12/12/2009
Director Sam Raimi has directed such movies as Spider-Man 1, 2, and 3, A Simple Plan and Darkman returns to his horror roots in Drag Me to Hell. Raimi’s Evil Dead and Evil Dead 2 are two of the biggest cult horror movies ever made. They were both shot on extremely small budgets and launched his career and that of Bruce Campbell. Sam has a specific kind of horror that is half slapstick comedy and half ultra gore. The “dead” movies were made in the glorious golden ages of 1980’s horror films.
Drag Me to Hell is a very fun movie to watch that has everything the horror fan looks for, Super-natural curses, blood offerings, and gypsies. The movies main characters are Christine and Clay, played by Alison Lohman ("White Oleander" and "Flicka") and Justin Long (the Apple Computer guy). The story revolves mainly on Christine and her job as a loan officer yearning for the available assistant manager position. It’s between her and the new guy Stu Rubin. Enter the creepy looking Sylvia Ganush, an elderly woman who comes into the bank and begs Christine for another extension on her mortgage but Christine turns her down. That night in the parking lot Mrs. Ganush is waiting for her and they engage in an incredibly funny fight scene. Mrs. Ganush then puts a gypsy curse on Christine. She summons a demon known as the “Lamia”. The Lamia is known as the black goat and the eater of souls. Christine has three days to fight off and get rid of the curse before she is “dragged to hell”
Justin Long plays the boyfriend part well and adds his own brand of humor to the role. His parents are rich and don’t approve of his choice of Christine, who grew up on a farm and was quite the pudgy tomboy as a child. As the curse progresses, it starts to make Christine see and hear things that aren’t really there. They visit a fortune teller who feels the presence of the curse within Christine. He warns her of the danger and to be careful. Christine finally agrees to a fancy dinner at Clay parent’s mansion. This doesn’t end well as you might expect. The acting, directing, and such are all top rate. Everything you would expect from a Sam Raimi production. As mainstream Hollywood horror films go, it would be hard to top.
Raimi plays around with classic ways of scaring the audience. Wind, shadows, and strange noises are played out well. Other than in a Looney Toons cartoon, where else would you see a good anvil gag? The several gross-out scenes are purposely played for their comic effect rather than to outright scare you, which is a strong trademark of a Sam Raimi film. There is a twist ending that is pretty sweet and is set up in the first part of the movie.