The Evil Dead
The Evil Dead is a 1981 film from the USA, directed by Sam Raimi, running 85 minutes. reelscum files it under video nasty and splatter.
- Year
- 1981 · 1980s films
- Country
- USA
- Runtime
- 85 min
- Director
- Sam Raimi
- Updated
- 10 Aug 2026
- Obscurity
- canon (1/100)
- Also known as
- Book of the Dead
- Banned in
- UK · West Germany · Finland · Ireland · Iceland · Singapore
Defined in the glossary: Video nasty, Splatter
A DPP video nasty, confiscated in Germany until 2016 and banned outright in Finland, Ireland, Iceland and Singapore.
Prosecuted in Britain. Actually a comedy, though it took years to admit it.
Five friends, a cabin, a Book of the Dead and a tape recorder, and Sam Raimi turning a tiny budget into pure kinetic aggression. The camera flies through the woods, the gore escalates past sense, and the whole thing is shot with an energy that reads now as the debut of a major talent.
It was prosecuted as a video nasty in Britain, which is absurd, because underneath the splatter it is basically a very violent cartoon. Bruce Campbell's Ash has not yet become a comedian, but you can see it coming.
Relentless, inventive, and made by people who clearly could not be stopped.
Trailer
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Where to watch
Legal options in USA
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Written about
- Banned, cut and confiscated
A Fulci print flown out of the country, an Australian rating that just means no, and a German court that filed The Evil Dead under criminal violence. Three states, three machines for making a film disappear.
The cycle in depth
- The Exorcist was banned on video in Britain by one censor
The Exorcist passed uncut for British cinemas in 1974, then had no legal UK video release from 1988 to 1999 because one censor would not certify the tape.
Filed alongside
Maniac
Savini's effects, Spinell's performance, and a very bleak little film.
The Driller Killer
Abel Ferrara's debut. More interesting as a document of downtown New York.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
Almost bloodless, and still the most upsetting film here. The heat is the horror.
Cannibal Holocaust
A serious film about media atrocity that committed real atrocity.
The Evil Dead II
Remake and sequel at once. Raimi discovers slapstick and never looks back.
The Last House on the Left
Bergman's Virgin Spring, brutalised. Genuinely unpleasant and knows it. Tonally a mess.
Dawn of the Dead
A shopping mall, four survivors, and Savini's finest hour.
Day of the Dead
The bleakest Romero. Bub is the only sympathetic character in it.
Braindead
Jackson before the trilogy. The lawnmower scene ends the argument.
Re-Animator
Where the effects and the writing finally matched. Jeffrey Combs is perfect.
I Spit on Your Grave
The most argued-about film on this site. Read the glossary entry before deciding.
The Hills Have Eyes
Craven's meanest. The suburban family turn out to be the better killers.