Quote:
Originally Posted by alkytrio666
What if I wanted a solid, filling entry into the genre, like Halloween in the 70s, A Nightmare on Elm Street in the 80s, Silence of the Lambs in the 90s? Drag Me to Hell as a kind of simultaneous crowd-pleaser for newcomers and salute to genre fans is fun for a ride, but what is it really saying about the state of the horror film? That we can only reminisce about the good old days from behind the comfort of safe, studio commercial filmmaking? I don't necessarily care about a rating; what bothers me is the difference in quality. The Evil Dead was a non-stop terror ride which never apologized and stayed gritty and fresh. Drag Me to Hell had to, for example, have a shot of Justin Long answering an iPhone. With Sam Raimi at the helm, I was ready for the next step in the horror movement; instead, I got pastiche.
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Yeah, I really feel this. I was rather disappointed in the film, especially hearing all the rave reviews. I mean Entertainment Weekly gave it an A. They've never given that high a rating to horror movie. Part of my disappointment could be because I've seen so much horror, so it may take a lot more to impress me? I don't know, the whole movie kind of felt like Diet Horror. All the elements were there, but it didn't push it enough for me to feel horrified, it just fell weak. The ending also felt very predictable to me, though part of that could be because I had more time to think about it, as what was going on on the screen wasn't that terrifying.
Now, that being said. This may be the right level of horror for mainstream America, but I really expected more from Sam Raimi. It's almost like he's lost his way and got fat from Spider-Man, and just having an okay, profitable movie is enough for him now instead of making something truly inspiring.
I will have to say that he did one thing that I really liked. Most fortune tellers in movies are dark-haired women. I didn't realize how much of a stereotype this was until the "fortune teller" in DMTH was an Indian man, a seer. It was really refreshing and the actor playing the seer did a really good job.