Oh baby, do we have a groovy movie to talk about today! I love Army of Darkness, it is my favorite of the original three Evil Dead movies and it was the first movie in the franchise I saw. I remember paying to go and see a movie with a couple of friends when we were kids and then sneaking into Army of Darkness instead.
How to Download Army of Darkness
You can download or stream the film from a digital platform. Click on the Download button at the end of this review and make your choice.
The Movie Review
While Evil Dead II was not a sequel to the original Evil Dead, Army of Darkness is an actual follow-up to the events of Evil Dead II. This movie is more of the comedy/horror stuff that we had in Evil Dead II, but they add a sprinkle of fantasy to the movie here which I think worked very well.
After the events of Evil Dead II, Ash finds himself in England during the Middle Ages. The people who find him mistake him as a spy for a man called Duke Henry, an enemy of King Arthur. They take Ash to the castle where they plan to make an example of him and Henry.
They throw Ash into a pit with a Deadite, but rather than being torn to pieces, Ash kicks the Deadites ass and people are in awe of him and see him as a hero. Ash in Army of Darkness is my favorite incarnation of Ash, he is just so much fun and just so enjoyable to watch no matter what he is doing.
This castle has a wise man who tells Ash that if he gets the Necronomicon (Book of the Dead) and resists the right three words, he will be transported back to his time. Ash makes the journey to where the Necronomicon is held as he plans to spend no time here at all!
In typical Ash fashion, he messes up the last of the three words and this results in a demonic evil force being unleashed on the land! The scene with the mini Ashes and the evil double Ash is my favorite scene out of the entire original Evil Dead trilogy. This is Bruce Campbell as Ash at his absolute best!
Ash mistakenly thinks he is ok and heads back to the castle, but his evil doppelganger is not dead and is ready for war with King Arthur and his men. Now, Ash does not have time for this war (even though he caused it). However, Ashe took a liking to a lady at the castle and she is captured by the Deadites so he will lead the fight against them.
Army of Darkness is so much fun from start to end. It has that classic Evil Dead style and thanks to the higher budget, it is the best-looking movie from the original trilogy. I laugh every time I see this movie and it is a movie I usually watch at least once a year.
One of the most interesting things about Army of Darkness is the ending as there are two of them. I have to say that I am not a huge fan of the non-happy ending and I can see why they changed it. Still, if you have this on DVD, Blu Ray or even 4K, you have to watch both endings! While I would say watching Evil Dead II then this is a must, you can watch and enjoy this without watching Evil Dead II.
