This week on The Collision, we talk about violence: its appeal, its execution, its affect, and its acceptance. This all ties in with the release of Fede Alvarez‘ gruesome remake of Evil Dead. As always, we finish up with our recommendations.

Click here to listen to the new episode of The Collision, click here for the previous episode (“Film Criticism and Room 237“), click here to add the podcast to your RSS, and click here to find us on iTunes. To keep up to date with The Collision, you can follow us on Twitter at @MattGoldberg, @AdamChitwood, and @DrClawMD (Dave Trumbore). Hit the jump to check out the trailers for this week’s recommendations.

The cast of Evil Dead, remake to Sam Raimi’s original kids-go-to-a-cabin, kids-get-massacred-by-evil-demons classic, are certainly put through the ringer in this new updated version. The three interviewees of this article are forced to endure a bevy of indignities: nail-gun wounds, a really sharp needle, shards of glass, the top of a bathroom toilet, bloody vomit, etc.… And yet to hear the threesome talk about it  –the experience shooting the picture was the time of their life. There’s a loose rapport between the trio that’s impossible to fake – and that camaraderie certainly extends to the film itself. There’s a real sense of shared friendship between their characters – which makes the inevitable demons massacring them all the more tragic.

At the film’s press day, co-stars Shiloh Fernandez, Lou Taylor Pucci and Jessica Lucas discussed creating such bonds in a relatively short amount of time, working under heavy prosthetics and the rehearsal process for the film. For the full interview, hit the jump.

Blood flows freely; limbs tear from torso; glass, nails, needles puncture young flesh. Evil Dead, Fede Alvarez’s remake of the Sam Raimi classic, more than lives up to its predecessor’s quota for gore. There’s a new charm to this flick. Gone is the original’s shaggy, dirty, almost dangerous feel. This new entry is slicker, more composed, somehow safer. It’s strange to describe a film where a girl cuts off her own arm as ‘feel good’ – but the violence is so pronounced, so gruesome it transcends horror into something akin to catharsis. The story is ostensibly the same: a group of twentysomethings (here played by Shiloh Fernandez, Jane Levy, Lou Taylor Pucci, Jessica Lucas and Elizabeth Blackmore) take refuge in a cabin, only to accidentally unleash the malicious possessing demons in the surrounding woods. One by one, they are possessed and mutilated. It’s a simple yet perfect setup – and the film makes ample use of finding new and increasingly unseemly ways to off these poor kids. As the body count rises and literal buckets of blood rain onto the remnant survivors, it’s impossible not to smile at the sheer audacity of grue on display.

At the film’s press day, director Fede Alvarez and star Jane Levy discussed the process of  creating a prosthetic/gory moment, recreating moments from the original film and what tone a hypothetical sequel would take. For the full interview, hit the jump.

[This is a re-post of my review from SXSW 2013.  Evil Dead opens today.]

If your goal is to give the people exactly what they want, then you better give them the best you’ve got otherwise it’s obvious pandering. Fede Alvarez‘ remake of Evil Dead does not pander. It fiercely grabs the audience by the throat, and vomits as much blood and viscera as we can stomach it, and not everyone will be able to stomach what the horror flick has to offer. Alvarez and cinematographer Aaron Morton set a creepy vibe, but their primary interest is in gleefully laying out the implements of destruction. “We know what you came for,” the film says with a devilish smile. And then it lets loose violence beyond all reason. The fear eventually fades, the emotions recede into the background, but Evil Dead delivers on the bloody mayhem that needs far more than an MPAA rating. It needs a warning label.

What is there to say about Bruce Campbell?  For horror fans the world over Campbell transcends “actor” status and lands firmly in the category of “icon”. Today I was lucky enough to fulfill a lifelong dream and interview the man, the myth, the legend; the chin himself. Needless to say, it was awesome. Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead is a classic of the genre and when the remake was first announced the general reaction was skeptical, to put it kindly, so when the film premiered at SXSW earlier this month fans breathed a collective sigh of relief as positive reports poured out of Austin.

Shortly before the Evil Dead panel at WonderCon (here’s our recap), I sat down with Campbell for an exclusive interview. He talked about the success of the premiere at SXSW, the communal experience of watching horror films, why it was surprisingly easy for them to get an “R” rating, his hands-on approach to producing, carrying that over to the sequel, and the toll filming took on the actors. We also discussed the possibility of Army of Darkness 2, his presence on twitter, and his post Burn Notice plans. Check out the full interview after the jump. 

Today at WonderCon, Sony Pictures’ panel featured a presentation from Fede Alvarez’s Evil Dead remake.  After repeated announcements intended to clear the room of any minors or people who became squeamish at the sight of blood, a brand new trailer cut just for WonderCon was screened for the enthusiastic audience.  The cast and director then took the stage for a Q&A along with producer and fan-favorite actor, Bruce Campbell.

Evil Dead, opening April 5th, stars Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Jessica Lucas, Lou Taylor Pucci and Elizabeth Blackmore.  Hit the jump for our panel recap.

Sony has released eight new images from Fede Alvarez‘ Evil Dead.  For those unfamiliar with the film, the story centers on five friends who go to a remote cabin in the woods, and stumble upon a demonic evil that begins possessing them one by one, which causes horrific scenes of gore and mutilation.  As expected some, of these photos are particularly gruesome, so if you’ve just eaten breakfast, maybe wait 30 minutes until looking.  Otherwise you’re going to cramp up.

Hit the jump to check out the images, and click here for my review of the film.  Also, Atlanta readers should click here to find out how they can see the flick early and for free.  The movie stars Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Elizabeth Blackmore, Lou Taylor Pucci, and Jessica Lucas.  Evil Dead opens April 5th.

If you love blood-drenched horror, you’re probably going to love the remake of Evil Dead.  When I saw it at SXSW, the crowd went absolutely nuts for it, and it provided a level of violence rarely seen in wide-release movies.  For those who like their movies gruesome as hell, you need to come out to see this.

I’m pleased to announce that we’re giving away 20 passes to the Atlanta screening of Evil Dead.  Hit the jump to find out how you can check out the film early and for free.  Evil Dead opens April 5th.

A new clip and poster from Fede Alvarez’s Evil Dead remake are now available.  The clip takes place inside the infamous cabin in the woods in which all of the vacationers appear to be safe and sound, except for Mia (Jane Levy) who is not quite herself it seems.  It’s a bit spoilery, but for fans of the original, it also features a rather recognizable camera sequence.

Check out Matt’s review of Evil Dead here.  The film also stars Shiloh Fernandez, Elizabeth Blackmore, Lou Taylor Pucci, and Jessica Lucas.  Evil Dead opens on April 5th.  Hit the jump to watch the clip and check out the new poster.

A couple weeks ago, Fede Alvarez‘ remake of Evil Dead premiered at SXSW to an ecstatic crowd (click here to read my review).  For those unfamiliar with the film, the story centers on five friends who go to a remote cabin in the woods, and stumble upon a demonic evil that begins possessing them one by one, which causes horrific scenes of gore and mutilation.  Lou Taylor Pucci plays Eric, a friend of Mia (Jane Levy) who has gone with her and three friends to a remote cabin in the woods to help her detox.

I got the chance to interview Pucci at SXSW, we talked about the intensity of the film, the appeal of the film’s violence, working with director Fede Alvarez and producer Bruce Campbell, his indie film Story of Luke, and more .  Evil Dead opens April 5th.

A couple weeks ago, Fede Alvarez‘ remake of Evil Dead premiered at SXSW to an ecstatic crowd (click here to read my review).  For those unfamiliar with the film, the story centers on five friends who go to a remote cabin in the woods, and stumble upon a demonic evil that begins possessing them one by one, which causes horrific scenes of gore and mutilation.

I got the chance to interview Alvarez at SXSW, and we talked getting down to an R-rating from an NC-17 rating, the appeal of the film’s extreme violence, working with Sam Raimi, developing a sequel to the remake, and much more.  Hit the jump to check out the interview.   Evil Dead opens April 5th.

A couple weeks ago, Fede Alvarez‘ remake of Evil Dead premiered at SXSW to an ecstatic crowd (click here to read my review).  For those unfamiliar with the film, the story centers on five friends who go to a remote cabin in the woods, and stumble upon a demonic evil that begins possessing them one by one, which causes horrific scenes of gore and mutilation.  Jane Levy stars as Mia, who has gone to the cabin to detox with the help of her two friends, her estranged brother, and his new girlfriend.

I got the chance to interview Levy at SXSW, and we talked about her role, if she had studied people who were detoxing, the appeal of the gruesome violence, the intensity of the production, working with Alvarez, and much more.  We also talk about the film’s ending near the end of the interview, so I’ve put up a spoiler warning when we get to that part.  Hit the jump to check out the interview.  Evil Dead opens April 5th.

The full lineup for WonderCon 2013 has been released, and it’s a pretty solid slate of film and TV fare.  Among the highlights of this year’s convention are panels for Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim, director James Wan’s horror film The Conjuring, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s star-studded directorial debut This Is the End, the YA adaptation The Mortal Instruments: The City of Bones, Joss Whedon’s Shakespeare pic Much Ado About Nothing, as well as TV panels for Eli Roth’s Netflix series Hemlock Grove, CBS’ Stephen King adaptation Under the Dome, BBC’s Doctor Who, and much more.

Hit the jump to check out the schedule.  WonderCon 2013 runs from March 29 – 31.  Be sure to come back to Collider later this month for our extensive coverage from the convention.

A new clip and trailer for director Fede Alvarez’s upcoming remake of Evil Dead have been released online.  The clip is incredibly brief as it’s mostly just a bloody set-up for a jump scare, but the WonderCon Announcement Trailer features a few bits of new footage.  The film premiered at SXSW last week to a mostly enthusiastic response, with our own Matt Goldberg calling it a “crowdpleaser” and a “gruesome feast” in his positive review.  Though some seemed to be put off by Alvarez’s “fan-service” approach with the pic, the critics who caught the film all agreed on one thing: Evil Dead is very, very, very violent.

Hit the jump to watch the new clip and WonderCon trailer.  The film stars Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Elizabeth Blackmore, Lou Taylor Pucci, and Jessica Lucas.  Evil Dead opens on April 5th.

After last night’s ecstatic SXSW screening of Fede Alvarez‘ remake of Evil Dead, it was announced that a script is currently being written for the sequel.  Earlier today, I got to interview Alvarez, and near the end of our conversation, I brought up his plans for Evil Dead 2.  He says fans can expect that he’ll be in no way copying Raimi’s Evil Dead II, and this the new sequel will be “100% original”.  Also, since we’ve previously reported that Sam Raimi intends to start work on a script for Evil Dead 4, I asked Alvarez about his involvement with that film.

Hit the jump for what he had to say, and click here for my Evil Dead review.  The film opens on April 5th.