Few films right now are as eagerly anticipated by Empire as Drag Me To Hell, the movie that marks Sam Raimi’s return to horror – and, after viewing the trailer, which went online today, we just got even more excited.
The film stars Alison Lohman as a loans officer at an LA bank who gets more than she bargained for when, in an effort to secure a promotion, she turns down a loan request from an old gypsy woman (the aptly-named Lorna Raver). Long story short: the old woman places a curse on Lohman, condemning her to three days of violent visitations from a demon called the Lamia; three days in which she and her boyfriend (Justin Long) must find a way to end the curse, or be… well, dragged to hell.
The trailer takes its sweet time establishing the premise, but once the curse has been placed, all hell breaks loose with creepy shadow demons, a séance gone wrong, and intriguing shots of Lohman in a graveyard.
It’s all very promising, with plenty of hints that Raimi is having enormous fun on this, his first non-Spider-Man movie since 2000. And audiences, in the current climate, will surely enjoy seeing a banker, no matter how innocent or pure of heart, put through the wringer.
Mind you, we have it on good authority that the trailer doesn’t even begin to hint at the film’s delirious insanity, expertly orchestrated jump scares and leftfield forays into demented humour. We could tell you how we know this, but then we’d have to drag you to hell.