Movies - TV
This Horror Cult Classic May Have
Been the Inspiration For Evil Dead
By LEE ADAMS
While “The Evil Dead” was a genre-defining classic, its ideas may not have been completely original, as a movie called “Equinox” with a very similar plot debuted years earlier.
“Equinox” centers on a man named David who is hit by a car while fleeing something in the woods after visiting his professor’s cabin. He is then placed in a psychiatric ward.
A reporter finds out through a tape of David's testimony that his friends were killed by a demon his professor accidentally released, leaving David as the only survivor.
“The Evil Dead” also features a cabin, a tape, demons, and a creepy book, making the plotline very similar to that of “Equinox.”
Despite its low budget, “Equinox” had impressive special effects. This is another parallel, as “The Evil Dead” director Sam Raimi pulled off a lot with only $375,000.
While “Equinox” and “The Evil Dead” are very similar, Sam Raimi says his film was mainly inspired by “Night of the Living Dead” and “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”
“Evil Dead” make-up artist Tom Sullivan says the similarities are due to both films having “a few characters, an isolated, inexpensive location, and ambitious special effects.”