Here we are at long last. After 31 days of horror films including 13 days of sequels, we’ve finally ended up at the big day itself. Now that it’s Halloween, I can finally unveil the number one film on the countdown, Dawn of the Dead. Where Romero’s Night of the Living Dead invented a genre of film, Dawn of the Dead redefined it for a whole new generation. The societal woes that influenced Night had faded in the ten years since it had been released, and Romero turned his sites on a new set of problems with this sequel. It’s hard to imagine that it came about from something so simple as a trip to the mall.

Four years before the film was released, Romero was invited by an old friend of his to visit the Monroeville Mall that his friend’s company had built. At the time, malls were just beginning to be all the rage, and Monroeville was the largest of its kind ever built. Romero marveled at the blissful, slack-jawed look on the shoppers as they moved from store to store, and when his friend mentioned that in case of an emergency someone could survive quite well in a mall, inspiration struck the director. Romero and his producer started feeling around for investors in the film, but they were unable to find anyone willing to take a chance. Word got around to Italian director Dario Argento, and a deal was struck, in exchange for the international distribution rights for the film, Dario would get his brother Claudio to help with the financing of the film. At Argento’s request, Romero traveled to Rome for a holiday, and there with input from the Italian director, the script began to take shape. Three years after the first inkling of the film that would become Dawn of the Dead, Romero secured access to the Monroeville Mall as the setting for his film and principal photography began.

The film opens with the outbreak detailed in Night of the Living Dead reaching epic proportions. Looking for a way to escape the plague, a TV station helicopter pilot Steven, (David Andrews) and his girlfriend Francine (Gaylen Ross) plan to steal the station’s chopper. They are joined by Steven’s friend Roger (Scott Reiniger) and Peter (Ken Foree) who are two deserters from a local S.W.A.T team. After taking the helicopter, they find a deserted mall and stop to check it out. They find the mall inhabited by only a few zombies, and with some creative planning, they believe they can survive there. They loot the mall, at first taking what they need, but that soon devolves into plundering all the material desires they can imagine. The foursome seal themselves in the mall, and they begin to live out their new lives in a kind of idyllic peace. They receive infrequent radio and television transmissions detailing the devolution of society. The group begins to feel safe and secure from the menace outside, but when a group of bikers threatens to break in and disrupt their consumer’s Eden, hell on Earth comes to the survivors.

Being a child of the late ‘70’s and early ‘80’s, one of the things that has always attracted me to this film was that the mall is much like what I remember from my youth. Everything is decked out in browns and oranges, and the open spaces are littered with potted palms. Even the stores bring back memories. This era of my early youth is the time when consumerism as we know it today really took hold, and the creation of the mall was the Frankenstein’s monster that it spawned. One of the most interesting things about Dawn of the Dead is the commentary as to why the zombies came to the mall. Ken Foree‘s Peter remarks that, “They're after the place. They don't know why, they just remember. Remember that they want to be in here.” The zombies wander aimlessly around the mall because something in them tells them it’s the thing to do.

The mall is almost like another character in the film. The mall provides medicine, weapons, food, and for all their little desires. Even as our heroes become lost in the excesses of the consumer world, they are provided with safety from the outside world. In the end, it even provides a grave for some of them, nestled in the shade of those potted palms and bubbling fountains. My only criticism of the setting is that it’s a genius place to hide from zombies, but now that everyone’s seen the film; in an outbreak, it would be as crowded as Black Friday in there.

Where Night of the Living Dead gets a lot of strength from the precious few moments of solace in the prison like farmhouse, the peaceful times they spend in the mall devoid of any other life or un-life as the case may be shed light on the emptiness of the desire for material things. The foursome has everything their heart can desire, but trapped in those walls, cut off from any pockets of humanity, they find little peace. Instead, they find unrest, and their uneasiness reaches beyond the screen to build tension in the audience. Their near idyllic life has nowhere to go, but to be shattered. When it finally occurs, it is not because of the zombies. The greed of others becomes their undoing.

As important as the themes of the Dawn of the Dead are, what is equally interesting are the stylistic qualities of the film. Working with cinematographer Michael Gornick, who had previously shot his film Martin, Romero created a very true to life looking world. Other than the fact that the dead roamed the Earth, there is little to nothing to point to as fantastical in this film. It also gains a great deal of strength from the work of Tom Savini. Famously, Savini was supposed to have worked on Night of the Living Dead, but he was called up for Vietnam. He finally got a chance to work with Romero in Martin, but the effects in that film were limited. With Dawn of the Dead, he got a chance to go crazy. The zombie kills are impressive, my favorite being the machete to the head that Savini himself delivers, and you can even thank Tom for the look of the zombies. In later years, he was unhappy with how the grey makeup looked on film and thought it came out too blue, but I rather like how the zombies are portrayed. As if this was not enough of a contribution, Savini also appears as one of the invading bikers, and if his first appearance where he combs his trademark mustache doesn’t make you chuckle, then you might be a zombie.

While the film is filled with dozens, if not hundreds, of extras, having the story revolve around four characters puts a lot of weight on those actor’s shoulders. Gaylan Ross’ Francine has always really felt like a powerful character to me. Unlike Night of the Living Dead’s Barbara, Francine is not a cowering, sobbing, frightened mess. She is played with great strength, and much of that should be credited to Ross’ performance. One interesting facet of the character is that you never hear her scream. By Ross’ own account, Romero asked her to scream once early in the shooting, and she explained to him that her idea of Francine was not a woman rapt in fear. After that, he never asked again.

Dawn of the Dead is also bolstered by the performance of the indomitable Ken Foree. His performance as Peter is the rock that the film builds on and his climatic scene with his friend Roger and final speech are my favorite moments in the film. That’s not to take away from Scott Reiniger’s Roger or David Emge’s Steven. Roger is clearly the more brash and gung ho of the S.W.A.T defectors, and in the end, that carelessness becomes his undoing. Steven the helicopter pilot is the lesser of the three male leads, and he has few scenes that really draw me into his character. The romantic dinner he shares with Francine does spring to mind, and he does participate in the gents’ first romp though the department store. However, when I think back on this film after not seeing it for a while, I find the details of his character much harder to recall.

Since I was re-watching this one, and it had been a while, I chose to go back to Romero’s original theatrical cut. I’m sure many of you have seen the Directors cut or the International Cut known as Zombi making it the supposed predecessor to Zombi 2. The theatrical cut made me really long for the Zombi cut a bit. I was glad to see some of the expository scenes that are missing in that cut, but the theatrical version does lose a little something due to the sound tracking. The International cut features a score by the incomparable Goblin while Romero’s original release is set primarily to music taken from the De Wolfe music library, a source for pre-cleared tunes available for film licensing. There are a few good cues that come from this, but the music that follows Ken Foree’s final actions sounds more like something rejected from an episode of The A-Team.

Dwelling on Dawn of the Dead’s interpretation, production, and acting, I hope I haven’t shortchanged how much fun this movie is. I’ve seen it dozens of times, and rarely do I even bother pondering the deep social issues involved. I’m usually just having fun watching people shoot zombies in a mall, go shopping for whatever they’d like, and bikers attacking zombies with the weapon preferred by the recently departed Soupy Sales, the cream pie. That’s why this movie really works and tops the list. This is one of the best sequels out there because it extends the narrative of the first, provides some food for thought, and if you’re not interested in breaking down the meanings, then there’s still Hare Krishna zombies receiving headshots. When it comes to sequels, Dawn of the Dead tops my list because it delivers all fronts, and it gives the gentle reminder that now that Halloween has arrived, there’s less than eight weeks until Christmas. I got a lot of shopping to do.

For the last word on horror sequels, I hand the reigns over to my lively wife and love of my life, Ms. Directed. I'm a very lucky guy to have a gal that likes horror and cult films, and not only that, one that will tolerate her hubby taking time to review 31 horror films in 31 days, So cheers, my love, let's see what you have for the folks.....

Halloween is a special time around the our house. I come home the Bugg is watching a movie. I go to sleep on the loveseat with yet another playing. I wake up in the morning to the sounds of my love finishing a post before work. I am married to one hard working fan of Genre Film. He gave me the last word on the lists this year, which can only be chalked up to the fact I cook for him. My taste in horror leans as a bit more toward the comedic than the Bugg. We used to argue a good bit about this, but now we have come to an understanding. My list comes from the films I remember from my childhood. They say as you mature, grow your tastes change. I never have had that problem.

1. Army of Darkness : May I suggest you come get some.

2. Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors: The first use on film of faux-hawk technology.

3.Halloween 3: Season of the Witch: Bring back Celtic paganism, but strangely enough not witches.

4. The Devil’s Rejects- Nothing scares me like white trash.

5. Texas Chainsaw 2 - It’s like death eating a cracker

That's my gal. She likes a scare, but a good laugh is just as well. As you can tell from her list, I landed one of he good one's fellas. With that, it brings to the end the Halloween Top 13: The Sequel. I hope everyone enjoyed it, and I want to thank everyone who commented, visited, or took the time to send in a list. I hope you all have a Happy Halloween. No matter if you got out to party, visit a haunted house, or sit down for a couple of scary movies this evening, I hope everyone has a good time. I know I had a great time talking about all the films this month. I'm going to take tomorrow off for a little rest, but I'll be back again on Monday with a whole new lineup of features for you folks. And I've only got 352 days to get ready for The Halloween Top 13: The Remake!

Yesterday, in number 3 on the countdown, I got a chance to talk about the best male hero in the horror genre, Evil Dead II’s Ash. Today I get to talk about another hero, but a very different one. In most horror films, women are portrayed as either bimbos, damsels in distress, or if they’re really lucky, the lone survivor a.k.a the final girl. Very seldom are they shown as more competent than their male counterparts, and even less frequently are they shown as ready, willing, and able to throw down with the big bad. Ridley Scott’s Alien (1979) introduced a different kind of female character with Warrant Officer Ripley played by Sigourney Weaver. Not only was she the hero of the film, she also displayed all the characteristics of the male action hero while still maintaining a sense of femininity. It was a game changing role that you could trace a direct line to female leads in films like Resident Evil or Joss Whedon’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It proved that a female character could be portrayed as strong as a man, and not only that, people, male and female, would like and appreciate the character.

By the mid-eighties, Ripley Scott had moved on to other projects, and the prospect of a follow up to Alien looked bleak. James Cameron was about to start directing his first major film, The Terminator, and when the project was delayed because of a scheduling conflict, he went into seclusion and wrote the screenplay that would become Aliens. 20th Century Fox Studio initially balked at the idea of an Alien sequel feeling that the first film had not been profitable enough, but they agreed that if Cameron had a hit with The Terminator then they would let him do Aliens. Well, we all know how that went.

Cameron finished off his script which was more focused on suspense and terror than the bloody, shocking sequences in Scott’s original film. At first, Sigourney Weaver was hesitant to revisit the character, but after meeting with Cameron, she agreed to do the project. The studio was still unsure and wanted a story that did not feature Ripley. Cameron held strong and demanded Weaver on the grounds that when he had signed on based Fox had implied that Weaver would be part of the project. The studio finally relented, but not without a serious round of negotiations with Weaver’s agents. Cameron was going off on his honeymoon, and he told the powers that be that if contracts were not signed by the time he returned, he would drop the project. When he returned, no contract had been signed, and Cameron spread a rumor that he was going to retool the script sans Ripley. Soon both Weaver’s people and 20th Century Fox, not wanting to miss out on the success Cameron had with The Terminator, made a deal which paid Weaver 1 million dollars, over 30 times what she had made for Alien.

The film that Cameron wrote picks up with Ripley still in cryogenic sleep aboard the lifeboat, right where we left her at the end of Alien. It is 57 years later when her ship is found by a group of space salvagers, and she is taken to a space station where she is to be questioned before a panel convened by the cooperation that had sent the crew on the ill fated mission recounted in the first film. They strip her of her rank and sentence her to psychiatric evaluation after scoffing at her story of an attack by an acid blooded, unstoppable Xenomorph. When contact is lost with the planet, LV-426, she is approached by corporate lawyer Carter Burke (Paul Riser) to join a mission to the planet as a consultant. Ripley refuses at first, but she has a change of heart ad agrees to join the mission. When they arrive, they find the planet decimated with the only survivor being a small girl named Newt (Carrie Henn). They discover a massive hive where the Aliens are breeding, and Ripley and the Space Marines are soon under heavy attack from the Xenomorph and trapped on the planet’s surface.

The story spun by Cameron’s script is only of the deepest and most influential pieces in modern cinema. I won’t be getting too far into the meaning of the film as I think many people smarter than me have tackled that subject before, but I do have a few themes I want to touch on. Aliens always seems to me like a film built off dichotomy. The Space Marines, even the female members, are full of macho bravado with a fake sense of bravery while Ripley is calm, compassionate, and truly brave. She exhibits her compassion through her relationship with Newt, and that forms a mother child relationship that holds a mirror up to the Alien queen and her deadly brood. While in the first film the character that serves at the shill for the corporation is the android, this time around the robot is trustworthy while the threat from within comes from one of Ripley’s human compatriots. There are a million things to pick apart in this film, and that’s one of the things that make it such a masterpiece.

The translation of Cameron’s script from the page to the screen had many hands involved in it, and while the creature effects and cinematography are stunning, a lot of the credit has to go to the actors. Weaver is especially effective, and her second outing as Ripley not only shows off growth of the character but also the growth of Weaver as an actress. Every line she delivers is perfectly pitched. Her every facial expression tells the story of what is going on beyond the words she speaks. Weaver has stated that she drew inspiration for the role from warrior women in classical Chinese literature. I can see this reflected throughout the film where compassion, truth, and honesty are shown to be as important facets of her charter as strength, power, and determination. While Weaver has had many great roles over the years, this is the one that will instantly come to mind anytime someone mentions her.

I did not dwell very much on the Space Marines when I synopsized this film, but they play an equally important part in the unfolding of the plot. The standout performance has to come from Bill Paxton as Hudson. I’ve found that Paxton has two performances, over the top and subdued, and usually his over the top performances make me wince. In Aliens, it fits perfectly with his character, and the fact that he’s given the most quotable lines of the film, “That's it man, game over man, game over! “and “Maybe you haven't been keeping up on current events, but we just got our asses kicked, pal!” doesn’t hurt. The other Marines are all given enough time to develop as characters, and by the time any characters are killed, they have risen above cardboard characters to become relatable individuals.

Aliens also provides a couple of other noteworthy supporting roles. First off, Paul Riser was never and probably will never be better than as slimy lawyer Carter Burke. It might help that I’ve always hated Riser so it wasn’t a stretch for me to hate him here. The appearance of Riser also gives Bill Paxton the distinction of having starred with both of the leads from Mad About You in a major motion picture. (Paxton co-starred with Riser in this film and later with Helen Hunt in Twister.) The next performance I have to talk about is Lance Henriksen as the android Bishop. I’ve seen Henriksen in dozens of films, and no matter if he’s the lead or in the supporting cast, the guy can’t help but be creepy. I loved his understated performance, and the knife trick scene is on the shortlist of my favorite movie moments. I would be remiss if I did not mention Carrie Henn’s Newt. Most of the time when you get a child actor on screen, I wince. However, Henn provides a great performance that never gets maudlin or annoying.

The effects in Aliens are not only excellent, they also hold up over time. I was watching the extended producers cut, and I was amazed how current this twenty two year old film looked. The military style of the film does lend itself to a more timeless quality, but I saw nothing in the film that could be improved on by cutting edge computer graphics. Aliens is a film that will look as good in twenty more years and twenty more after that. While it is set in the future, it is a future that seems real, vital, and plausible. I don’t think I even have to mention how great the creature effects were. Headed up by Stan Winston and his crack crew of special effects artists, each of the Aliens looks amazing, and the Queen herself is a triumph in practical effects and puppetry. To bring the Queen to life it took nineteen people working the puppet, and the effect is seamless. Now they would just whip something up in a computer, and in a few years it would look dated and cheesy.

Aliens is a film that works because it was the perfect storm of elements coming together, a director in the prime of his creativity, a cast of interesting and skilled actors, and special effects work that has been rarely matched. The fact that all of this stemmed from a script that Cameron did as lark never knowing if it would reach any stage of production makes the film more amazing. While I love Alien, its sequel is in many ways superior. It takes the base that Ridley Scott built, and builds upon it a deeper, darker, and more rewarding experience. Aliens is a film that always freaks me out, and the next time I get a little heartburn, I’ll be little extra concerned about it.

Today’s guest list writer has really outdone himself, and what more could you expect from a guy with a blog called Chuck Norris Ate My Baby. Matt runs a great site that is constantly one of the most entertaining reads out there. I can’t thank him enough for the excellent work he put into his list, and I hope you like it as much as I do. Take it away Matt….

Sequels are a hit or miss, usually a miss as most of the time studio heads are just trying to cash in on the success of a popular horror film by attempting to capture that lightning (BUG!) in a bottle by duplicating what worked in the first film. Rarely does this work, as you will more than likely get a less than stellar film that is just a rushed - rehash of the original movie as seen in films like Teen Wolf Too. For example.

The successful continuation of a horror franchise will always benefit from expanding upon, or bringing something new to what worked in the previous installment(s), whether it be going with a different approach visually, or adding a little more action and/or gore to the mix. I would say that 80% of these films listed below will make most horror fans lists - and there’s a reason for that…they (almost) all brought something new to what worked the first or previous time around, or they went balls out and amped up the action and entertainment.

Since Mista Bugg is doing his thing 13 style, I thought I would follow suite and make a list that consists of 13 sequels too - and without any further ado, here is my 13 favorite horror sequels OF ALL TIME!!

13. Waxwork II: Lost in Time: Taking the fun set pieces of the first Waxwork and bringing it to a completely new level, Lost in Time added time travel into the mix, along with a whole slew of fictional characters and situations to run into. The homage’s are great, and you get some cheap, but still fun Alien inspired aliens, Godzilla, and even a little battle with Zombies in a mall, ala Dawn of the Dead. Oh, and Bruce Campbell has one of the best cameos ever!

12. Blade II: What better way to add something fresh to a movie that was pretty damned good to begin with, than by having Guillermo Del Toro direct? Blade II is slightly better than Blade for me, and that has to do with some crazy and well directed/choreographed action sequences and fight scenes. Blade II also brought some new ideas to the game with the hybrid ultra vampires, while mixing things up by adding a vampire crew to (reluctantly) fight along side the day-walker.

11. Final Destination 2: The groundwork was laid out in Final Destination, and FD2 just took the ball, and ran with it…no need to add to the plot! The Opening car accident is flat out awesome, and one of the more frightening scenes I have seen in a movie…all of the death scenes are a blast and that is all you really needed. Straight payoff.

10. Troll 2: A movie that sweats the definition bad, Troll 2 is epic in its awfulness, and it has pretty much nothing to do with the original film, outside of it being named Troll. Terrible acting, hysterical dialogue, a workout/dance scene, corn on the cob-integrated intercourse, and of course…Goblins. Goblins in a movie named Troll 2…a movie that delivers more entertainment than 80% of movies that have, or will, ever come out.

9. Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter: The Final Chapter has always been my favorite of the Friday films and most of that has to do with the Tommy Jarvis character and his collection/obsession with make up and monsters. When I was that age watching this film, I wanted to make those kick ass masks that Tommy made! Clearly, the character was inspired by Tom Savini, whose amazing practical FX and make up on the film are the stuff of legend and another huge reason for loving this 4th Friday film.

8. 28 Weeks Later : One of the best horror sequels of recent years, 28 Weeks Later does a great job of just letting things unfold naturally and fittingly with where the first film left off. One of my favorite aspects of this film is that stylistically, it is very removed from what Danny Boyle did in Days, and the result is a fantastic movie to watch visually as well as narratively. The opening scene when Carlyle is chased from the house is shot so cool and knowing that they used a sort of remote controlled helicopter to achieve the shot is just a brilliant filmmaking tactic.

7. Creepshow 2: “Thanks for the ride, lady!” is all I need to say about Creepshow 2! As with all of the films on the rest of this list of sickness, this sequel is one that came to my conscience in my youngsta days. It was perfect for a budding young horror fan - a killer wooden Indian, teaching jag-off kids to respect their elders and their heritage, a drunk slut picking up unwanted hitchhikers, and a black blob like oil slick that would learn you not to taint the environment…and all the stories were wrapped tightly with a pretty cool animation style tale of terror!

6. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 :Talk about going in a completely different direction from the previous installment, and all with the same director nonetheless - TCM2 is an exercise in pure insanity and outright wackiness. The depravity and mean-spiritedness of the first film is slightly prevalent in Chainsaw 2, but there is a tongue in cheek sense of humor about this film, and it’s antagonists that set it far apart from the original Chainsaw. I remember all to well being a little kid and seeing that poster for Chainsaw 2, where they were riffing on the Breakfast Club and thinking…”I wanna see that!”

5. Hellbound: Hellraiser II : Hellbound almost flows perfectly from the first film with its story of flesh and sadomasochism, while kicking up the grue to a whole new and disturbing level. Where the first film slowly turned into a nightmare, Hellbound feels like a dream throughout - a real bad dream, especially if you are Kirsty. The vision of Hell is unlike anything ever put to film and the setting of a psychiatric-ward is truly scary unto itself. Doctor Channard as the main antagonist was a great addition, and his change into a Cenobite is legendary.

4. A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors : The best of the Nightmare sequels and a favorite of many, Dream Warriors is just plain awesome! It bleeds 80’s in everyway, except for the cheese factor, which it has a bit of, but that‘s just more of an 80‘s thing. The first time I saw Dream Warriors was on some pay movie channel that I was watching on the TV in my parent’s bedroom when they were out late one night. Only thing was, we didn’t even have the channel, so I basically just listened to what was going on and made out a couple of things here and there on the television screen. I’ll tell ya, my imagination ran wild with what could have been happening…Dream Warriors truly speaks to a generation of horror fans…my generation.

3. Aliens : The definition of going all out with balls flappin’ - is Aliens. Alien is a classic of cinema, and Aliens was perfect for delivering what every one wanted after the first film…more and more Aliens, a butt load of action. To top it all off, we got the Queen Alien, who may be one of the best horror creations of all time, and one of my personal favorites. Aliens is rock ‘em sock ‘em from start to finish and when it slows down, it is so you can witness some seriously intense situations, such as the face hugger scene with Newt and Ripley for example. “Game over man, GAME OVER!!”

2. Dawn of the Dead : We really are getting down to the nitty gritty now aren’t we? Do I need to even mention NOTLD and how it is one of the top 5 greatest horror films ever made? No, but can I mention that Dawn of the Dead can easily make its way into the top 10 of all time horror films? Well, I just inadvertently did. Dawn is probably the most different from its predecessor than every other sequel listed here, but most of that reasoning is because they were made a decade apart, and in that decade the world changed drastically…so fittingly, Dawn tackled many different, yet relevant themes than the ones in Night. I love everything about Dawn of the Dead - it’s gory, weird and campy, it’s serious but still has a message, and there is even tempera-paint blood and a zombie with an afro!

1. Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn : The first time I watched Dead by Dawn - my best friend lent me a recorded copy after he taped it off HBO. I put it in my VCR, and proceeded to watch…I then proceeded to turn the movie off twice I got so freaked out…seriously! Evil Dead 2 is a remake of Evil Dead with more money and the ability to do more with that money….like Stallone, its over-the-top, funny, and boiling over the brim with blood. Still, funny or not, it is a creepy movie. The scenes when Ash is left to dwell all alone in his haunted surroundings are mega freaky, and the camera work is some of the best in a horror film ever. Of course, there are so many quotable lines from “Groovy, “to “Swallow this!” and what needs to be said about Bruce Campbell that already hasn’t been said? Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn is the perfect horror/comedy mix, and my favorite horror sequel of all time! Hail to the King baby!

Lot’s of great stuff on there, Matt, and a whole lot of films that we’ve seen on the top 13, but tomorrow I’ll be rolling out the Number 1 title. Will it be what you expect? Will it be the best sequel of all time? I certainly think so, and I hope you will as well. So join me back here tomorrow for Halloween and the thrilling conclusion of The Halloween Top 13!

Before I get into a synopsis, I want to address the sequel/remake debate that hovers around the first two Evil Dead films. They are essentially very similar films, but what proves that Evil Dead 2 is a sequel is a trait it shares with many of the films on this list, a recap. Raimi opens his film by giving a truncated version of the first film. If the events of the first film had not occurred, there would be nothing to recap. It’s true that events and characters from the first film fall by the wayside in this recap, but seriously, it was more important to get the second film going than catch everyone up on the minutia of the first. If there are still any of you out there that doubt that Evil Dead 2 is a sequel, then here is the straight dope direct from Raimi. On the DVD commentary he clearly states that, if the recaps at the beginning of Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness were removed, you could watch the three as a continuous film. Hence, Evil Dead 2 is a sequel.

The recap shows Ash (Bruce Campbell) and Linda (Denise Bixler) going to the cabin and playing a tape where Professor Knowby recites parts of the Necronomicon. The incantation turns Linda into a deadite, and Ash has to lop off Linda’s head with a shovel. This is basically where the new film begins. The next day Ash tries to escape only to find that the bridge leading away from the cabin has been destroyed, and he is chased back to the cabin by the unseen force. Linda’s body comes back to life and attacks Ash. The head bites his hand while the body menaces him with a chainsaw. Recovering the chainsaw, our hero defeats the separate pieces of his girlfriend’s body. Returning to the cabin, he gets taunted by his own reflection and his hand goes bad so he has to cut it off. That’s about the time that the Professor’s daughter Annie (Sarah Berry) and his research assistant Ed (Richard Domeier) arrive at the cabin after being guided there by Jake and Bobbie Joe (Dan Hicks and Kassie Wesley DePavia), a couple of local yahoos. First the newcomers turn on Ash, but after listening to her father’s tape recount how her mother went insane and tried to kill him, they release him from the fruit cellar. The five of them soon become four, then three, and finally two, and it is up to Ash and Annie to find a way to send the evil force back were it belongs.

Evil Dead II was a film that almost didn’t happen because it was having trouble attracting funding, but thanks to another horror icon, Steven King, the picture was bankrolled by Dino De Laurentiis. Dino was also producing King’s directorial debut Maximum Overdrive, and we should all thank our lucky stars this was before King directed his killer trucks disaster and not after. So with financing secured, Raimi turned to Scott Spiegel, a childhood friend of his and Campbell who had collaborated on many of their home movies. The script they came up with was far less horror driven than the first film, and it derived much of its inspiration from The Three Stooges.

The addition of humor into Ash’s world brought the energetic style of Rami’s first film to the next level, and a good bit of this can be attributed to the influence of Spiegel. Ash’s battle with his hand was based off a short film Spiegel had made called Attack of the Helping Hand, and many of the visual jokes can be attributed to his sense of humor. Adding comedy to the mix not only made this film more entertaining, it also greatly enhanced the performance of Bruce Campbell. I don’t know if Bruce knew he was a comic actor before making this film, but there’s no denying his ability after seeing Evil Dead II. His timing and wide eyed crazy looks are part of what makes this film such a classic.

I don’t think I need to go into the career of Bruce Campbell as I can’t imagine there are many horror fans that are unaware of his career and personality. Let me just say this about Bruce, and I realize I’m not going to be alone on this one. He’s one of my favorite genre film actors, and I will watch any manner of crap in which he appears. Maniac Cop, bring it on. My Name is Bruce, hell, yeah it is. Bubba Ho-Tep, you better believe it. Spider Man 3. Ahem, Spider Man 3. Yeah, I’ll even watch Spider Man 3. Bruce Campbell is one of the most relentlessly entertaining actors appearing in genre, and Evil Dead II is really the film that made his reputation. This is the film where Campbell became quotable (something that almost got taken too far in Army of Darkness), and there’s nothing better than the first time Ash utters the immortal line “Groovy.”

There’s not really much to say about the supporting cast of this film. While the professor’s daughter, his assistant, and the pair of rednecks are well acted, it is not like we really get to know their characters. If I had to pick one of them, I would go with Dan Hicks as Jake. He plays the redneck to the hilt, and the scene where he insists, at gunpoint, they go out to look for his doomed girlfriend Bobbie Joe is an indispensable scene. There is one other great supporting role, but it’s performed from under such a heavy layer of makeup that a lot of folks don’t know who the actor is. Underneath the layers of prosthetics, Ted Rami is truly inspired in his performance as Henrietta the possessed wife of the professor. Rami is always great at playing those over the top characters (see his performance as Joxor in any episode of Xena), and he really went for it with this role.

Of course, no discussion of a Sam Raimi film would be complete without turning an eye to his film making. The tracking shots of the unseen force, the camera that whirls around, and the use of shadows are all on display in Evil Dead II. One of the reasons that I like the second installment a little better is that it has an extra layer of polish that the first film lacked. Now I’m not saying I need a film to have incredible production values, I’m just saying that the boost in the look of the second film really serves it well. Raimi has always had a firm grasp on how to alternately use gore and the techniques of classic horror films to achieve his goals. With Evil Dead II, he perfectly captured a feeling that makes this distinctly his film, and that is the mark of any skilled director. Raimi not only made one of the best sequels ever made in the horror world, but he created one of the best and most entertaining heroes ever to grace the screen. Ash would only get a trilogy of films (although a fourth has been long rumored) unlike his evil counterparts who often reached double digits in their sequels, but they lodged the character of Ash deeply into the consciousness of every horror fan. Sometimes it great to see how the bad guy kills folks, but for once, it was nice to cheer for a hero instead.

Rejection. Rob Zombie knows plenty about that after the pair of debacles that were his Halloween films. Of the current horror film directors, there’s no one (except perhaps Eli Roth) that splits genre fans more down the middle. Some people love Rob’s white trash take on the genre, and some people think he’s the worst kind of hack. For my money, he started his film career strong with House of 1000 Corpses, a film that was full of the love and mythology of ‘70’s grind house cinema. It was like Tarantino by way of the trailer park. When 1000 Corpses turned out to be successful, the studio wanted a sequel, but rather than directly extend the story of the first film, Zombie turned the serial killer genre on its ear and made the killers the heroes of his next tale, The Devil’s Rejects.

The film opens with Texas Sheriff John Quincy Wydell (William Forsythe) leading a raid on the Firefly family home to arrest them for the commission of over 75 murders. A massive shootout occurs leading to Mama Firefly (Leslie Easterbrook) being arrested, Tiny (Matthew McGrory) going missing, Rufus (Tyler Mane) getting killed, and Otis (Bill Mosley) and Baby (Sherri Moon Zombie) going on the run. Otis and Baby make their way to a hotel where they terrorize members of a country band while waiting on Baby’s dad, Captain Spaulding (Sid Haig) to come help them. Meanwhile, Mother Firefly proceeds to break down Sheriff Wydell by taunting him with details of how they killed his brother. With the help of a pair of bounty hunters called “The Unholy Two”, Wydell tracks down Spaulding, Baby, and Otis at the Charlie Altamont’s (Ken Foree) whorehouse. Taking them into custody, the unhinged lawman seeks to exact retribution on the Fireflys and put an end to their reign of terror.

Looking like the long lost bastard child of every exploitation film ever released on 42nd Street, The Devil’s Rejects took the world that Zombie set up in House of 1000 Corpses and brought it to a new, rawer, and more disturbing place. There are no good guys in Zombie’s world only villains and victims, the two not being mutually exclusive. The Firefly family are your murderous protagonists, a group that is vile and despicable, but still charismatic and entertaining. Sheriff Wydell should be the hero, but he is so bent on revenge that he sinks to the same level as the bad guys he’s trying to stop. Few other films have reveled so heavily in the mythos of an antihero. Zombie actually makes you relate and perhaps even care about characters who we see perpetrate some of the most vile and disgusting acts to make it to the cinema screen in the last twenty years.

Before I get into the amazing cast that inhabits this film, I want to talk about the style of the film. Enlisting Phil Parnet, a cinematographer who had worked on the seminal documentary Harlan County, USA (1978), Zombie strove for a realistic quality in the filmmaking. He made the movie look gritty and realistic, but he also applied the an overexposed, blown out quality to the film that left the grit in your teeth long after the credits have run. By giving the film a look like real life turned up too far, the violence seems so real and in your face. The camera never shies away from anything. Murders, nudity, or just the simple emotions that come with the acts are all laid out before you.

If it were not for the charisma of the actors playing the parts of the murderers, this would be a really hard film to watch. Roger Ebert has over the years notoriously slammed horror and genre films alike, but when it came to The Devil’s Rejects he had this to say , "There is actually some good writing and acting going on here, if you can step back from the material enough to see it.” Zombie did a great job writing the script because it builds these murderers up to be likeable, amusing characters, but then shocks you back to reality with their level of brutality and violence. One moment they might be needling Otis to pull over so they can get some Tutti Fruti Ice cream, and then the next, Otis might be wearing someone’s face as a mask.

When I think about this film, or House of 100 Corpses, the first thing that comes to mind is the maniacal clown known as Captain Spaulding. If there’s a person more qualified to play such an unmitigated scumbag as the Captain, I sure wouldn’t like to meet them because no one can play scummy quite like Sid Haig. For almost 50 years, Haig has been one of the steadiest working character actors in the business. From Coffe, to THX 1138, to The Big Bird Cage, there are very few actors who’ve starred in more memorable cult films. He even appeared in Spider Baby, Jack Hill’s film that is almost a spiritual predecessor of Zombie’s films. Haig makes Captain Spaulding the most likeable of the trio, but that’s really not saying much. It’s an iconic role that will probably be the defining moment of a lifetime of work.

Another legendary horror film actor appears as a Reject as well. I said a few days back when I was talking about Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 that he’d be back again, and here he is, Mr. Bill Mosley as Otis. Mosley’s Otis and his TCM 2 character Chop Top seem like they could be best friends. Well, for a while until one of them killed the other. In Devil’s Rejects, Otis is arguably the most despicable of the three leads, but he retains a likeability that can only be attributed to Mosley’s charisma as a performer. His most memorable scene has to be when he molests Pricilla Barnes’s character Gloria in a hotel room. It’s a chilling scene, and the fact that by the time the last act rolls around you’re rooting for him and his family is a testament to both the actor and the script.

The last of the Rejects is Baby played by Mr. Zombie’s wife Sherri Moon. In the first film, the character was limited to what Sherri described as “the angelic bait to get the victims”, but in Devil’s Rejects, we get to see the demonic side of the character. Many people have criticized Zombie for casting his wife in a major role in the film, but I really like the funny, scary, childlike performance that she gives. She is however the lesser of the three good/bad guys and never shown committing much terror. I do really like the scene she shares with Pricilla Barnes’ Gloria who thinks she got a drop on Baby by stealing her gun. After throwing a knife into Gloria’s chest, she recovers the gun, reveals it to have no bullets, and says, “It’s all fucking mind power.” I think this is one of the keys to the film. The Rejects are humans, though sick and twisted, their reign of terror and the havoc they cause comes from their power to instill fear into the minds of their victims.

Now, I want to take a few moments to discuss the other side of the law, William Forsythe’s Sheriff Wydell. From his first appearance, you can tell that Wydell already has a tenuous grasp on reality. By the time he uncovers more about the family and Mother Firefly begins to mess with him, he totally goes off the deep end. The descent into madness is visible in almost every action of the character, and it’s interesting to watch the character who should be your hero goes down a progressively darker path. It took a seasoned actor like Forsythe to pull off the part and make it really work. Forsythe might be best known for his roles in Raising Arizona and Once Upon a Time In America, but you may not recall his turn as Flattop in Dick Tracy, his bad guy going up against Segal in Out for Justice, or his performance in the Brian Bosworth classic Stone Cold. I could go on, but as Wydell says, “I’m sure your knowledge of bullshit is limitless.”

Rejects is also enhanced by a slew of little performances from some of genre film’s best actors. Every scene Ken Foree is in as Charlie Altmont is picture perfect, and I could watch him discuss the merits of Star Wars themed hookers for hours. Michael Berryman, most known for his role in The Hills Have Eyes, also joins him in several of his scenes. His scenes are small in number, but the look on his face when someone accuses him of being a “chicken fucker” is priceless. I also have to give it up to Leslie Easterbrook for taking over for Karen Black in the role of Mother Firefly. The change is barely noticeable, and it doesn’t take away from the character or the transition between the two films. It’s hard to say which one of them was better in the role as they are both creepy as hell. There’s also a plethora of cameo performances from the likes of Ginger Lynn Allen, Danny Trejo, Diamond Dallas Page, Brian Posehn, and Geoffrey Lewis, which all add that extra layer of awesome to the film.

I could go on and on about this film. I don't even think I've managed to skim the surface of my thoughts on this one. I could have written at least this much on the soundtrack alone. (I love the use of "Midnight Rambler", "Freebird", and Buck Owen's "Satan Will Have To Get By Without Me") There will always be people who discount Rob Zombie as merely a musician who thought he could direct films, but from the strength of his first two films alone, I will always be ready to check out what he’s up to next. Zombie is not afraid to challenge an audience with difficult, unlikable characters and situations that may not be most comfortable to watch. With The Devil’s Rejects, he provides a balance between the horrific and lighthearted that will leave you laughing, cringing, and maybe even a little more scared of clowns.

For today’s list, I thought I would cast against type, and chose the person whose taste runs the furthest from The Devil’s Rejects of anyone who submitted. So today, the list comes to you from my good friend Ryan over at The Realm of Ryan. I love this guy. I love his writing, and if you don’t read his blog you should be. I’ll let Ryan take over from here:

1. Bride of Frankenstein (James Whale, 1935) Possibly the greatest sequel to anything, ever. And yes, I’m counting Godfather 2.

2. The Brides of Dracula (Terence Fisherer, 1960) A sequel to the 1958 Christopher Lee classic that doesn't have the Count in it at all—but it has the ass kickin’ Van Helsing played by Peter Cushing, and one of the coolest ways to kill a vampire that I’ve ever seen.

3. Damien: Omen II (Don Taylor, 1978) Fairly dopey compared to the original, but it has a very re-watchable charm because of the crazy deaths and the jazzed-up Satanic chorus score from Jerry Goldsmith. The elevator crash-n-slice of Meshach Taylor is a classic—especially if you really really hate Mannequin.

4. House of Frankenstein (Erle C. Kenton, 1944) It's a sequel to… everything! Therefore, it must be included.

5. Alien3 (David Fincher, 1991) Most people will put Aliens here. I love that film, but it doesn't exactly scare me like the original does. But Alien3 is one mega-bummer of a bleak horror show, and considering its poor original reception, I’ll take any chance to defend it. And we would never have gotten Se7en or Fight Club without it.

Some great picks there, Ryan. I haven’t seen The Brides of Dracula in a lot of years so thanks for bringing that back into my brain. That’s it for today. There’s only three more to go. So I’ll be back tomorrow to give you Number 3. Until then, watch what books you go reading out loud.