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Evil Dead Companion
Sam Raimi's The Evil Dead achieved instant, lasting cult status back in 1982 for its gleeful splatter effects and gruesome gallows humour. Film historian Bill Warren has had unlimited access to the Evil Dead archives, and takes us behind the scenes to look at how Raimi and his enthusiastic crew created a modern horror classic, revolutionising the independent film industry. Warren goes on to examine the making of the two sequels, the bigger-budgeted The Evil Dead 2 and the epic Army of Darkness, and the ever-increasing popularity of the Evil Dead trilogy.
272 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
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576 people want to read
About the author
Bill Warren
40 books3 followersBill Warren was an American film historian and critic, one of the leading authorities on science fiction, horror, and fantasy films.
Librarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Librarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
September 20, 2008
Scorsese might be my God. But Raimi is my spirit animal.
June 6, 2013
While not initially a very financially successful franchise, "The Evil Dead" trilogy is probably the most influential film series in history, second only to "Star Wars." Countless filmmakers who started in horror and moved on to bigger, better films cite Sam Raimi and "The Evil Dead" as influences. Even established horror directors working at the time these films were made were influenced by them. Countless imitators followed in their wake, including professional releases as well as student film homages. While the core of this book is the behind the scenes stories about the struggles each film had, be it finding financing or battling the elements/the locals during filming or finding distributors or getting caught in a fight between their financier and a big name studio, it is also just the simple story of a group of friends from high school and college who made a movie purely out of the love of making movies that would change all of their lives forever. Since there were years between the three movies, there were also other movies made, to varying degrees of success, and exactly how they learned from these experiences is just as fascinating a tale as the story behind the trilogy. The entire book is an inspirational tale of how a few dreams and a lot of ingenuity can pay off in the end.
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April 11, 2017Just cool.
March 27, 2008
Anything you've ever wanted to know about the Evil Dead and the folks who created it. A must-read for any self-respecting Sam Raimi or Bruce Campbell fan.
February 14, 2020
An amazing book covering the creation, filming, post production and everything in between one of the greatest horror films of all time. A no brainer if you're an Evil Dead or Bruce Campbell fan.
February 20, 2017
Thoroughly comprehensive, this is a fascinating look behind the Evil Dead story, taking in the lives of its protagonists (essentially, biographies of the Raimi boys, Bruce Campbell and Rob Tapert). Starting with them at school and joining forces as they got older, this is full of detail about the filming and the aftermath. Honest, funny and a sheer joy to read, this is a great resource and highly recommended.
October 11, 2017
Adoro leituras sobre bastidores, principalmente de obras cinematográficas. Evil Dead é um dos meus filmes favoritos, Sam Raimi e Bruce Campbell são pessoas que fazem parte da minha infância e contribuíram para meu amor por cinema, então eu sou a pior pessoa pra dar uma opinião imparcial sobre este livro. Talvez meu único problema seja a forma hiperbólica que o autor fala do Raimi algumas vezes, mas até eu falaria dele com tamanha disposição.
February 6, 2016
If you're an Evil Dead fan than you will love it. Tons of detailed background on the making of the 3 movies, plus a blow by blow of each film with lots of comments from Bruce Campbell about the scenes as they played out (essentially a DVD commentary in a book). Awesome stuff!
September 1, 2018
It's dated in terms of updates (it even postulates if there will ever be a fourth movie), but it was written in 2000 so that's ok. In terms of behind the scenes and trivia this is great. A must read for any ED fan.
September 1, 2012
Worth reading.
September 22, 2018
Somente para fãs.
August 20, 2018
This book contains everything you’d want to know about the Evil Dead movies. Full of interviews, behind the scenes photos and more, it’s a must own for fans!
December 5, 2018
Excellent addition to the movies, TV Series, top book
March 16, 2021
An excellent primer on the making of the Evil Dead trilogy (THE EVIL DEAD, EVIL DEAD II: DEAD BY DAWN, ARMY OF DARKNESS), hands-down the most innovative and entertaining horror film series in the history of U.S. cinema. The improbable journey of director Sam Raimi, producer Rob Tapert and actor Bruce Campbell, the driving force behind the movies, is reported in loving detail by Bill Warren, a true fan of the genre.
The first half of the book is dedicated to the DIY low-budget spatter-fest spectacular THE EVIL DEAD, which is a tour-de-force of inspired camera work and clever production techniques mixed with amateur (but not amateurish) acting and homemade set designs. The story of young men and women trapped in an isolated cabin in the woods with invisible evil spirits has been copied dozens of times but never equaled.
In preparation for the film, Raimi shot test footage on Super-8mm and blew it up to 16mm, but it was a disastrous early misstep. They fared better with the 32-minute short film WITHIN THE WOODS, which provided a template for the full-length movie and a product to show potential investors. I watched WTW for the first time while reading this book. The best version that I located on YouTube was badly-dubbed from a glitchy VHS tape. Raimi needs to upload a better copy on the web to help preserve his legacy and provide a roadmap for future filmmakers working on shoestring budgets.
The six-week location shoot in Tennessee in autumn 1979 turned into a twelve-week endurance test with many interesting incidents, including visits from bootleggers and redneck squatters and getting kicked out of their rented home to make room for a brothel. Most of the crew eventually defected and returned home to Michigan, including the entire cast minus star Bruce Campbell. The production persevered nevertheless, and Raimi ended up shooting more than 100,000 feet of 16mm film. He enlisted pro industry editor Edna Ruth Paul to help splice the film together, ably assisted by future auteur film director Joel Coen.
The working title of the first film during principal photography was THE BOOK OF THE DEAD, which persisted all the way to the world premiere on October 15, 1981 at the Redford Theater in Detroit, MI. Irvin Shapiro, whom they hired to negotiate the distribution and foreign film rights, asked them to change the name to THE EVIL DEAD MEN AND THE EVIL DEAD WOMEN, a shortened version of which eventually became the now-famous title. Other titles bandied about at the time included FE-MONSTERS, BLOOD FLOOD, A HUNDRED AND ONE PERCENT DEAD, and THESE BITCHES ARE WITCHES.
The author perfectly describes the joys of the first film thusly:
“Seeing THE EVIL DEAD for the first time today simply cannot have the impact it did back in 1983. There have been too many rivers of gore to cross, too many mountains of entrails, too many gouged eyes, lopped-off heads, hands and legs for it to bug eyes and gag throats the way it did back then. Yet there’s no doubt that the intensity of its violence is what gave the film its initial reputation as one of the great dare movies…did you have the nerve to sit through it without squirming? It was a funhouse ride, a spook-tunnel, all the Halloweens of all time wrapped up into one movie.”
The second half of The Evil Dead Companion describes the making of the two sequels for producer Dino De Laurentiis, whose hands-off approach allowed Raimi and his cohorts to make the movies they wanted with no compromises other than the limitations of the budget. Narratively, EVIL DEAD II is basically a remake of the first film with a bigger budget and a more experienced crew. From a filmmaker’s perspective, it is one of the most iconic films ever made—a genuine tour-de-force. The unusual shots, pans, zooms, wipes and hard cuts combined with surrealistic special effects create a cinema experience second-to-none. This unique combination of slapstick comedy and splatter/gore effects led to the coining of the term “splat-stick.”
And while ARMY OF DARKNESS is no masterpiece, the combination of comedy and fantasy is truly one-of-a-kind. Think the best parts of a Ray Harryhausen sword-and-sorcery epic mixed with the Three Stooges and the Walking Dead, and you’re only halfway there. The unused original ending, where Bruce Campbell’s character oversleeps and awakes in post-apocalyptic London, restored in a later director’s cut, gets bonus points for sheer hilarity.
The first half of the book is dedicated to the DIY low-budget spatter-fest spectacular THE EVIL DEAD, which is a tour-de-force of inspired camera work and clever production techniques mixed with amateur (but not amateurish) acting and homemade set designs. The story of young men and women trapped in an isolated cabin in the woods with invisible evil spirits has been copied dozens of times but never equaled.
In preparation for the film, Raimi shot test footage on Super-8mm and blew it up to 16mm, but it was a disastrous early misstep. They fared better with the 32-minute short film WITHIN THE WOODS, which provided a template for the full-length movie and a product to show potential investors. I watched WTW for the first time while reading this book. The best version that I located on YouTube was badly-dubbed from a glitchy VHS tape. Raimi needs to upload a better copy on the web to help preserve his legacy and provide a roadmap for future filmmakers working on shoestring budgets.
The six-week location shoot in Tennessee in autumn 1979 turned into a twelve-week endurance test with many interesting incidents, including visits from bootleggers and redneck squatters and getting kicked out of their rented home to make room for a brothel. Most of the crew eventually defected and returned home to Michigan, including the entire cast minus star Bruce Campbell. The production persevered nevertheless, and Raimi ended up shooting more than 100,000 feet of 16mm film. He enlisted pro industry editor Edna Ruth Paul to help splice the film together, ably assisted by future auteur film director Joel Coen.
The working title of the first film during principal photography was THE BOOK OF THE DEAD, which persisted all the way to the world premiere on October 15, 1981 at the Redford Theater in Detroit, MI. Irvin Shapiro, whom they hired to negotiate the distribution and foreign film rights, asked them to change the name to THE EVIL DEAD MEN AND THE EVIL DEAD WOMEN, a shortened version of which eventually became the now-famous title. Other titles bandied about at the time included FE-MONSTERS, BLOOD FLOOD, A HUNDRED AND ONE PERCENT DEAD, and THESE BITCHES ARE WITCHES.
The author perfectly describes the joys of the first film thusly:
“Seeing THE EVIL DEAD for the first time today simply cannot have the impact it did back in 1983. There have been too many rivers of gore to cross, too many mountains of entrails, too many gouged eyes, lopped-off heads, hands and legs for it to bug eyes and gag throats the way it did back then. Yet there’s no doubt that the intensity of its violence is what gave the film its initial reputation as one of the great dare movies…did you have the nerve to sit through it without squirming? It was a funhouse ride, a spook-tunnel, all the Halloweens of all time wrapped up into one movie.”
The second half of The Evil Dead Companion describes the making of the two sequels for producer Dino De Laurentiis, whose hands-off approach allowed Raimi and his cohorts to make the movies they wanted with no compromises other than the limitations of the budget. Narratively, EVIL DEAD II is basically a remake of the first film with a bigger budget and a more experienced crew. From a filmmaker’s perspective, it is one of the most iconic films ever made—a genuine tour-de-force. The unusual shots, pans, zooms, wipes and hard cuts combined with surrealistic special effects create a cinema experience second-to-none. This unique combination of slapstick comedy and splatter/gore effects led to the coining of the term “splat-stick.”
And while ARMY OF DARKNESS is no masterpiece, the combination of comedy and fantasy is truly one-of-a-kind. Think the best parts of a Ray Harryhausen sword-and-sorcery epic mixed with the Three Stooges and the Walking Dead, and you’re only halfway there. The unused original ending, where Bruce Campbell’s character oversleeps and awakes in post-apocalyptic London, restored in a later director’s cut, gets bonus points for sheer hilarity.
December 26, 2025
Tive de ver os dois primeiros filmes para ler esse aqui que veio juntinho com o livro sobre O massacre da serra elétrica, mas foi o bastante. Não é o meu tipo de filme de horror. Arriscaria dizer que o único mérito dessa trilogia do Sam Raimi é ter feito os filmes com muitos efeitos na base da criatividade, claro que para quem gosta desse tipo de humor... não é o meu caso. Dito isso, o livro é bem apologético ao talento de Raimi, demais até, chega a ser chato, sem falar em algumas comparações absurdas: Bruce Campbell como sendo mais arrojado que Kyle MacLachlan. Os três últimos capítulos com a descrição, cena a cena, dos três filmes é um desafio para o leitor mais contido. Enfim, é um livro para quem realmente venera essa série.
June 12, 2022
if you are more than a casual evil dead fan, you've gotta read this book. everything you could ever wanna know. before i became a reader, horror movies were "my thing" and evil dead was at the top of the list. i found out this book was a thing and it became the first non-goosebumps book i ever bought brand new on release day.
November 23, 2025
As a big fan of horror movies and individually. Sam brami, Bruce Campbell and The Evil Dead franchise. This was a favourite read for trains and buses. I've read it multiple times and I still read it to this day despite having the book for at least 2 decades now.
December 10, 2018
Una lettura davvero "Groovy"! Warren è uno dei massimi esperti di Evil Dead.
July 12, 2022
Really enjoyed the history within this book, a bit I already knew so wasn't totally in awe
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 21, 2025
One of the best movie books that I have personally read. Lots of great recollections and behind the scenes stories.
December 15, 2020
Evil Dead é de longe meu filme favorito, não somente pela direção inovadora e característica de Sam Raimi e a atuação cômica e brilhante de Bruce Campbell, mas por tudo que podemos ler neste livro/making-of. Falta de recursos, desgaste da equipe, falta de dinheiro e investidores, obrigaram Raimi usar toda sua criatividade e persistência para lanças um dos filmes de Terror Trash mais influentes da história. É notório ver que os grande pilares de Evil Dead foram a Persistência e a Amizade.
September 3, 2016
Até o começo desse ano eu tinha uma tremenda falha de caráter: nunca tinha assistido a trilogia Evil Dead. O empurrão que eu precisava veio através do livro Evil Dead: Arquivos Mortos, escrito por Bill Warren e transformado numa linda edição de luxo pela Darkside Books.
Bill Warren, esse danado crítico de cinema, conseguiu reunir documentos, entrevistas e muitas, muitas, muitas informações sobre Sam Raimi, o diretor e roteirista da série de filmes, dos produtores Bruce Campbell e Rob Tapert, sobre a criação desses filmes e também sobre os desenvolvimentos de hoje da obra, que ganhou um musical e um remake.
Com imagens raras de backstage e cheia de curiosidades, a leitura agarra nossa atenção, narrando os mais diversos contratempos sofridos na produção, desde atrizes machucadas no bosque, estranhos bêbados que apareciam na locação e homens de peruca atuando no lugares de atrizes que abandonaram a gravação.
É um livro que julguei pela capa e o resultado foi bem melhor que a expectativa. Termino o mês de fevereiro não só com um livro lido, mas também tendo finalmente assistido clássicos que criaram escola ao juntar terror gore e comédia. Recomendo muito, para todos quem curtem a trilogia original ou tem interesse em produções cinematográficas.
Resenha publicada primeiramente no meu blog Coisas Horrorosas.
Bill Warren, esse danado crítico de cinema, conseguiu reunir documentos, entrevistas e muitas, muitas, muitas informações sobre Sam Raimi, o diretor e roteirista da série de filmes, dos produtores Bruce Campbell e Rob Tapert, sobre a criação desses filmes e também sobre os desenvolvimentos de hoje da obra, que ganhou um musical e um remake.
Com imagens raras de backstage e cheia de curiosidades, a leitura agarra nossa atenção, narrando os mais diversos contratempos sofridos na produção, desde atrizes machucadas no bosque, estranhos bêbados que apareciam na locação e homens de peruca atuando no lugares de atrizes que abandonaram a gravação.
É um livro que julguei pela capa e o resultado foi bem melhor que a expectativa. Termino o mês de fevereiro não só com um livro lido, mas também tendo finalmente assistido clássicos que criaram escola ao juntar terror gore e comédia. Recomendo muito, para todos quem curtem a trilogia original ou tem interesse em produções cinematográficas.
Resenha publicada primeiramente no meu blog Coisas Horrorosas.
May 20, 2018
you can be so gloriously p**sed off with everyone and everything you walk into a Virgin Megastore (them were the days) on Piccadilly think i want to get the most horrible trashiest nastiest thing I could buy (a VHS, the one with the skull cover) this was before the internet and film4 and evil dead 2 pul sated like the book of the dead (the necronomicon ex-mortis) and after being totally blown away with the awesome and genius-ness of the thing and something you can return to and it never lets you down it lays in a way dormant for a while until in a bookshop you see the hand grasping up into the air and you realise someone wrote a book on the making of the evil dead trilogy (this was still way before the 2013 film and the Starz series) and you think maybe this could somehow or in some way mar your experience of The Ultimate Experience In Grueling Terror.
However.
There's the 16mm-ness. The karo syrup. The cold. How, sure, Kubrick could do it with a steadicam, we can strap a camera to a plank of wood on the front of a motorbike and film it that way. A photo of the guys and their gear, out in the woods? There's some water. Why not a photo of us standing in the water? If we kneel down, it'll look like we're waist deep in the water.
That, to me, illustrates the type of brilliant inventiveness that made the Evil Deads, no less incredible knowing how it was done and very well documented in this book.
However.
There's the 16mm-ness. The karo syrup. The cold. How, sure, Kubrick could do it with a steadicam, we can strap a camera to a plank of wood on the front of a motorbike and film it that way. A photo of the guys and their gear, out in the woods? There's some water. Why not a photo of us standing in the water? If we kneel down, it'll look like we're waist deep in the water.
That, to me, illustrates the type of brilliant inventiveness that made the Evil Deads, no less incredible knowing how it was done and very well documented in this book.
June 10, 2010
A very inviting and entertaining look into the grandaddy of all horror series "The Evil Dead." Bill Warren gives the reader a behind the scenes look into the world of Sam Raimi and how "the Ultimate Experience in Grueling Horror" came to be from the ground up. It also gives a very informative view on the famed director, it's principal actor (Bruce Campbell) and the other key players (Robert Tapert, Scott Speigel, etc.) that came together to bring these cult classics to life. Although interesting and descriptive, the author seems to loose the reader at points glossing over certain scenes or effects even actors important to the films deciding instead to go into lengthy descriptions of certain camera angles or technical lingo that leave you scanning through several paragraphs just to get back to the point at hand. The only saving grace of that minor annoyance is the occassional commentary by Raimi himself or Bruce who add their input on the making of the films throughout this historical and biographical book. Mixed with on set pictures and some hilarious interviews "Evil Dead Companion" is well worth the read, fan or not.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 30, 2007
I haven't finished the book because it reads like a poorly written history text, which is why it gets a poor review. If ever I plod all the way through perhaps I will update my rating.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews