‘Once you look past the hype, actors are nothing more than fugitives from reality…’
Bruce Campbell is a cult cinema legend, mainly for his work in the Evil Dead franchise but also for such beloved oddities as Maniac Cop and Bubba Ho-Tep, as well as his television work. Campbell’s first autobiography If Chins Could Kill (subheaded Confessions of a B Movie Actor), published in 2001, charts his rise from being an awkward Detroit teenager in the ’70s to film stardom and eventual immortality as Ash Williams…
Masterfully read by Campbell himself, the version of If Chins Could Kill that I read had a bonus section documenting the release of the book and subsequent book tour. It’s all fascinating stuff, and while it’s perhaps inevitable that as a horror nerd, I was more drawn to the stuff about The Evil Dead than I was The Adventures of Brisco County, say, Campbell’s self-effacing, comedic writing style ensures that everything here is interesting. While all three Evil Dead movies had legendarily troubled production histories (albeit for completely different reasons), it is a joy to hear Campbell explain the finer details of the experience of making a true independent film. It’s still astonishing how successful the Evil Dead franchise has gone on to become considering its humble beginnings and to his credit, Campbell still seems down-to-earth enough to understand how huge the odds were against the film being released at all, never mind becoming a huge success.
Campbell begins every chapter with a correspondence from a ‘fan’. Some of them are gushing but many of them are either downright hostile or just plain bizarre. It’s the kind of personal touch his fans have come to expect from a man who is a regular on the convention circuit, and his constant faux dissatisfaction with Evil Dead director Sam Raimi is also hilarious.
If Chins Could Kill is a fascinating insight into the inner machinations of the movie industry and a charming rags-to-riches tale from one of horror’s most beloved sons. Groovy.