Film Review: Drag Me to Hell
Drag Me to Hell (2009)
Studio: Ghost House
DVD Release Date: May 29, 2009
Directed By: Sam Raimi
Cast: Alison Lohman, Justin Long, Lorna Raver, Dileep Rao
Review By: Benjamin Bussey
Hands up everyone who thought PG-13 horror could only be a bad thing. Hands up everyone who thought glossy, big-budget, CGI-laden spectacles couldn’t possibly be scary, that any product of the modern studio system would inevitably come out compromised. Most of all, hands up everyone who thought Sam Raimi’s horror days were completely over and done with. After nearly a decade of nothing but Spider-Man, and near enough two decades since he’s been near the genre at all in a directorly capacity, Raimi’s only contact in recent years with the dark netherworld that spawned him has been his Ghost House Pictures, and let’s not pretend that anything they’ve produced to date have been up to scratch. I think it’s fair to say that most of us have long since resigned ourselves to the idea that the Raimi of the Evil Dead glory days has long since given way to Raimi the Blockbuster Guy. There’s nothing inherently shameful about that (Spider-Man 3 aside), but it’s hard not to feel a tad mournful for the arch shockmeister that once was.
Well, mourn no more. Drag Me To Hell proves that, while the Raimi of old has long laid dormant, he’s not done yet. And along the way, it provides the best case for the defence that big-budget, studio produced PG-13 horror is ever likely to get.
Anxious for promotion at the bank, Christine (Lohman) picks the wrong day to develop a ruthless streak, and in so doing pisses off the wrong old Romani woman (the excellent and somewhat aptly-named Raver). Following a – how should I put it – altercation with the old lady, Christine quickly realises something is terribly wrong. She befriends a fortune teller (Rao) who warns her that a dire curse has been put upon her, and she only has three days until… well, there’s a clue in the title. But while the worst may be yet to come, those three days aren’t going to be a picnic either.
But such a synopsis doesn’t really give you a sense of just what kind of a movie Drag Me To Hell really is. While plot-wise it might not be too far removed from, say, this year’s The Unborn, in terms of execution it’s a whole different ball game. This movie doesn’t take place in the glossy, OC-esque universe of so many recent youth oriented horrors; this is an altogether older plane of movie reality, as hinted at by the use of the old Universal logo at the beginning. This is the place where the howling wind whisks leaves across your feet, shadows stretch out for miles, every door and gate creaks, every floorboard groans, and the threat of someone or something leaping out and yelling ‘BOO!’ is ever imminent.
When first choice Ellen Juno Page pulled out of the lead role, I suspected it was the Oscar nomination going to her head, making her think a horror movie was beneath her. Now, I wonder if it might have had more to do with a reluctance to be thrown around and pelted with quite so much repugnant shit. It’s fair to say that Alison Lohman endures more bodily punishment than any Raimi leading actor has since Bruce Campbell. Sure, there isn’t too much blood, but by goodness there’s a lot of slime, snot, puss and creepy crawly action. And it’s all designed to send the audience into hysteria. Whether that’s hysterics of laughter or shock, of course, largely depends on the individual, as Raimi once again demonstrates how scares and laughs are not too far removed.
Of course, it’s not without its little problems. While Lohman takes it all like a trooper, she’s not the most compelling of lead actresses. Similarly, despite their best efforts Justin Long and Dileep Rao are lumbered with pretty thankless stock roles as boyfriend and exposition guy respectively, and the plot doesn’t have too many great surprises in store either. But these are minor complaints indeed. Not since Sleepy Hollow has a movie balanced old-school spookiness and modern big-budget flash so well. As for how it stands in the Sam Raimi oeuvre – he might have a bigger toy box to dip into, but underneath it all he’s still the same big kid that strapped his camera to a plank and shoved it through a window, and that same urgent energy is still present. I’m not sure it’s quite the masterpiece the poster blurbs are declaring it to be, but Drag Me To Hell is easily the best horror movie I’ve seen on the big screen this year, and once we start rating the best of the decade I’m sure it’ll rate pretty high. In short – don’t miss it.
Brutal As Hell rating:
4 ½ out of 5
