The final installment of the Evil Dead trilogy takes a wild turn in genre. From the honest horror romp that was The Evil Dead, to the slight comedic tone of Evil Dead II, Army of Darkness makes a complete shift from scares to pure action and slapstick. No longer just a horror movie, Army of Darkness sees Ash Williams (Bruce Campbell) return in a dark fantasy set in medieval Europe where he must take on an entire undead army of Deadites. Some may be put off by this sudden direction, and some jokes may be so cartoony they pull you out of the film. But the high points of this new adventure are so fun it makes this my personal favorite out of the trilogy.

After the events of Evil Dead II, Ash Williams is sent back to medieval Europe and must acquire the Necronomicon to return to his time. But, the Ash here is not the same timid Ash from The Evil Dead, but instead a macho action hero hardened from his previous two horror outings. Here we really see Bruce Campbell's comedic range as he not only plays the hero but also multiple villains. Long gone is the gore and blood of the previous films, replaced with slapstick that is goofier than ever, resembling The Three Stooges. For some, the cartoony nature of these scenes may go too far and too long that it just rips them out of the movie. But, if you go in expecting a fantasy slapstick action fest, you'll really enjoy it. It's weird, it's goofy, but it's awesome watching what is essentially Bruce Campbell's one-man comedy show.

It's not just Looney Tunes bits and charming one-liners though. The action in this movie is great, building up to one of my favorite climaxes in film: Ash and the knights vs. an army of the dead. This climax, and most of the movie, is filled with the best visual effects the trilogy has had to offer yet. There's a great mix of green screens, costumes, and stop-motion monsters reminiscent of the work of Ray Harryhausen

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Expect even less emotional depth than the previous ones, everyone here is as cardboard cutout as they come with a predictable plot to boot. But, you're here to see Ash get himself hurt, say goofy things, make goofy faces, and fight some stop-motion skeletons. At the end of the day, isn't that what film was made for.

KLAATU BARADA NUH... *cough cough*/10