Sam Raimi returns to the genre that made him famous, the low budget horror flick. The story of an ordinary young woman under the spell of a gypsy curse, the rather simple outline leaves plenty of room for the sort of horror shocks and twists that are largely missing from such of modern American origins. Regardless of the surprises on screen, perhaps the biggest shock stems from the fact that the film itself isn’t a remake of a Japanese horror film! This is Raimi back to what  he does best; stripped back shockers with enough characterisation to make the protagonist endear. With an original yarn spun by Raimi and his brother Ivan, best known on these shores for his comedic role in the Spider-Man trilogy, a fresh yet familar take on a well worn genre makes Drag Me To Hell the perfect ghost-house-esque piece of entertainment.

Alison Lohman plays Christine Brown, the aforementioned “ordinary young woman” at the center of the tale. Crossing paths with an elderly lady, Christine is left with an ancient curse, that eventually will see her dragged to hell by the Lamia, a methological child killing demon. So far, so middle of the road, but its in the execution where the film drags itself into interesting territory. It helps that the cast is endearing and likeable enough for the viewer to be concerned about their welfare, with the likes of Justin Long (as Christine’s sceptical boyfriend Clay) and Dileep Rao (in a memorable turn as a faith healer) providing great support to what is effectively a film from the archtypal “lone-girl-survival” school of horror. 

The timing of Drag Me To Hell release, considering the nature of the films mortgage based storyline couldn’t be any more appropriate, yet it is seemingly coincidental. An Evil Dead-esque layer of comedy is present too, providing many well placed laughs in time to their horrific counterparts. Comic relief indeed, if not a little too prevailant at times. Saying that, the opening sequence, that takes place 40 years prior to the is pretty much the most horrific piece of American cinema I have seen in the last ten years.  

The clever camerawork honed by Raimi on the Evil Dead films and perfected on the Spider-Man flicks is the biggest thing that seperates Drag Me To Hell from its siblings in the horror genre, with the film displaying a level of craft not usually seen in a genre stifled by music video graduates and commercial alumni, yet this is also the area that prevents Drag Me To Hell from achieving its own personal aim, which is to homage the films of the late 70′s and early 80′s that inspired Raimi. Not that this is a major issue, in fact I’m relieved that it wasn’t a simple homage, as the resulting film is much more important than that. In fact I would go as far as to commit to the written word that Drag Me To Hell is the best mainstream film of the summer, and a genuine great.