7.8 | / 10 |
Users | 4.9 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Ash is accidentally transported to 1300 A.D. and must save the living from the dead, rescue his medieval girlfriend and get back to his own time.
Starring: Bruce Campbell, Embeth Davidtz, Marcus Gilbert, Ian Abercrombie, Richard GroveHorror | 100% |
Supernatural | 31% |
Dark humor | 27% |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Fantasy | Insignificant |
Action | Insignificant |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1, 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Three-disc set (3 BDs)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 5.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Fans will of course know this little nugget, but for the uninitiated, according to the often hilarious commentary that’s included on the Director’s Cut of the new Shout! Factory release of Army of Darkness, if Sam Raimi had had his way, this follow up to The Evil Dead and Evil Dead II: Dead by Dawn would have been titled (wait for it) — The Medieval Dead. That perhaps groan worthy pun is nevertheless a near perfect indicator not just of this third film’s setting, but perhaps more importantly of Raimi’s own insouciant approach toward this often silly and flat out goofy trilogy. Both of the first two Evil Dead films told at least somewhat the same story, with hero Ash Williams (Bruce Campbell) encountering a bit of mayhem in The Cabin in the Woods (so to speak), with a horde of nasty ghouls unleashed through some infelicitous recitations from the Necronomicon. Army of Darkness picks up where Evil Dead 2 left off, with Ash unceremoniously dumped into the Middle Ages, and left to deal not just with a kind of Walking Dead infestation of monsters called Deadites, but with a coterie of knights and one very special lady who are understandably a bit confused to see a guy who claims to be from the future tooling around with a chainsaw in the place of one hand and a shotgun at the ready in the other. Army of Darkness continues the lunatic proclivities of the first two Evil Dead films, and in fact probably takes them to even more extreme levels of wackiness, with a number of bonkers set pieces that reference everything from the iconic work of Ray Harryhausen to Gulliver's Travels to The Three Stooges.
Army of Darkness is presented on Blu-ray by Scream Factory, an imprint of Shout! Factory, with AVC encoded 1080p transfers on all
three
of the "major" cuts included on this release (the television version is offered in not very great looking upscaled 1080i). For those who were
less
than pleased with the problematic Screwhead Edition from
Universal, most if not quite all of the issues with that version have been addressed on this new release, but there is at least one new
anomaly on one of the versions in this set which Shout! has commendably been quick to address. That (admittedly) small glitch occurs
at
circa 28:00 in the Theatrical Version, where a second or two of footage of Ash jumping over a small stone wall is missing, between Ash
tumbling
down a hill and a wide shot of him running panicked toward a windmill, leading to a very brief audio sync issue. Shout! has already
announced that replacement discs alleviating this issue will be in the pipeline and delivered to consumers in November. (You can see the
missing
snippet at circa 29:53 in the Director's Cut and at circa 30:05 in the International Cut.) With that pesky
irritant out of the way, how does video quality fare otherwise? Mostly excellently, it turns out, though there are some fluctuations both
between
the various versions and even within them at times. The International Cut has reportedly been sourced from a new 4K scan of the IP, and this
version offers what is probably the most consistently organic looking of the set, with a nicely controlled grain field and good reproduction of
the
palette. There are still occasional issues with crush in dark scenes, and certain sequences like Ash's feast after his initial showdown over "the
pit", look noticeably softer and grainier than the bulk of the presentation (as in fact this same sequence does in all the versions).
While Shout's press materials don't actually mention this, it's been proffered that the Theatrical Version of the film also utilizes the sections
from the International Cut it shares culled from the 4K source, interspersed with the more problematic moments that were supposedly sourced
from the original (problematic) Universal release. One way or the other, grain is more variable in the Theatrical Version, with opticals showing
some (understandably) pretty chunky and yellowish textures. As with all the versions, sharpness is somewhat variable at times, too, again
easily noticeable in such sequences as the feast after the initial pit scene. The harsh digital appearance of the Screwhead Edition is thankfully
largely absent here (minus occasional ringing), and the color timing is also more natural and less yellow looking. The Director's Cut appears to
have slightly lower contrast than its siblings, but overall the image retains a healthy patina, with generally excellent grain resolution (again, a
slight tendency toward yellow splotchiness arises in the many opticals in the film).
Note: Screenshots 1-20 are from the Theatrical Version, screenshots 21-25 are from the Director's Cut and screenshots 26-30 are from
the International Cut. I tried to provide several approximations of the screenshots included in Martin Liebman's review of the previous Universal Blu-ray, as well as providing at least an
example or two
of the same moment from all three versions.
All three films in this Collector's Edition of Army of Darkness sport DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 2.0 tracks. The surround tracks exploit a lot of immersion in the wacky effects sequences, where the cartoonish ambience becomes even more exaggerated courtesy of the often ridiculous (and quite funny) sound effects. There are occasional boxy sounding moments, like in the Gulliver's Travels sequence where Ash is attacked by all the mini-Ashes. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly on all three films, and is always well prioritized. Dynamic range is also very wide on all three versions.
Disc One:
You pretty much just have to surrender to the patent lunacy of Army of Darkness, but if you do, chances are you'll have a rollicking good time, one that keeps the adrenaline fueled substantially while also delivering a lot of admittedly juvenile but just plain laugh out loud humor. This new Shout! release may not be absolutely perfect, but it's an incredibly solid effort with a lot to celebrate, including a glut of supplements. Highly recommended.
Screwhead Edition
1992
Evil Dead 3 / The Huntsman: Winter's War Fandango Cash
1992
1992
First 1000 Limited Edition w/ Lithograph
1992
Limited Edition
1992
Collector's Edition | Theatrical in 4K
1992
Collector's Edition | Includes Enamel Pin Set+Exclusive Poster
1992
Includes Enamel Pin+Exclusive Poster
1992
SteelBook + Collector's Edition | Includes 2 Posters + Enamel Pin Set
1992
Evil Dead II: Dead by Dawn
1987
2015-2017
Braindead | Unrated US Cut
1992
1992
2013
Limited | Theatrical 4K / Unrated BD
2005
1987
Premutos - Der gefallene Engel | Extended Director's Cut
1997
20th Anniversary
2004
1963
2014
1988
10th Anniversary Edition
2009
1989
1986
Død snø 2
2014
2011
15th Anniversary Edition
1996
Standard Edition
2022
2000