Drag Me to Hell (C or 2/4 stars)
I had a History of Violence effect after watching 'Drag Me to Hell', directed by Sam Raimi (the Evil Dead franchise, Spider-Man franchise, Army of Darkness, & The Gift - which I loved). What's that History of Violence effect, you ask? Well, it's when an overwhelmingly praised film disappoints me so much so that it actually angers me. But not only did the critics fall for it ... this movie did quite well at the box office, as well. I suppose I'm in the minority; though, I know my fellow critic pal, Kevin Lawlor, liked it even less than me. The basic plot: a loan officer ordered to evict an old gypsy woman from her home finds herself cursed at the hands of said gypsy. To put it bluntly, this loan officer's life is turned into a living Hell.
Christine Brown (Alison Lohman) is said loan officer; vying with a cunning co-worker for a vacant assistant manager position. She's desperate for the promotion; especially to impress the snooty parents of her boyfriend (Justin Long). Everything changes for Christine however when said gypsy woman sits down at her desk one fateful day. Sylvia Ganush (Lorna Raver) begs the shy Christine for a 3rd extension on her house mortgage. And looking to impress her boss (David Paymer) for that asst. manager spot, Christine turns down Mrs. Ganush's request; thus, throwing her out on the streets. As you can imagine, Mrs. Ganush does not react well to this; not at all. An initial verbal confrontation leads to an incredibly over-the-top physical altercation; where the old woman bestows a wicked curse upon Christine's jacket button. With this, Christine starts experiencing disturbing visions & happenings (the source ... a goat demon named Lamia). Hereafter, Christine consults a mystic (Dileep Rao) to save her from eternal damnation & rid her of the curse. You see, after 3 days of being tormented by the demon, it is said that it will claim her soul & literally 'drag her to Hell'. Hunted by this evil spirit - how far will Christine go to expunge it? Can she be saved?
I think that part of the reason this film didn't work for me was its PG-13 rating. Is it grossly funny? Well, some parts. It needed to be more outrageous. Is the movie scary? Well, no. You'll get a few cheap jolts. But nothing is truly scary - or - morbidly creepy. Critics keep exalting the film with this type of praise, "frantic, frenzied, goofy, gooey fun". The problem is, while it may be all of that and a lot more for some people, that doesn't really cut it for me. As Kevin notes in his review, where are the Exorcists of today's cinema? And I ask, 'Where are the bone-chilling Friday the 13ths & Nightmare of Elm Streets? I didn't enjoy Raimi's Evil Dead because it was just way too B-movie for my liking (awful acting, awful editing). But at least it brought some crazy gore. Though it has some gore & some humor, 'Drag Me to Hell' was not as not as gory, not as funny, & certainly not as scary as it should have been.
Another reason this film didn't really do it for me was Alison Lohman. I don't know. I loved her in Matchstick Men. But she hasn't wowed me in anything else. Lohman really needed to nail the vulnerability & over-the-top awkwardness that comes with being the Lead in a campy/horror film such as this. But she is so milquetoast in her portrayal that I couldn't care one way or another what happened to her in the end. For this genre, she did not nail the part. And I'm sure some people wouldn't want to root for her after sacrificing an innocent animal to rid her of the evil spirit, either.
I recognized a clear allegorical theme in 'Drag Me to Hell': with Christine representing bankers, & Sylvia Ganush representing the everyman who are either manipulated or ignored by greedy capitalists. Such a theme (for today's current economic climate) is interesting, but oddly misplaced in a horror flick like this.
There IS a plot in this movie, but it's pretty lame. And I don't want to be thinking about plot contrivances, holes, twists, or morality themes (economic climate) when watching a film like 'Drag Me to Hell'. I just want to have scary, gross-out fun. And I only had that in fits & starts. I enjoyed Lorna Raver's completely over-the-top portrayal as Mrs. Ganush. The make-up work is incredible. Some of the sight gags are humorous (projectile vomiting into someone else’s mouth, a fly landing on the lense of our screen, a ghoulish seance). The sound work is stellar (things that go bang & clang). And the eerie music really lent to the proceedings. But overall, I was disappointed. I don't want cheesy humor & corny frights. I want to be in pain from laughing & cowering in my seat from fear.
Christine Brown (Alison Lohman) is said loan officer; vying with a cunning co-worker for a vacant assistant manager position. She's desperate for the promotion; especially to impress the snooty parents of her boyfriend (Justin Long). Everything changes for Christine however when said gypsy woman sits down at her desk one fateful day. Sylvia Ganush (Lorna Raver) begs the shy Christine for a 3rd extension on her house mortgage. And looking to impress her boss (David Paymer) for that asst. manager spot, Christine turns down Mrs. Ganush's request; thus, throwing her out on the streets. As you can imagine, Mrs. Ganush does not react well to this; not at all. An initial verbal confrontation leads to an incredibly over-the-top physical altercation; where the old woman bestows a wicked curse upon Christine's jacket button. With this, Christine starts experiencing disturbing visions & happenings (the source ... a goat demon named Lamia). Hereafter, Christine consults a mystic (Dileep Rao) to save her from eternal damnation & rid her of the curse. You see, after 3 days of being tormented by the demon, it is said that it will claim her soul & literally 'drag her to Hell'. Hunted by this evil spirit - how far will Christine go to expunge it? Can she be saved?
I think that part of the reason this film didn't work for me was its PG-13 rating. Is it grossly funny? Well, some parts. It needed to be more outrageous. Is the movie scary? Well, no. You'll get a few cheap jolts. But nothing is truly scary - or - morbidly creepy. Critics keep exalting the film with this type of praise, "frantic, frenzied, goofy, gooey fun". The problem is, while it may be all of that and a lot more for some people, that doesn't really cut it for me. As Kevin notes in his review, where are the Exorcists of today's cinema? And I ask, 'Where are the bone-chilling Friday the 13ths & Nightmare of Elm Streets? I didn't enjoy Raimi's Evil Dead because it was just way too B-movie for my liking (awful acting, awful editing). But at least it brought some crazy gore. Though it has some gore & some humor, 'Drag Me to Hell' was not as not as gory, not as funny, & certainly not as scary as it should have been.
Another reason this film didn't really do it for me was Alison Lohman. I don't know. I loved her in Matchstick Men. But she hasn't wowed me in anything else. Lohman really needed to nail the vulnerability & over-the-top awkwardness that comes with being the Lead in a campy/horror film such as this. But she is so milquetoast in her portrayal that I couldn't care one way or another what happened to her in the end. For this genre, she did not nail the part. And I'm sure some people wouldn't want to root for her after sacrificing an innocent animal to rid her of the evil spirit, either.
I recognized a clear allegorical theme in 'Drag Me to Hell': with Christine representing bankers, & Sylvia Ganush representing the everyman who are either manipulated or ignored by greedy capitalists. Such a theme (for today's current economic climate) is interesting, but oddly misplaced in a horror flick like this.
There IS a plot in this movie, but it's pretty lame. And I don't want to be thinking about plot contrivances, holes, twists, or morality themes (economic climate) when watching a film like 'Drag Me to Hell'. I just want to have scary, gross-out fun. And I only had that in fits & starts. I enjoyed Lorna Raver's completely over-the-top portrayal as Mrs. Ganush. The make-up work is incredible. Some of the sight gags are humorous (projectile vomiting into someone else’s mouth, a fly landing on the lense of our screen, a ghoulish seance). The sound work is stellar (things that go bang & clang). And the eerie music really lent to the proceedings. But overall, I was disappointed. I don't want cheesy humor & corny frights. I want to be in pain from laughing & cowering in my seat from fear.