Sam Raimi’s The Quick and the Dead (1995): Chillers, Westerns, Spider-Mans, and Ancients

Jon Solomon (University of Illinois)

The Quick and the Dead (1995) generates several important questions. This paper will address how this quasi-allegorical film perpetuates a modern comprehension of ancient mythology, morality, and literature. The struggle between good and evil is resolved by the emergence of a reluctant but divinely talented, morally resolved, and altruistic hero who despises violence but excels at both combating and employing it. The female protagonist, who also excels at violence, brings “the law” back to town as a debt paid to her tragic family; in doing so she seems to be a modern rendition of Antigone. The blind boy who assists them reflects the mid-1990s popularity of the Teiresias figure which appeared in a number of contemporary films.

Significantly, this film was directed by Sam Raimi, who began his career by making several cult horror films, then served as executive producer of the television series “Hercules: The Legendary Journeys,” and achieved further fame now by directing the lucrative Spider-Man films. The portrayal of both the reluctant hero and the violent female protagonist, as well as the insertion of remodeled ancient mythological figures can be found throughout his oeuvre, particularly in “Hercules: The Legendary Journeys.”