Granted, I know there is going to be a majority of people out there that 'won't get it'...Raimi's style is simply that way. And his style is by far the most apparent thing about "Drag Me To Hell". The quirky camera work, the ambient suspense, and the very unique 'voice' that he adds to all his films is far more up front then his more mainstream work like "Spiderman". This is what truly made this film a great watch and fun from beginning to end. The story isn't all that unique (although Gypsy witches are fewer and far between now that vampires are all the hype) but the quest that Alison Lohman goes on to rid herself of this curse is fun to follow and the scares are abundent.
My true surprise though that came from "Drag Me To Hell" came from Raimi (and brother Ivan who co-wrote the film with Sam) and how the film managed to work around its more mainstream PG-13 rating. Of course, he couldn't do the ridiculous gore he had before, but there are plenty of great gross out moments (including lots of body fluids!) and more then enough ridiculousness. When a goat possessed by a deity calls you a 'bitch' - now that's awesome. But besides the gross out moments the scares are great. There are tons of jump scares that use everyday elements and don't seem, pardon the phrase, dumbass scares. It's a nice change of pace to see a Horror film succeed with creepy and jump scares that isn't a remake of an Asian film.
On the acting side, Lohman does what is needed and carries the film quite well where the big surprise comes from Justin Long. Normally, I can't stand Mr. Mac in films (there are several Apple placements in the film concerning him that made me laugh) but he does a solid job as both voice of reason and some joking moments. I was impressed.
So if you are a Raimi fan, then this is A MUST SEE. If you are a fan of unique filmmaking and great directing then I also must advise this for watching. If you don't catch the dark humor then this might be a massive let down for you, otherwise its on the list for best films of 2009.
Fans of Raimi will instantly recognize when his car appears too!
Written By Matt Reifschneider
Scariest movie I have ever seen that I actually enjoyed. I jumped about every 4 seconds, and spent the majority of the movie catching only corners of the screen as my arms covered my eyes.
ReplyDelete4.5/5 EXCELLENT
ReplyDeleteSo terribly underrated. I can only suspect that expectations of Sam Raimi's first horror film since THE EVIL DEAD films were all out of proportion. Also, everybody's demanding something different and original, and damned if they don't bitch and complain when they get it! An exciting return to the genre for one of its masters, and I can't wait for him to strike again.