evil dead – Sonic Mercury

Let me be clear I don’t in anyway work for or have I ever been an employee at Universal Studios. Halloween Horror Nights is an event that has been held annually on and off again under various names throughout the last 20 years at Universal Studios Orlando and Universal Studios Hollywood. For many years the events theme revolved around Jack Skellington of Nightmare Before Christmas fame. In recent years the Halloween Horror Nights event has been themed off of popular horror movies including Friday the 13th which quite honestly I really wish I could have gone to. The reason I bring this all up is because this year looks to be exceptionally awesome if you are a horror fan and a heavy metal fan. Some pretty great horror franchises are being tapped this year for the event so I figured with Halloween not too far off I would break down the different attractions being thrown at this years Halloween Horror Nights.

The first attraction this year is a maze based on the Walking Dead AMC TV series. You start off in a maze through the prison from the series the West Georgia Correctional Facility which is obviously full of Walkers. Even the fenced in area outside the prison is full of Walkers. After you make it through the prison there is a forested section full of Walkers and if you can “survive” the wilderness you will actually end up at the town of Woodbury where you can meet the Governor. Universal Studios has promised that you will relive many iconic moments from the Walking Dead series.

The next attraction is a maze inspired by the Evil Dead. You literally walk through the forest to the most famous of abandoned cabins in horror history. The description says you can either try to run from the Deadites into the forest or you can try to survive the night in the cabin. Exactly how it works I am not sure, you might have to keep running through the maze as staying in the middle seems like a difficult way to get out again. Either way the maze is filled with plenty of gore and Deadites. When you reach the cabin listen for the words from the Book of the Dead as that definitely will be your cue that lots of crazy stuff is about to happen.

OK so by now you probably guessed pretty much all the events are mazes. The next maze is inspired by Insidious. People will actually get to walk through the haunted house from Insidious and experience different moments from the movies first hand. The special effects look pretty impressive as they show a girl being wrapped up by a shower curtain seemingly on its own volition. One of the most exciting mazes for me is the one inspired by songs from Black Sabbath. You start the maze in a demon filled cathedral, then go through graveyards, madhouses, corpse filled battlefields and even a nuclear apocalypse full of mutated beasts. You wear 3D glasses the whole time and Black Sabbath music will be playing in the backround. Personally I would love to see Black Sabbath’s reactions as they all walked through the maze. Its being called a interactive 3D movie inspired by Black Sabbath’s most famous songs.

The next maze I am kind of on the fence about. Its a maze called “El Cucuy” The Boogeyman. I am all for bringing back the boogeyman for some good old fashioned horror fun but this maze is narrated by Danny Trejo. It looks like it could be fun and if Danny Trejo only says a few things at the beginning and end of the attraction it probably won’t be too bad but I just can’t for the life of me find him scary. The final attraction for this years Halloween Horror Nights is called Universal Monsters Remix: Resurrection which is supposed to be a revival of the classic Universal Monsters. That sounds really cool I am all for the original Universal Monsters being revived for the 21st century. However the attraction features the music of Figure a dubstep artist. The comments on the page make him seem pretty beloved by Halloween Horror Nights patrons but I really don’t want to see Frankenstein pop and lock. I have no proof that is what the attraction will be like but my own gut feeling is sour towards dubstep Universal Monsters. Not saying it can’t be done but it is with guarded skepticism that I would patronize this final attraction. All mazes were constructed with direct input from the creators and producers of source materials including the Black Sabbath maze, Ozzy, Geezer and Tony all had input on their maze.

Other non-maze attractions include “Terror Tram: Invaded by the Walking Dead” sort of a tram tour of a Walking Dead infested area. Bill & Ted will have an “Excellent Halloween Comedy Adventure” if you have a will made of pure steel. There are several “Scare Zones” each with its own theme. One scare zone has you playing hide and seek with Chucky. That could be fun. Another scare zone is themed after the movie the Purge that came out last year where you will be literally hunted by psychos with weapons and no laws. One of the scare zones features murderous french clowns in haunted Paris. ( Yes I am laughing even as I type it. ) There will be a field of haunted scarecrows looking to fertilize their crops with human blood, that could be promising. Finally Walking Dead Walkers will be everywhere inside the theme park so look out. The final attraction is you can actually walk through the backlot used in Season 3 of AMC’s Walking Dead series and it will be filled with Walkers. There will also be a landscape you can run from the walkers in that is inspired by Black Sabbath’s new album “13.”

So if I had a way to get to Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood or Orlando and could also afford it. This would definitely be on my list of places to go this year for Halloween. If you can swing it and have the schedule for it this just might be the place to get your scares this Halloween. As always I am Z3R0TH3RT33N and I will continue to keep you updated on all things Horror, Metal and Videogame related.

-Z3R0TH3RT33N

Follow Sonic Mercury on Twitter @SonicMercury and like our Facebook page Sonic Mercury

(Image appears courtesy of Christopher Ott and London 1888)

I just wanted to say a few things about the Evil Dead reboot. It seems somewhat appropriate seeing how it just came out on Blu-ray this week. First off I am a huge fan of the original series. I still remember renting the original Evil Dead when I was like ten years old. The smell of row after row of rental tapes, talking to the guy behind the counter. “Say my man, what’s the scariest movie you have?” and the clerk replied, “Why the Evil Dead young man.” When I was a little kid it seems like all we really ever rented were horror movies actually. The Return of the Living Dead series, Alien, Predator, Wish Master, Lost Boys, Silence of the Lambs, Hellraiser, as a kid I really liked the Puppet Master series for some reason and an endless supply of other old horror movies.

The original Evil Dead struck a chord. Like any great horror movie you lose your self in the plot and this may sound a bit strange but I actually cared about what happened to the characters in the story. I didn’t know until much later in life that the Evil Dead was already a cult classic by the time I rented it back in the early 90’s. What I did know is that it became one my favorite movies. The story was bizarre, the atmosphere was ripe with tension and a genuine sense of fear was conveyed by the purveyance of the unknown. Before this movie I never fathomed anything close to a book bound in human flesh and inked in human blood or what evils it would unleash upon the world.

The X factor of Evil Dead and the subsequent trilogy is the character Ash Williams played by Bruce Campbell. As the series goes on Ash became more and more of a bad ass, quick with a one liner and faster with his boom-stick. The story of Ash Williams has become legend to many, myself included. The character of Ash Williams has appeared in multiple Evil Dead video games and comic book series. Most horror fans would agree the original Evil Dead and Bruce Campbell’s Ash Williams are iconic.

Here lies the monumental task of rebooting this beloved piece of horror cinema. ( Note: Evil Dead director Sam Raimi went on to direct the first Spider-man trilogy ) Director Fede Alvarez was hand selected by Sam Raimi to helm this project. The cast and crew were all explicitly told by both Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell to not try and recreate what had already been done. Sam and Bruce, both producers of the film, were very supportive but took on more of a coaching position leaving Fede Alvarez and his cast free to blaze their own story, to create something fresh.

The trailers for Evil Dead 2013 were really promising. Lots of gore, lots of violence and deadites. ( Look up the Redband trailer on YouTube its pretty wild NSFW )This was the first horror movie I had been truly excited for in a long time. When I finally got to see it I wasn’t disappointed. Evil Dead 2013 had an interesting plot giving the cabin more meaning to the characters and a real reason for everyone to visit the cabin. It succeeded in recreating the feeling I had watching the original, tense on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen next. It was a lot of fun to say the least, Easter eggs for the initiated were abundant without diminishing the new story in any way. I left the cinema happy to see that one of my favorite franchises was in good hands and to see the Evil Dead legacy grow and know that its legend will live on.

I have talked to some people who were really disappointed by this film. I was confused thinking OK it was pretty violent I could see some people who don’t enjoy horror being turned off by this title. That wasn’t the case as it turns out they were huge fans of the original series, and I found out that there are others who shared in their disappointment of Evil Dead 2013. These fans actually left the film confused about what had happened in the movie. Apparently what some fans were hoping for was a shot for shot remake of the original movie just updated with new effects.

The shot for shot remake of a classic horror movie has been done before. The one that jumps to mind is the remake of Psycho. A cinematic legend. Anthony Perkins’ performance in the original Psycho film is legendary. The Vince Vaughn performance in the shot for shot remake of Psycho is infamous. Bruce Campbell and the Evil Dead franchise are iconic. Bruce Campbell as Ash Williams is iconic. Like in the Psycho remake no one could ever capture the performance of the original. A shot for shot updated remake of Evil Dead would be a terrible step backwards for the franchise because all anyone would do is compare Bruce’s Ash to whomever’s Ash.

Even if it was a good shot for shot remake of the original, nothing original would have been done. What a waste of time to re-shoot a classic film scene by scene when you could just watch the original anyway. Instead what we got was a new story in an updated universe of a legendary horror franchise, with plenty of nods to the past to give die hard fans something to cheer for.

Rumor has it that Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell have three more Evil Dead titles in mind. One film will continue with the events of Evil Dead 2013, the second film will be a sequel to Army of Darkness with Campbell reprising his famous role of the chainsaw wielding deadite slayer Ash Williams, and the third film is intended to be a film where Ash Williams’ universe crosses over into the universe of the new series.

The Evil Dead 2013 did not give us an Ash Williams. However the film did give us a compelling story and interesting characters. There is plenty of gore and practical effects. Many events that occurred in the original series are homaged. Evil Dead 2013 is exhilarating, a refreshing new adventure in a beloved horror haunt. A thrilling tale that will keep you on the edge of your seat til the credits roll. I give it 4 and 1/2 stars out of five. If you have the stomach and like full on horror movies that hold nothing back I strongly recommend this film.

-Z3R0TH3RT33N

Follow Sonic Mercury on Twitter @SonicMercury and like our Facebook page Sonic Mercury