Why Evil Dead Rise is the Most Disturbing Film in the Franchise

 

Credit to Evil Dead Rise (2023) - IMDb

While every single Evil Dead film is pretty disturbing in their own ways, I think the fifth entry is the most messed up film in the entirety of the franchise. Evil Dead Rise features a family as the victims this time around, that are targeted by demons after one of the family members opens up the book of the dead. 

This film instantly does not hold back on the family's struggles to survive, and the first thing that the demons do is possess the mother of the three children. Her sister is the one left to protect them from the demon's wrath, determined to defeat the evil plaguing her family. Every single loss in this film feels like a gut punch, knowing that this is a family we are watching getting broken apart in such a horrific way. 

I felt so sorry for the sister, knowing that her own sister was the first to die, along with her nephew, and one her nieces. What's even more horrific, is that the dead family members even merge into one demon, going after the last two remaining family members during an intense climax. 

The ending is like the worst cherry on top to end the film. Even though the sister and her youngest niece survive until the very end, the trauma of what they lost will never go away. I loved how the film cut straight to a picture of the family inside of their car, as the two family members walk away, leaving behind what they had lost. 

The picture really tied the movie into a perfect bow at the end, and I felt so depressed when I saw that picture. Knowing that a family was killed at the hands of these demons pissed me off so bad, and I don't remember the last time an Evil Dead film made me feel so unhappy. 

The last one that gave me this feeling was the first film, due to how dark the tone was to the story. I felt every single loss in the pit of my soul, and the fifth installment finally brought that same feeling back.