Evil Dead Burn
Fantasy
Review: ‘Evil Dead Burn’ is a Gloriously Gruesome and Gory Sequel that Lives Up to the ‘Evil Dead’ Name
July 9, 2026Ben MK
|
It may have started as a low-budget student film in 1978, but the Evil Dead franchise has come a long way from its humble beginnings. Thanks to its star, Bruce Campbell, and its director, Sam Raimi, The Evil Dead and its two sequels, Evil Dead II and Army of Darkness, helped shape the horror genre into what it is today. And with his 2013 Evil Dead reboot, director Fede Alvarez helped pave the way for a new generation of horror filmmakers to reinvent the series for modern-day moviegoers. Now, three years after Lee Cronin's Evil Dead Rise terrified audiences, it's director Sébastien Vanicek's turn to resurrect the infamous Deadites for another blood-soaked thrill ride. But does the franchise's tried-and-true chamber piece formula still deliver all the bone-chilling scares nearly five decades later? Alice (Souheila Yacoub) moved to America from France when she married her husband, Will (George Pullar). However, after years of running a restaurant together, the stress has taken its toll, and Will is no longer the man she once so wholeheartedly committed her life to. The situation has gotten so bad that Alice has even considered divorcing her husband, on account of his explosive temper and propensity for physical violence. Before she can make good on those threats, though, Will dies in a fiery car accident, leaving Alice to fend for herself against the passive aggressive attacks from her in-laws, Susan (Tandi Wright) and Edgar (Erroll Shand). An older brother to aspiring writer Joseph (Hunter Doohan), Will has always been the apple of his parents' eyes. So, after their eldest son's death, both Susan and Edgar can't help but feel some resentment towards Alice. And as Will's family, along with Alice and Joseph's girlfriend, Thya (Luciane Buchanan), gather to mourn Will, tensions will inevitably boil over — especially considering the family's ties to the Book of the Dead. It was decades ago that Will and Joseph's archaeologist grandfather, Benjamin, first discovered the Necronomicon, unearthing in the process the age-old battle between the demon-worshipping cultists who created it and the Circle of Wise Men, an opposing faction dedicated to stopping the Deadites from wreaking havoc on Earth. What none of Benjamin's descendants know, however, is that he also stumbled upon a very unique weapon — a Kandarian dagger capable of sending these Deadites back to Hell. And now that Joseph has been sifting through his grandfather's belongings as part of his research for his new book, the Deadites will stop at nothing to obtain the weapon, possessing the family members one by one — even Will's one-legged, senile grandmother, Polly (Maude Davey) — in an attempt to prevent it from being used against them. Will Alice's stubborn refusal to succumb to the Book of the Dead's curse be enough to give her the advantage over her demonic aggressors? Or will she ultimately end up being dead by dawn, like so many of the Deadites' other victims? With no shortage of blood-splattered carnage, ghastly grotesquerie and gruesome violence, the result is arguably the goriest and most nightmare-inducing entry in the series thus far. That said, despite the movie's overall morose and dark tone, Vanicek and co-writer Florent Bernard still manage to work in a handful of darkly humorous moments to help bring some levity to the proceedings and cut the tension. Make no mistake, just like 2013's Evil Dead and 2023's Evil Dead Rise, Evil Dead Burn is a far cry from the increasingly comedic and more slapstick tone of the first three films. Still, for fans of Raimi's original trilogy, there's nonetheless plenty of similarities between this latest installment and the movies that came before it, right down to the instrumental role played by a chainsaw — or, in this case, a weed-whacker — during the chaos of the climactic final act. Throw in some gnarly camera moves that even the most seasoned cinephile will appreciate, and you have the makings of a crowd-pleasing horror sequel that has no business being nearly as good as it is. After all, it's exceptionally rare for a franchise — especially in this genre — to maintain more or less the same level of quality this many entries in. Yet, here we are — and while Evil Dead Burn doesn't quite top the series-pinnacle that is Evil Dead II, it's still a groovy reminder of what makes this series so iconic. Evil Dead Burn releases July 10th, 2026 from Warner Bros. Pictures. The film has an MPAA rating of R for strong bloody horror violence and gore, and language. Its runtime is 1 hr. 50 min. |
0 comments