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Sam Raimi made the right decision by not using “Drag
Me to Hell” as an opportunity to transcend its genre. This
is a classic-style horror movie, one that’s not only aware
of its clichés but also makes it a point to have fun with
them. It’s a thrill-a-minute story of gypsy curses and evil
spirits, menacing shadows and unexplained gusts of wind,
disgusting makeup effects and moments that make you jump,
sudden noises and squeaky gates, old houses and creepy cemeteries
that can only be desecrated in the middle of a rainstorm.
***
It was undoubtedly made with the intention of producing
both shrieks and giggles. Having been attached to the Spider-Man
trilogy for the past seven years, Raimi returns to the genre
that made him famous and genuinely seems to be enjoying
himself in the process. ***
At the heart of this story is Allison Lohman, who brings
such great naivety and enthusiasm to a role that doesn’t
require anything other than screaming helplessly while looking
pretty. She plays Christine Brown, a young Los Angeles loan
officer who has her eye on a vacant managerial position.
***
Trying to prove herself capable of making tough decisions,
she refuses to extend a loan on a house owned by an old
Eastern European woman named Sylvia Ganush (Lorna Raver).
Sporting a bad eye and a thick accent that fans of Maria
Ouspenskaya would recognize, the elderly gypsy violently
places a curse on Christine in a parking garage, enraged
over having been shamed in public. Later on, Christine seeks
spiritual guidance from a psychic named Rham Jas (Dileep
Rao) and learns that she’s being stalked by a demon that
will claim her soul in three days. ***
There to support Christine is her boyfriend, Dr. Clay
Dalton (Justin Long), who believes in the rational more
than the mystical. Little does he realize what Christine
is going through; her life is now plagued with horrific
visions and destructive supernatural events, and what’s
worse, no one else can see or hear them occurring. She appeals
to Ms. Ganush’s family, only to be matter-of-factly told,
“You deserve everything you have coming to you.” ***
And no wonder--when Ms. Ganush first curses her, she
ominously tells her, “Soon, it will be you who comes begging
to me.” Is there any way at all to reverse the curse? Rham
Jas thinks there may be. Here enters Shaun San Dena (Adriana
Barraza), who had a very personal encounter with Christine’s
demon forty years ago. She lives in a sprawling mansion
in Pasadena and holds séances in a vast chamber that rivals
the decorative opulence of Hill House (as reinterpreted
by Jan de Bont). ***
Horror fans will not be disappointed with this film.
Raimi makes sure to give them a little bit of everything,
including a few well-placed moments of humor. You’ll note
that I said horror fans. It probably won’t appeal to the
slasher crowd, which is just as well since slashers are
more about sex, nudity, and dead teenagers than they are
about scares. “Drag Me to Hell” is clearly more interested
in genuine, primal fright, relying more on the things that
go bump in the night than on elaborate murder scenes with
masked killers. ***
Even during the funnier moments, each laugh seemed
lovingly put into place, as if to underscore the fact that
what you’re watching can’t be taken seriously. Raimi has
always been fairly good at balancing horror and humor, and
it’s nice to see that the years of more family friendly
fare have done nothing to diminish that. ***
But this movie works for reasons other than its story.
Christopher Young’s score is brooding, gothic, and melodramatic,
a wonderfully theatrical counterpart to the horrific visuals.
It effectively evokes the themes that go with being cursed
by a gypsy. Steve Saklad’s production design nicely combines
smaller, more intimate spaces with grandiose settings. ***
Peter Deming’s cinematography is probably the most
important creative aspect of all, seeing as lighting is
everything in a horror film. Nowhere is it put to better
use than in a scene late in the film, one in which Christine
digs up a grave in the rain. Thunder continuously pierces
the air while lightning gives just the right amount of illumination.
***
And as for the makeup effects, all I can say is be
prepared to do a lot of cringing. It’s not so much that
they’re gory (although there is scene that takes a nosebleed
to the nth degree), but they definitely aren’t shy about
being revolting. I could describe them for you, but you’d
probably be better off getting disgusted on your own. All
in all, “Drag Me to Hell” is quite an effective horror movie,
slick and stylish, funny and frightening, ghoulish and gruesome.
***
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