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Drag Me to Hell is now showing at 21 cinemas

The saying goes, "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned"

Iskandar Liem (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Sun, June 14, 2009

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Drag Me to Hell is now showing at 21 cinemas

The saying goes, "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned". But if horrormeister Sam Raimi's latest flick Drag Me to Hell is any indication, a gypsy crone with repossessed property trumps a spurned lover in the fury department, anytime.

After spending the better part of this decade taking on Hollywood blockbuster territory with three immensely successful Spider Man films, Raimi makes a return to the diabolically camp roots of his claim to fame - the Evil Dead trilogy - with incredibly satisfying results.

It's comforting to know that despite being absent from the horror genre since 1992's Army of Darkness (the Cate Blanchett psychic whodunit The Gift doesn't count), the man still retains his mischievous edge and trademark penchant for the hilariously grotesque to deliver one of the most entertaining, in-your-face horror-comedies in recent memory.

Yes, it is a horror-comedy (despite being advertised as an all-out horror), but Scary Movie it is not. Drag Me to Hell treads a fine line between outrageous visual gags and jump-out-of-your-seat scares; a toned down balancing act more subdued than the gore fest of the Evil Dead trilogy or Peter Jackson's Braindead.

In fact, there's hardly any bloodletting at all in it. It's actually rather ingenious how Raimi managed to assemble a multitude of PG-rated vile elements to maximize the ick factor without getting butchered by the censors. Maggots, flies, phlegm, nasal projectiles - you name it, it's in the film.

The leading actress on the receiving end of all this foulness is Alison Lohman, whose girlish wholesomeness serves her well here, as it did in her breakthrough role in Ridley Scott's Matchstick Men.

Lohman plays Christine Brown, a loan officer who has the bad luck of serving a creepy gypsy woman, Sylvia Ganush (Lorna Raver), who's seeking an extension on her overdue mortgage payment. Now, sweet-natured Christine would have granted Mrs. Ganush's request, but desperate to impress her boss and get the coveted assistant manager position, she turns the women down against her better judgment. The old gypsy then proceeds to beg on her knees, prompting Christine to call security, who remove her by force.

Later that night, Christine is physically assaulted by a vengeful Mrs. Ganush in the car park, leading to a vicious catfight, upon which the gypsy places a deadly curse on her.

This scene is arguably one of the most uproarious catfight scenes ever captured on celluloid. A tongue-in-cheek reference to the Evil Dead trilogy is featured here, involving inventive ways of utilizing stationery items as weapons.

Add flying dentures and facial slobbering to the gut-churning mix and the scene alone is definitely worth the admission price.

After the curse is cast, so begins Christine's rapid descent into hell - literally. To her horror she realizes that she is doomed to be tormented by the demon Lamia for three days, before being dragged off to burn for eternity.

And so she frantically searches for ways to offset the curse, with considerable help from a Freud-quoting fortune teller (Dileep Rao, to be seen in James Cameron's upcoming Avatar) and a powerful medium (Oscar nominee Adriana Barraza from Babel).

Performances are top-notch all around; Lohman plays her role with such utmost earnestness that it's hard not to sympathize with her predicament, even when she resorts to unspeakable things like feline butchery.

Justin Long is believable enough as Christine's hapless boyfriend, despite not being given enough opportunities to emote properly, while Adriana Barraza aptly juggles creepiness with a hint of comedy thrown in for good measure.

Kudos to the relatively unknown Lorna Raver (and the superb makeup crew) for creating a memorable villain in the form of Mrs. Ganush. The role calls for an over-the-top interpretation of the script and Raver gleefully abides. Plus, that one eyed, rotten snarl of a face alone divides viewers down the middle whether to shudder or crack up upon seeing it.

Although it may not be everyone's cup of tea, Drag Me to Hell showcases Raimi's maturity as a director in his discipline and ability to maintain the delicate equilibrium between horror and humor. Sure, it has minus points - like the rather amateurish CGI and holding off on the obvious solution to the curse until the third act - but this is precisely the type of movie where one should just lay off the nitpicking, sit back and enjoy the experience. It's like a splendid rollercoaster ride that you want to sit through again and again. And again.

Drag Me to Hell is now showing at 21 cinemas

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