaks
about the book they've found. He calls it the "Necronomicon Ex Mortis" or "Book
of the Dead" which is said to be "bound in human flesh and inked in human blood, 
the book contains incantations and funeral rites". It opens gateways that should
remain closed, gateways that allow the "deadites" to come forth into this world
and possess the living. As the tape plays, it recites some of the passages from
the book and of course, the inevitable happens. 
Not though, in the way you would expect. In fact, nothing about this film is 
predictable. 
From the way it was filmed to the gore effects and techniques used, believe me, 
there are many gore effects used. Many of which had never been used before when 
this was filmed. Over 20 years later, most still stand up today. 
The way the camera moves and the angles it shows have been copied by many filmakers
but none have ever been able to utilse them to the extent that this movie classic
does. 
They help build up the atmosphere better than any other film you'll see and as
such, scare the living hell out of you. Many times I have watched this film, 
even though I now know what's going to happen next, I never fail to jump out of 
my skin. 
As I said earlier though, there has been many versions but not one has really 
done the film any real justice. They have been cut, had muffled sound, or the 
backgrounds colours were too drab. There has always been something wrong.
Finally though, Anchor Bay released it uncut and remastered on DVD. But, there
were no extra's. 
Now, as a very limited edition, they have re-released it, not as just another 
cheap rip off copy though with just a couple of extra's. Oh hell no! They've 
made it an essential purchase, even if you already own a previous copy, you will
want this "Book of the Dead" Edition.
So, why is it called "The Book of the Dead" edition and what makes it so special?
Well, firstly, as soon as you see the DVD in it's packaging, you know it is 
obviously going to be something very special. It's not in a normal DVD case, 
that would be too simple and ordinary and they wanted this to be special, instead,
it's actually housed in an exact replica of the infamous "Book of the Dead" 
itself, complete with 16 pages replicated straight from the film. If you know how,
you can even decipher the writing inside. 
Once you get over this shock and open it up, you notice that inside front cover
is a booklet called "Bringing the Dead Home For Dinner - A History of the Evil 
Dead in your Home" which gives you exactly what the title says, a history lesson
on the movie. 
Now, the moment you've all been waiting for, we've covered the housing, what 
about the disc itself?
Putting the disc on, you are greeted with some stylish animated menu's.
The film itself is the full, unedited version, it contains all the gore that
was originally cut out and the notorious "tree rape" scene is completely intact.
The print is in it's original widescreen presentation (1.85:1) enhanced for 16X9
TV's. 
The audio comes in either Dolby Digital Surround Ex, DTS ES, Dolby Surround 2.0, 
French Dolby Digital 5.1 and French Dolby Surround 2.0 
Watching the film is like a dream come true for die hard fans like myself.
The picture looks brand new, colors are vibrant and clear and the sound is 
outstanding. Mixed all together and that famous atmosphere is built up like 
never before. 
Now for the extra's that have been missing from other versions. 
Most fans have been begging for an audio commentary with writer/director Sam 
Raimi and producer Robert Tapert on previous DVD incarnations but never got it, 
well rejoice because here not only do you get that, you also get a second one
from Bruce Campbell.
There's some behind the scenes footage and outtakes. A 26 minute brand new
documentary hosted by Bruce Campbell entitled "Fanalysis". A brand new featurette
tracing the films history called "Discovering Evil Dead". Theatrical trailer, 
TV spots, poster and stills gallery, talent bios and finally 2 hidden DVD easter
eggs. This as I have said is THE definitive and only version you will ever need
to own. There is but one downfall, Sam Raimi first shot a 30 minute film, 
"Within The Woods", which was the basis for "The Evil Dead" and was used to 
show to potential investors to raise money so "The Evil Dead" could be filmed.
This was to be included but was dropped from this disc at the last minute, 
for still, unknown reasons. 
Apart from that small gripe though, this is the closest to perfect as this film
will ever get. Although now, you may have trouble finding it as it was deleted
mere months after it's release, such was it's limited availability, it is however
worth the effort of finding. A good place to look is "E-Bay" which is where I 
came across my copy, still sealed and for a reasonable price.

Reviewed By Dracula

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