Evil Ed

Director - Anders Jacobsson (Insane, Lost in Brainland)
Starring - Johan Rudebeck (Sleepwalker, Gunnar Rehlin), Per Lofberg (Frostbitten, LFO), and Olof Rhodin (Underground Secrets)
Release Date 1995
Genre - Horror/Comedy
Tagline - "When his mind blows...anything goes"
Format - Bluray (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     When I was in high school I got an amazon account and start working on my horror collection.  I grew up in McDowell County which is the southern most county in West Virginia and is known through out the country as being the poorest county in the U.S. with an average annual income of only 11K.  It is because of this I didn't have any stores, thrifts stores, or pawn shops to pick up cool horror flicks.  I had to rely heavily on the internet and after being burned a few times on ebay I decided to get an amazon account.  After ordering several classic horror flicks I came across the 1995 film Evil Ed.  It looked interesting but I didn't want to fire $20 into a movie I had never heard of.  I was an active member of the Upcoming Horror Movies forum and made a post about the film where I learned that a great deal of people didn't like it.  A friend of mine was able to snag a copy on VHS dirt cheap at the time and we gave it a go.  Personally, I didn't like it.  Not long ago Arrow Video released the film on blu and I was going to skip it but a friend of mine told me to give it another chance.  He knows my love of Troma and cheap horror flicks and was shocked when I revealed I didn't like it.  I reached out to MVD and Arrow and they were kind enough to send a review copy my way.  Good thing I decided to give it another chance because I absolutely loved it.

     The film follows film editor Ed (Rudebeck) who is moved from the drama department to the "Splatter and Gore" department after their last editor committed suicide by grenade.  He is tasked with editing the very profitable and prolific slasher series Loose Limbs.  Ed is a very timid guy and family man who doesn't like horror films but the department head forces him to edit the series while locked away in his spare home that he uses for business.  Ed sets out on his task but slowly starts to fill himself slip mentally before he finally snaps and sets out to kill those that are not innocent and pure.
     When I first watched Evil Ed it felt like a film that was just all over the place.  The humor didn't feel right and the movie itself made me think it was just pieced together anyway they could.  However, after spending over a decade watching indie films made on less than $100 my tastes in films have shifted.  I've learned to appreciate certain aspects in films that I would have turned me off to a film years before.  After watching Evil Ed for the second time I have to say that it is extremely underrated.  The acting in this one is fun.  You can quickly tell the scenes are dubbed but that only adds to the absurdity that the film already has.  The characters are all over the top and insanely memorable.  The characters are cleverly written and the cast does a superb job at making them feel animated.  I especially enjoyed Johan Rudebeck's performance.  His is absolutely brilliant and bat shit insane.  My mind can't wrap around the idea that Ed isn't considered a horror icon.  The story for this one is written as a parody but is a real love letter to classic 70s and 80s horror flicks.  The story was originally written as a parody/satire take on the Swedish film censoring that was taking place at the time hence why the film follows a film editor who wants to wipe out all the bad people in the world.  The film does make fun of that aspect but it also does a great job at rolling in several other horror elements that horror fans really love.  The film really does have a lot going on that will hold the viewer's attention from scene to scene.  Finally, Evil Ed is a bloody one.  The kills are brutal and they don't go by quickly.  The film drags out each and every kills so the viewer can really enjoy them.  The gags have great practical effects and they really take advantage of this to get the most out of each and every kills.  Overall, Evil Ed is not perfect.  My review may paint that picture but it is not.  However, the film is so much fucking fun to watch that you wont care.  I highly recommend checking this one out!