Robin PottratzReview: "Drag Me To Hell" gross, campy fun *** stars out of 4
June 18th 2009 03:53
I got the feeling that prior to making Drag Me To Hell, Director Sam Raimi was feeling a little bit of big budget superhero flick fatigue. After all, he is the man who guided the Spider-Man films to critical and commercial success...but even after all of the fame that those movies provide...I can imagine being a little tired of directing movies where your star shoots webs from his wrists.
Which of course leads us back to Drag Me To Hell. This is vintage Raimi. It gives new fans a treat to see the Sam Raimi who created Evil Dead, Army of Darkness, and Darkman. The film is a campy fun treat where the lead is a tiny twenty something loan officer who gets every type of goo thrown on her face, from worm vomit, to drool, to blood, to dead body goo. Some of these scenes are intentionally hilarious...and despite the chuckles it inspires...Drag Me To Hell is still a chilling and serviceable horror flick.
Alison Lohman was a last minute replacement for Ellen Page as Christine Brown, a meek loan officer with a loving professor boyfriend (Justin Long), gunning for a promotion when she is approached by a gypsy lady with a crazy eye who needs an extension on her mortgage. When Christine says no (in all honesty, when a gypsy lady with a crazy eye asks for an extension...just give her the extension), the old lady puts a curse on her where she will be haunted by spirits and eventually dragged down to hell (hence the title).
Eventually, poor Christine is attacked by shadowy spirits, the old lady (who attacks her from beyond the grave), and every type of bodily fluid conceivable. Alison Lohman is not a great actress...but to her credit she is a hell of a sport. Most actresses would simply be too vain to do a movie like this, but Lohman is up for the challenge...and the audience gets to enjoy the disgusting ride.
Lohman doesn't really act in the movie, (though she does give new meaning to the phrase 'here kitty') I would guess that Raimi gave her three directions (look scared, scream, scrunch your face)...but it all works. Drag Me To Hell isn't about nuance or acting...it is about frothy horror movie fun.
Does Drag Me To Hell go too far with the gross-outs and the ludicrous plot...absolutely. When the spirit attacking Christine assumes the form of a goat...its hard to keep taking things seriously.
Despite its flaws, I left Drag Me To Hell with a thought that I rarely have, that despite the movie's flaws, I was glad that Drag Me To Hell got made. In a multiplex where horror movies are simply remakes or rehashed stories, it was cool to see a movie that was a complete throwback to the fun horror flicks of the 70's and 80's. It seems fitting that the old horror pro Sam Raimi brought back that feeling...and Drag Me To Hell accomplishes that with the one aspect that most horror movies forget...in order to be good, it has to be scary...and fun.
Which of course leads us back to Drag Me To Hell. This is vintage Raimi. It gives new fans a treat to see the Sam Raimi who created Evil Dead, Army of Darkness, and Darkman. The film is a campy fun treat where the lead is a tiny twenty something loan officer who gets every type of goo thrown on her face, from worm vomit, to drool, to blood, to dead body goo. Some of these scenes are intentionally hilarious...and despite the chuckles it inspires...Drag Me To Hell is still a chilling and serviceable horror flick.
Alison Lohman is attacked by a creepy old lady (Lorna Raver) in "Drag Me To Hell"
Alison Lohman was a last minute replacement for Ellen Page as Christine Brown, a meek loan officer with a loving professor boyfriend (Justin Long), gunning for a promotion when she is approached by a gypsy lady with a crazy eye who needs an extension on her mortgage. When Christine says no (in all honesty, when a gypsy lady with a crazy eye asks for an extension...just give her the extension), the old lady puts a curse on her where she will be haunted by spirits and eventually dragged down to hell (hence the title).
Eventually, poor Christine is attacked by shadowy spirits, the old lady (who attacks her from beyond the grave), and every type of bodily fluid conceivable. Alison Lohman is not a great actress...but to her credit she is a hell of a sport. Most actresses would simply be too vain to do a movie like this, but Lohman is up for the challenge...and the audience gets to enjoy the disgusting ride.
Lohman doesn't really act in the movie, (though she does give new meaning to the phrase 'here kitty') I would guess that Raimi gave her three directions (look scared, scream, scrunch your face)...but it all works. Drag Me To Hell isn't about nuance or acting...it is about frothy horror movie fun.
Does Drag Me To Hell go too far with the gross-outs and the ludicrous plot...absolutely. When the spirit attacking Christine assumes the form of a goat...its hard to keep taking things seriously.
Despite its flaws, I left Drag Me To Hell with a thought that I rarely have, that despite the movie's flaws, I was glad that Drag Me To Hell got made. In a multiplex where horror movies are simply remakes or rehashed stories, it was cool to see a movie that was a complete throwback to the fun horror flicks of the 70's and 80's. It seems fitting that the old horror pro Sam Raimi brought back that feeling...and Drag Me To Hell accomplishes that with the one aspect that most horror movies forget...in order to be good, it has to be scary...and fun.
| 23 |
| Vote |
