The Evil Death was released in 1981 and was written and directed by Sam Raimi, based on a short film by the same director called In the woods. The Evil Death is considered a cult classic, especially in the horror genre. Since then, four more movies have been released in the same universe as the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis, also known as the Book of the Dead. Blood, electric chainsaws, gruesome transformations, and explicit death scenes are integral to this franchise that has grown into four more movies, multiple video games, and even comic books.
The latest installment in the franchise Evil Dead Rise is completed and will hit theaters in 2023. Lee Cronin is the writer and director of the film. The Irish director has some big shoes to fill as it is one of the biggest horror film franchises and has helped shape the genre into the modern day, especially with regard to gore. Evil Dead Rise will be the director’s second feature film.
Before the film is released, let’s take a look at Cronin’s body of work. He has done several horror related projects which can directly indicate how he will approach this beloved franchise and master some essential elements of these films.
Lee Cronin’s filmography
Before going into why the director seems to be a solid choice for the new installment in the Evil Dead franchise, it is important to know a little more about his projects. Lee Cronin has directed and wrote a few short films, mostly horror, such as: through the night and ghost train, which won the Méliès d’Argent for short films in 2014. He then made his feature film debut with an A24-produced film, The hole in the ground. The film premiered at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival to critical acclaim and earned him a nomination at the Saturn Awards as Breakthrough Director. His short film ghost train is part of the nine stories in Minutes after midnight, a horror anthology film. Lee also directed two episodes for the anthology series 50 stages of fear, made by Sam Raimi himself, called 13 steps to hell (in two parts).
The director also did a few TV episodes in the show the master planwhich, in addition to a more adventure-oriented short film called Billy Chuck, is the only non-horror title in his body of work. So it’s clear that over the past few years he has invested in creating horror stories, which is an essential quality a director must have to take on such an iconic franchise.
Lee Cronin as director
Lee Cronin may not have substantial filmography yet, with Evil Dead Rise his first major project. However, the director has a clear vision that can be seen in his previous projects. There are some very similar choices he made as a director and screenwriter as he also wrote most of his films (including Evil Dead Rise), which already give a good idea of who he is as a director and what kind of horror he likes to make.
In more than one of his stories, family and childhood relationships are at the forefront. Another very special element present in his films is the low saturation of the cinematography, which creates a cold feeling with different gray and white undertones. The use of forests and their naturalistic aesthetics, in addition to the uncanny sense of the possibility that the supernatural lurks in the forest, is a recurring theme. Creepy crawling insects and their disturbing, visceral texture are part of this rural, woodsy sensibility. From these examples alone, there are some striking similarities with some important features present in the Evil Dead franchise, which is clearly associated with the forest.
Lee Cronin directs Evil Dead Rise
Evil Dead Rise is expected to hit theaters on April 21, 2023. The movie trailer isn’t out yet, but the movie’s IMDB page says it’s finished. So the trailer should come out sooner rather than later. The director also shared a BTS photo, which refers to a very gory and gory film. The Evil Dead franchise already has four movies (including the 2013 remake), and this will be the fifth installment in this particular gory universe. Cronin has already called it a ‘terror roller coaster’. The synopsis has been revealed:
When tired Beth pays an overdue visit to her older sister Ellie, who is raising three children on her own in a cramped LA apartment, the sisters’ reunion is cut short by the discovery of a mysterious book deep in the bowels of Ellie’s building. The book’s contents, spoken out loud, give rise to flesh-possessed demons, and Beth is thrown into a primary struggle for survival as she faces the most nightmarish version of motherhood imaginable.
The Evil Dead franchise has some very specific elements, and it seems that Evil Dead Rise will definitely include them. However, there are some changes, the most important of which is the setting: a city. It will be interesting to see these monsters outside the woods and see what Cronin does when he moves away from the woods. Nevertheless, fans will have to wait and see how this story will play out. Cronin’s filmography alone shows that he knows how to create stories using some of the film’s best horror elements Evil Dead and can bring an interesting new vision to this world.