One movie. Five people, living or dead, at the screening. Who and why?
Today’s screening: “Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn”

This sequel (or remake – debate rages on) to his revelatory debut feature “The Evil Dead” finds Sam Raimi revisiting a rustic cabin where dark forces are accidentally unleashed after an archaeologist’s taped readings from the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis are played aloud, invoking evil spirits that protagonist Ash must fight off. The film continues the original’s cartoonish approach to violence, while upping the quantity of slapstick and one-liners.

• Buster Keaton (1895-1966), Actor
Though one may be straight faced and the other manic, Buster Keaton and Bruce Campbell share a workmanlike dedication to slapstick, flinging their bodies into the blind peril of exploding china and collapsing buildings. I’d love watching Keaton marvel at Campbell’s blood-smeared antics. Supposedly, there’s a lost scene from “The General” where Keaton gets curbed by his own severed foot.

• Garrett Brown (1943- ), Cinematographer
Brown, best known for inventing the Steadicam, may have already seen Evil Dead 2, which is infamous for featuring some of the most ridiculously over the top Steadicam shots ever. Still, I’d like to watch every tree-dodging, Campbell-flinging moment of footage with him. It’d be like taking flashlight-inventor David Missel to watch cops beat winos with Maglites.

• H.P. Lovecraft (1890-1937), Author
Known for his dour, madness-tinged tales of the dread elder gods, horror writer H.P. Lovecraft created the now-standard macabre MacGuffin, the Necronomicon. I’d like to show him Evil Dead 2 in hopes of putting a smile on his sad, tired face. Plan B: introduce him to a real elder god… The Tickle Monster.

• Gertrude Bell (1868-1926), Archaeologist
Travelling everywhere from Jerusalem to Hungary, Bell investigated ancient ruins and hidden cities all across Europe and Asia. While I can foresee her response to my post-screening question, “So, has that ever happened to you?,” I can’t predict her asnswer to my follow-up, “So, like, what would you do if it did?”

• Pat Graham (?), Film Critic
Now, I don’t need everyone to enjoy everything I like, but critic Pat Graham panned “Evil Dead 2”, “Predator” and “The Fly.” “Evil Dead 2” doesn’t really need more praise, but I still want this guy to re-experience it. And while he’s at the screening, the cops can raid his house to make sure he isn’t planning to rag on “Re-Animator” or murder Santa.

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