Drag Me to Hell (2009) Reviews

• Forget the rating

  kosmasp2010-06-28

  And by rating I mean the "PG-13" one. Seems like you can get away with murder these days with a PG-13 rating ... Seriously though: While this was one detail that got discussed quite a bit, even before the movie came out, many "fearing" (no pun intended) that Raimi had lost his touch and had gone "soft" on them. Fear no more (or actually do so, while watching the movie), because he hasn't. This movie is showcase of what Raimi is capable of. Sure you might not like the movie for various reasons, but Raimi does know how to build tension (and torture his protagonists apparently ... ask Bruce "Ash" Campbell and now the lovely A. Lohman) ... and serve as the good stuff. Disturbing images and a nice score, neatly edited and shot. One of the best Horror movies of 2009. Sometimes it didn't get the recognition it deserved, sometimes it did (it just won another prize the other day). Of course there are flaws. Mr Jeepers Creepers (Justin Long) himself, reduced to a bystander for example. But in the end, it delivers fully on what it promises ...

• Finally.....

  krenwregget2014-09-04

  It took Sam Raimi to bring fun back to the horror genre, and I'm so glad he did. In a sea of 'torture porn' and 'found footage' garbage, this is a rare jewel that makes you realize what you've been missing as a horror fan. If you're into Sam's other works, you will greatly enjoy this film as it hits all the right notes and contains many of his trademark moments and nods to his early films. It's light on the blood and guts compared to the Evil Dead trilogy, but I didn't miss it all that much because I was having too much fun with everything else. If you don't get black comedy, perhaps this film will confuse or disappoint you or come off as 'cheesy', but this is classic Raimi style and I love it. It's good to see many practical effects back in action and his camera work is as great as ever. I like horror films to be fun and this certainly fits the bill.

• loud, predictable, not scary

  ajaj1182009-05-30

  Seeing the trailer to this movie I expected to go in and have a few scenes that were ones that made you jump. But I also expected the movie to have something scary in it that made you think when you left the theater. If you are looking for cheap thrills, LOUD music, and stuff jumping out at you constantly then this is your movie. I found this movie to be extremely predictable, especially the ending. The séance scene was laughable. The guy hanging in the air "dancing the jig" was one of the dumbest I have seen in a LONG time. And the "cartoonish" talking goat was a joke. The SFX in this movie were worse than a Saturday night sci-fi channel B-movie. It was a serious WASTE of money. We had a free ticket, and I feel even that was wasted on this movie. giving this movie a 3 out of 10 is even being generous.

• Impossibly awful

  thoward12232009-05-31

  I just felt compelled to post this because somehow... and I can't even begin to understand how... people and even professional critics like this movie. I don't get it. I loved Evil Dead and I still don't get it, because this wasn't campy -- it was just bad. Seemed thrown together very quickly, with a few scenes stripped whole from Evil Dead 2 and some of the worst writing ever... It just didn't feel like camp. It felt like dreck. And the ending was telegraphed so early in the film that the last 30 minutes were almost physically painful to watch. And yet... the Washington Post said the ending was a shocker. If this wasn't a Sam Raimi film, no one would even have suggested it was supposed to be funny. They would have just figured that it sucked. Maybe that's his joke on everyone, after all.

• Intense and Funny - Classic Sam Raimi

  indyj12009-05-30

  The early trailers for Drag Me to Hell dubbed it as (sic) "the return to classic horror", and for once at least, they are correct. Sam Raimi manages to incorporate genuine thrills and terror using the old-fashioned format of surprise, misdirection and suggestion. As a frequent viewer of horror films, little surprises me, but in this film I was caught off-guard several times while watching it. While the majority of the movie is kept on a serious and foreboding level, much like the original "Evil Dead", Raimi can't help but throw in elements of the absurd and slapstick during some of the more horrific scenes, thus reducing the tension and echoing the latter 2/3 of the "Evil Dead" trilogy. WHile I have nothing against the modern trend of horror movies to provide shocks merely in the form of how much blood and gore they spill, this flick was wonderfully refreshing. It's a must-see, not just for Raimi fans, but for anyone who loves a good scary story and a great movie in general.