The last time director Sam Raimi actually got to have fun with a movie was 2009’s cult horror comedy classic Drag Me to Hell. I wondered at one point during the press screening of Send Help what the filmmaker’s last project was, because it felt like so long since we’d last seen him. It was Disney/Marvel’s 2022 Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness. And his film before that was Disney’s beleaguered 2013 film Oz: The Great and Powerful. And anyone who’s seen those two films and thought Raimi had lost his touch would be forgiven. It sure felt that way. He’s taken a few paycheck gigs for Disney but the deal he made with the Mouse must have included a contingency where he could make the kind of movie he actually cares about – a ‘one for you, one for me.’ And after seeing Send Help, I’ll just say there is a clear and noticeable difference when Raimi actually wants to be on set. 

Linda Liddle (Rachel McAdams) is a longtime employee at a company that’s never appreciated her. Once her boss dies, his entitled and arrogant son Bradley (Dylan O’Brien) assumes his role. Linda was promised a promotion, and Bradley takes that from her, giving the position to one of his frat bro-ish friends. Linda and Bradley end up on a plane that crashes, leaving them as the only survivors. She has survival skills, he does not. This gives Linda the perfect opportunity to turn the tables on Bradley in some brutal and surprising ways. 

Send Help works so well because it allows Raimi to go full Raimi. In his last few films, it feels like his spark has died, and it’s been unfortunate to see one of our greatest genre filmmakers settle for big studio tentpoles that are…fine, I guess. Send Help is high on its own batshit crazy energy, and it’s a demented delight throughout. It’s tense, ridiculous, brutal, and hilarious, and it’s proof of what the results can look like when studio execs just get out a filmmaker’s way and let them have fun with material that suits them perfectly. I’m sure Disney/Fox wanted to mess with Raimi’s film, and it’s a testament to the filmmaker’s vision how his presence is felt all over the film and how much it immediately feels like one of his best.

Rachel McAdams is a performers who is always giving her all, but she’s committing to the bit here in ways that feel out of her comfort zone. She’s having the time of her life with this script that lets her lean into the dark, gonzo nuttiness of this character. And even though Linda is doing terrible things, we root for her every step of the way, or at least we understand why she’s taking it as far as she is. Linda is a die-hard fan of the show Survivor, and the ways she’s able to incorporate what she’s learned on this journey are particularly clever. McAdams has not had the chance to dive into a role this juicy in ages, and her performance here is bound to become one of the defining roles of her impressive career. She’s so exciting to watch, because you never know where or how far Linda’s going to take this, and she surprises you at nearly every point. 

I’ve been saying since the early 2010s that Dylan O’Brien is one of Hollywood’s most stealthily talented performers. Even when the project isn’t great, he’s bringing something to it that makes you pay attention. My point was proven last year after audiences saw him in Twinless, but not enough people saw that movie for my liking. If you want a detailed summation of all O’Brien can do, go watch Twinless. That will also emphasize O’Brien’s range, because his roles in these two films could not be more different. Bradley is essentially a cartoon villain in the beginning – the idiotic nepo baby who’s elitist, cruel and kind of sexist. I wouldn’t say his character evolves, exactly, over the course of the film. We hate him in the beginning, and we hate him in the end, but there are just enough layers in O’Brien’s performance to not make him feel entirely one-note. 

Another reason Send Help took me so thoroughly by surprise is the film is from screenwriting duo Mark Swift and Damian Shannon, who do not have a single good credit on their resumes. Their last film was 2017’s attempt at rebooting the series Baywatch, and we all know how that went. This script is sharp, clever, very funny and kind of mean. This premise has such a rom-com kind of setup, and for awhile (if you hadn’t seen the trailers) you might think it would go that way. Then it turns into this wacky Cast Away/Misery hybrid that elevates the intensity effectively throughout. And like I’ve alluded to, Sam Rami’s directorial hand has seldom been more evident than it is in this film. Every twist, every shocking moment, even every plot beat the movie hits feels exactly like the kind of thing he does best, and I hope Send Help is successful enough to give him many more chances to make movies like this again.

Cinematographer Bill Pope shot this, and the film looks totally gorgeous – under the right circumstances, this island would be idyllic. And in certain moments, it is, but the unpredictability and potential brutality of all one can encounter on this island is never understated. The iconic Danny Elfman composes the film’s score, and there are plenty of instances where the creativity of his work is strongly felt. I also want to mention Anna Cahill’s costume design, which evolves in fascinating ways over the film’s runtime.

If Send Help has a problem, it’s that it’s a bit too long. At 113 minutes, it feels like we could’ve lost about 15-20. I left the theater thinking if this ran a tight 90, it would be perfect. But the more I think about it, the film doesn’t repeat itself and doesn’t get bogged down in exposition, and it certainly never loses the viewer’s attention. Whether or not you feel the film is overstating its welcome is your decision, but since the screening I saw last week, I’m thinking I’ll probably see this film in theaters a second time. And I’m thinking maybe it earns that extra 20 minutes. There’s so much fun to be had with the weird, wild and wacky world of Send Help and it’s very much worth a visit to the theater. Especially in the dead of January, when the pickings are historically slim at the multiplex, it’s rare we get a film that is working this strongly on just about every level. And it’s good to have you back, Mr. Raimi.