My adrenaline is pumping so hard I almost can't control my fingers long enough to type out this review. I have waited so long, it seems, to finally watch Drag Me to Hell and now that I have I cannot wait to see it again and again and again.
If you have ever been a fan of Raimi's horror, if you ever loved Evil Dead, if you ever wondered if that was a fluke, see this film immediately. Raimi has been a horror icon for years because of his first feature length film and now, almost thirty years later, he proves that not only did he retain his horror chops but he has honed them to perfection. Pardon me while I gush but I cannot say enough about how much fun I had watching this film.
Christine Brown (Alison Lohman) is a loan officer at the local bank and she is in desperate want of the assistant manager's position that just opened. Everything is going her way until an old gypsy woman comes to plead her case for an extension on her mortgage. Determined to make the right choice for the bank and seal her promotion, Christine declines the request. And the woman is not pleased about it. From the moment I saw this trailer, I have joked that I kept expecting Mrs. Ganush (Lorna Raver) to say
“Thiiiinnner.” By the end of the film, Christine will wish that's the extent of the curse that was dropped on her head. Instead she is cursed with The Lamia, a demon in the form of a black goat who has designs on taking her soul straight to Hell. With Christine's boyfriend, Clay (Justin Long), in tow she seeks the advice of a seer (Dileep Rao) to understand what has been plaguing her. From this point on, all bets are off and all sorts of trouble ensues. It's not fun at all for Christine but it's more than fun for us as we watch Raimi pull up his sleeves and deliver his best entry into horror since Evil Dead.
The cast is superb. Lohman is believably stricken and adorable all the while, Long is skeptical but supportive and who has ever said anything bad about David Paymer? He is her bank manager and even though his scenes aren't heavy throughout the film, he delivers when he is on screen. And Lorna Raver's evil gypsy is one of the nastiest characters you could ever hope to meet...or not if you're lucky. Ted even makes an appearance (sort of) as a doctor who still makes house calls? I'll call shenanigans on that, but I'll believe anything else Raimi throws at me.
If you were at all concerned that the hi-
If you were worried that maybe he has gotten soft after years of blockbuster summer movies, you have nothing to fear. Raimi proves he has the capability to be just as gross as he ever was, just as jarring as you remember and truly, truly frightening. His timing is impeccable. I had so much fun watching the audience's reactions and picking out the ones who had no idea what they were getting themselves into. I had one complaint throughout the entire film but I eventually forgave him for it. It was necessary and the pay off was worth it. I won't say what that is but I think you'll figure it out when you see it. I also had the pleasure of witnessing a crowd that was appreciative and grateful for what they saw. Everyone applauded at the end. I cannot tell you the last time I got to see that. And mush that I am, I almost cried when it was over because I was so happy with my experience...and no, I'm not making that up.
I know that eventually I will come down from my cinematic high and I might even read over this and laugh at myself for being like a five year old on Christmas morning. But that won't be for quite a while and until then I will satisfy myself with congratulating Sam Raimi on his triumphant return to the genre which made him a household name all those years ago.
see that. And mush that I am, I almost cried when it was over because I was so happy with my experience...and no, I'm not making that up.
By
Maven