MovieChat Forums > The Evil Dead (1983) Discussion > No religion in this movie.

No religion in this movie.

posted 2 years ago by scannerdarkly (1274)
6 replies | jump to latest

The new testament has Jesus Christ exorcise demons out of a man and then send them into a pig so they would drown with the pig into the sea. Jesus told his followers that if they invoke his name they can drive demons out of their lives as well. Just call upon Jesus and God to help you.

This movie has no prayer in it whatsoever. Not once did Ash say "God Help Me drive out these demons"! Which would be many peoples go to ask for help in something as wicked, bizarre, and disturbing as your friends and family becoming possessed and attacking you. But this movie made it a point to leave out Christianity out of the picture, with Ash fighting the demons in more mundane ways.

Even the Ash vs Evil Dead series left prayers out of it.

Was this done to add more terror to the film, as there is no God that can help them? Or did Raimi not want to get major religions involved in his story?

Does anyone else find it odd that no prayer was used?

[–] DoctorThirteen (10151) 7 months ago

I think if you bring God into it you start down the path of acknowledging (implicitly, at least) the Devil (e.g. The Exorcist) and these weren't those kinds of demons. In reality, a person facing those horrors might well invoke God's name, but for this film it would just have been a distraction that wouldn't have led anywhere.

[–] scannerdarkly (1274) 7 months ago

If they used prayer and it didnt work on the demons, then implicitly it would also be a way of saying "there is no God to help you" which is something one of the demons says in season one of Ash vs The Evil Dead. (I had forgotten about this, but its in the scene in the woods when Ash goes to the Cabin and his friends follow in pursuit to find him) Demons lie of course, but I dont think anyone used prayer, in Jesus Christ's name, as a means to drive out the demons either. Raimi may not have wanted to even implicitly say that christian prayer is meaningless. But also it would have changed his story and it would have become more biblical.

I find your thoughts interesting, that these demons are some kind of ancient malevolent force that exists outside of religion. Maybe they are like an infection or physical disease? Their possession is not spiritual so that means it has to be dealt with physically.

[–] DoctorThirteen (10151) 7 months ago

Yes, part of some long forgotten 'old world order'. Beings from another dimension, magical, but not truly of any formal religion (although more primitive man may have used them as a basis for such, or a cult). Tricksters, whose sole goal is to cause misery for its own sake. At least, that's how I see them. And yes, once they've taken hold, something that needs to be dealt with on a physical level. I think that's why Ash is their ultimate nemesis. He's not too bright, but for some reason he seems to have a knack for taking and dishing out physical punishment!

[–] scannerdarkly (1274) 7 months ago

Ever seen the show Angel? Wesley encounters a monster from another dimension. This monster is pulling entrails from a corpse and arranging them in some concise manner on the wall. Wesley asks it what it was doing.
It responded "Im doing magic".
Wesley asks "Why not use an incantion"?
The beast bawks "WORDS? pfff!! This is older than words! Blood Magic, OLD. Oldest magic. Much better than words".

Ash was the hero we needed. He had a lot of mental fortitude as well, possibly part of his stubbornness and arrested development xD

[–] DoctorThirteen (10151) 7 months ago

Ash (or Bruce Campbell, at least) making a cameo on Angel - or Buffy - would have been amazing!

[–] scannerdarkly (1274) 7 months ago

Woah...I never considered that! Cutting the head off a vampire would work!

He did make a cameo on Hercules at least xD but as a thief