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Rating
Picking up from where the last film left off, our lovable smartass hero Ash is now stuck in the past. Unfortunately, he’s greeted with hostility and fear as he’s taken prisoner by King Arthur and his men. After surviving a battle between two deadites with his chainsaw, Ash manages to climb out and punch out the King. Now having proved himself, Ash must embark on a quest to reclaim the Necronomicon to stop the evil forces. Ash reluctantly sets off in the hopes of this leading to him going back to his own time. Along the way, he meets his evil twin, who he kills, eviscerates, and buries, but not before being warned. Once he gets the book, Ash ends up accidentally releases an army of the dead. Now led by Ash’s undead evil twin, the army is after the book and will kill anyone in their way.
Given its fairly large budget, you can definitely see the money on the screen. From the immense sets to all the creatures and effects, this has a much larger scope than the previous films. It reminds me of Monty Python and the Holy Grail with its grand setting, sets, and costumes, but more comedic. That said, I feel like the bigger budget and larger production also hurts the film in terms of the style. It lacks the gritty and creepy feeling that the first two films had, and it feels a bit too polished. This one does feel more like a big-budget studio picture, but for what it is, it’s still better than others. Also, there are times where the comedy tends to clash with some of the more serious moments, to where the movie has a bit of a tone problem.
All that being said, I still really enjoy this film. It’s funny, it’s exciting, it’s got some great special effects and action sequences, it’s fully aware of itself, and it features Bruce Campbell at his most badass. While the film did make a profit (it made $21.5 million against its $11 million budget), it wasn’t as big of a hit as they were hoping, and it didn’t get as warm of a response from critics as the last one did. Even still, the movie has gone on to become a major cult hit, and it’s also quite possibly one of the most quotable movies ever!
Hail to the king, baby!
