A1 "Army of Darkness Analysis" by Anthony Izzi

     
           One of the best scenes from “Army of Darkness” is when the protagonist, Ash Williams (portrayed by Bruce Campbell), first enters the castle grounds in 1300 A.D. Due to the lighting, it is believed that the scene was filmed in the afternoon and when the scene ends, the sun has begun to set. When Ash first enters the castle grounds, the camera does a “Scenery Zoom”, when the camera zooms out so the viewer can see all of the castle grounds, including the citizens, knights, Henry’s men, and the pit, which houses a couple of Deadites (original monsters of the “Evil Dead” franchise). As Ash is walking, the camera does a “Walking Scroll”, the camera moves as Ash moves, allowing the viewer to see what’s going on as the main character is walking.

            When a red-shirt (an unnamed extra that is killed off) is thrown into the pit, the camera focuses on the crowd’s point of view. The viewer sees what the crowd is seeing and it raises the suspense of the Deadites. As the Deadites are killing the red-shirt, his blood geysers up from the pit and the camera focuses on the entire geyser and shows the impact of fear it has on the crowd and Ash. When Ash is about to be thrown into the pit, someone from the crowd throws a rock at him and Ash is temporarily dizzy. The camera does a "Feel What I Feel" by tilting and shaking a little, making the viewer feel a little dizzy to show what Ash is feeling. As Ash is standing at the edge of the pit, the camera does a “First Person Angle”, the viewer sees what Ash is seeing in front of his eyes. As Ash sees the pit, he sees nigh-total darkness, until he finally falls in the pit.

            Inside the pit, it is very dim with a ray of light and the camera begins to shake as it is preparing for the fight scene. A Deadite appears and tries to kill Ash. During the fight, the camera is set so the viewer can see everything, shots of the crowd’s reactions are shown, and each shot last for at least 4 seconds. If a shot lasted too long, the costume design of the Deadite would start to be laughable for the viewer, giving him/her more time to analyze the costume and notice splits and other errors.

            When Ash escapes the pit, Bruce is standing very close to the camera to show how enraged he is while trying to stay calm. When Ash shows the crowd his boomstick (sawed-off shotgun), the camera does the “First Person Angle” again as Ash explains what his shotgun is and reactions of the crowd are shown. When Ash finishes the Deadite, he puts away his shotgun as the camera zooms in on his face and he ends the scene with a closing line that will continue the plot as the sun sets.

            This scene is very well paced. It furthers the plot, many key characters are introduced, their back-stories are explained briefly and the viewer understands who Ash is: a cocky and brash average Joe who loves to say one-liners. Fans of the previous movies know his character well and newcomers are introduced without any confusion of who Ash is. This is an very well-constructed scene that is filled with exposition, action, comedy, horror, and it is an excellent example of how to film a scene.