In “Evil Dead Rise,” Kassie goes through a lot. From running from possessed neighbors to stabbing her family members to escape, this kid will need so much therapy. One of the most heartwrenching moments occurs after Beth and Kassie exit a blood-filled elevator. A confused Kassie asks Beth if she’s dead. She’s in so much shock that she can’t understand whether she’s alive or if she’s entered an ongoing “Skinamarink”-like hell dimension.
At the end of “Evil Dead Rise,” Beth and Kassie unite to defeat the Marauder. However, the reason they succeed isn’t just because there’s an industrialized grinder to shove the Big Bad into in the nick of time. Earlier in the film, we learn that this evil can’t be stopped until there’s a loss of innocence. While Beth ultimately chainsaws the creature to bits, it’s Kassie who is instrumental here. She turns the machine on, destroying the remains of her family members and her familial role. Whatever innocence remains in Kassie is brutally squashed in that grinder.
Again, there’s a parallel at play. We can imagine how Kassie will become an older, protective sister to Beth’s unborn child — much like her mother was. Kassie has seen a world without mercy. Yet, what scares us most about this hard-hearted outcome is one question: Will Kassie ever be free of this evil? Or, like Ash, will she be doomed to live and relive this traumatic cycle?
