Bruce Campbell vs. The Orchestra: "Evil Dead II" Score Talk!

Alright fiends, HughesReviews back at it. So, been revisiting Sam Raimi's Evil Dead II lately, and while I always appreciate the slapstick gore and Bruce Campbell's over-the-top performance (seriously, that chainsaw hand!), I really locked in on the score this time. Now, I know Joseph LoDuca is the composer here, and he's fantastic no doubt, but Evil Dead II is just... different. It's so much bigger and wilder than the first film, and the score definitely reflects that. Specifically, I'm wondering what everyone thinks about the balance between the orchestral moments and the more… 'out there' sounds? Like, the stop-motion sequences wouldn't hit nearly as hard without those screechy, unsettling effects, but then you have these moments with the chanting and the strings that are genuinely creepy and effective. The score really leans into the dark humor, I think. Are there any cues that you think really stand out or maybe are under-appreciated? And, this is a bit of a deep cut, but did anyone else pick up on the potential connections to Bernard Herrmann's work? I'm maybe just getting a little too into the score for a movie about a guy fighting evil trees, but there are moments, in particular during the cabin siege, that feel almost directly Herrmann-inspired. I think it works really well, but just curious if anyone else caught that vibe. Maybe I'm just hearing horns where there aren't! Haha! So, yeah, let me know what you think. Evil Dead II score: yay or nay? What parts do you love, what parts do you skip? Groovy!