Evil Dead Burn: The Franchise Takes Another Turn

The sixth installment in the ‘Evil Dead’ franchise, three years following 2023’s ‘Evil Dead Rise,’ Evil Dead Burn sees director Sébastien Vaniček take the helm this time around, also co-writing the script with Florent Bernard. The film follows Alice (Souheila Yacoub) recovering after her abusive husband Will (George Pullar) was killed in a car accident. After attending his funeral, Alice reconnects and eventually seeks solace with her in-laws at their lake house. However, one by one, they found themselves transforming into deadites, thrusting Alice into a fight for her life. Through this experience, she would soon come to discover that the vows she took in life, survive even in death. While not without its flaws, this latest entry in the ‘Evil Dead’ franchise will undoubtedly be divisive in the eyes of some of the fandom but otherwise, delivers a solid effort.

As a director, Vaniček does not hold back whatsoever, as he clearly pays homage to the French Extremity genre, leading the way  through his stylish and frenetic direction. The camerawork is a highlight, treating audiences with so many memorable tracking shots, while the choreography across its action set pieces is insanely impressive. In typical ‘Evil Dead’ fashion, the film is every bit as gnarly, nasty, gory, unpleasant, and mean as one would expect. Though it may not cross the line into distasteful territory, the film boasts a dark tongue-in-cheek sense of humour that adds a bevy of laughs among its insane, wince-inducing hyperviolence.

It is hard not to appreciate how Evil Dead Burn attempts to add more lore to the franchise and start to tie things together without messing up the timeline established across the previous films. Offering up a different take with a different setting and a new batch of characters, the film still feels like a tried and true ‘Evil Dead’ film in. Though some may grow tired of its formula, if this film is of any indication, it proves that the franchise still has tons of gas left in the tank. Meanwhile, Yacoub is very good as Alice, a character that doesn’t hold a candle to past protagonists in the franchise. However, she is somewhat let down by a script which does not do her justice. Similarly, Doohan, Errol Shand, and Tandi Wright hold their own, and without giving anything away, the actors who play the deadites commit to the demented chaos of it all.

What ultimately holds this back is its script, length, and climax. Firstly, the dialog occasional veers towards stilted territory, as the plot is mainly driven by questionable character decision, often bordering on the complete illogical. On the other hand, while it may not be an overly long film by today’s standards, it could easily have benefitted from a 5-10 minutes trim, straying from the franchise’s sweet spot of around the 90-minute mark. Coming to a head with what is, without a doubt, the weakest climax of the franchise so far is a real shame, coming short thanks to a lack in execution. Foregoing its established gross practical effects in favor of CGI, the final result is both rough and noticeable to a distracting degree, pulling audiences out of the experience altogether.

That being said, those issues aside, Evil Dead Burn is another solid addition to this franchise, and one that does not deserve the divisive response its already gotten thus far. Above all else, the film is further evidence that horror continues to dominate 2026, making for a fun and immersive theatergoing experience that is made even better with a packed audience. Clearly, some audiences are growing tired with the ‘Evil Dead’ franchise’s formula, but, to their credit, filmmakers like Sébastien Vaniček are still mixing it up and adding their own signature spin on it to help freshen it up. As a message for fans, for those who happen to stick around for the credits, they will be treated to a pair of post-credit scenes that are both pretty essential for the franchise moving forward.

still courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

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Connor Carey

www.connorsmoviereviews.com/