The best part about “Drag Me to Hell” is that this sideshow is just a warm-up for Sam Raimi’s promised remake of his own “Evil Dead.” Since Raimi made his trilogy of comedic horrors and switched to “Spider-Man,” it has become clear that no one else knows how to make people laugh and scare them at the same time.
So, we wait, and in the meantime, we laugh and fear for Christine (Alison Lohman), a bank loan officer who is going through tough times. She is really hoping for a promotion, but her lamprey-like boss in glasses says neither yes nor no. A meeting with her boyfriend’s parents is coming up, rich snobs who think that a girl born on a farm is not a match for their son. And when a disgusting old woman comes to her and starts begging for a payment extension, Christine decides to refuse. She is a nice girl with a kind heart, but it’s every person for themselves, right? It’s a pity, of course, that the old woman will have her house taken away… And how Christine will regret it when the old woman puts a gypsy curse on her! A terrible lamia is now after the girl and must drag her to hell on the third day.
Horror and Humor Collide
Actually, to make the film work, the scene with the frightened white goat (literally, alive) that screams at the heroine in a human voice “You deceived me, bitch!!!” would have been enough. Or a fight with a witch, in which the main weapon is a stapler. Or the heavy thud of hooves with which the devilish spawn climbs the wooden stairs - the most disgusting and frightening sound imaginable.
But Sam Raimi’s sense of humor is much more scathing than simply parodying the usual horror mannerisms. And more generous than simply gifting American homeowners who are losing their real estate today, on whose behalf he sent his malicious witch to the bankers. The most comical and hellish thing about what is happening is the cute world of the office girl. In essence, “Drag Me to Hell” is a scary office fairy tale, a genre akin to pioneer horror stories, something about a black-black fax or a client who turned out to be not a normal gangster or an honest middle class in sandals over socks, but he-who-must-not-be-named. Once upon a time, there was a girl who gave out loans, and one day an old gypsy woman came to her office…
A Hilarious and Terrifying Experience
The ecstatic, joyful laughter with which the audience greets the dentures flying out of the old woman’s mouth, the sneaky fly that mocks Christine in the most swinish way, and many other nightmarish and comical things with which Raimi has stuffed his film are an honest reward for everyone who came.
As is a good mood for the rest of the day. Because there is a lot of recognition in this laughter, and without the witch and the lamia, everything that happens would be no less funny and scary. Just a little less believable.