Nate At The Movies

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS.

As I’ve become a bigger cinephile over the last few years, I’ve had a couple instances where I accidentally start an actor or director’s filmography in a really unconventional place. That’s what’s happened with Sam Raimi and Send Help today. I haven’t seen any of the original Spider-Man trilogy (I’m so sorry), nor have I seen any of the Evil Dead movies, so Send Help became the first Sam Raimi movie I’ve ever seen today. Luckily for me, Raimi seems to be pretty good at his job, and rather than being turned away from him, I’m more excited to check out his movies.

What eventually drew me to Send Help despite not loving the trailers were the stars. Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien were each great in their own unique ways here. McAdams went full badass, including a brashness I don’t think I’ve seen anywhere else in her lauded filmography, and Dylan O’Brien played the spoiled, helpless rich white boy to a T. That laugh he kept using had me in stitches! I enjoyed the dynamic between Linda and Bradley, and the power between them continually shifting kept the story really interesting.

While the “plane crash on a deserted island” narrative is well-worn by now, Raimi found so many ways to subvert expectations and keep the intensity high. Linda being a crazy talented survivalist was the first subversion, and I enjoyed watching her go off while Bradley flailed for the first few days they were stuck. The power shifted so many times in the second hour, usually based on who had the knife, and it was annoyingly enjoyable how Bradley never just gave in and took the help. The twists came fast and furious in the final half hour, from Bradley cooking dinner to Zuri’s return to the dang mansion at the end. Every turn was unexpected, hilarious, and kept the story fresh.

I don’t have a lot of gripes with this movie, but because I wasn’t familiar with Sam Raimi’s horror chops, the sheer amount of blood and gore in this film was an unwelcome surprise. The boars, barf, and eye-gauging were too much for me, and I had to look away at times, but beyond that, I only have positive things to say about Send Help. I hate to say this was good “for a January movie”, but not only was it good for a January movie, it was just a good movie in general. I think if I’ve learned anything from Send Help, it’s that Sam Raimi and Rachel McAdams can make just about anything work, and this sure worked on me.