# Drag Me to Hell on DVD (Open Spoilers) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 25, 2009, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099 "2009-10-25T22:13:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2009, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/1 "2009-10-25T22:13:13Z")
It’s out, we saw it, and I didn’t like it much, which is perplexing me. I like Raimi. I love the Evil Dead movies. Comic horror usually appeals to me. And yet I didn’t really dig this, despite the fact that most Dopers seem to have liked it and it got nearly universal great reviews. A couple things that could have made my DVD-viewing less fun than a theater viewing: 1. No group experience. for instance, it sounds like seeing the possessed goat in a crowd was hilarious, whereas somehow it was just kind of dumb in our living room. 2. We watched the unrated director’s cut, and it was just too ridiculously gross. Actually, it was trying so hard to be unbelievably gross that it overshot and just became annoying and distracting. The other things that killed it for me were the protagonist being unsympathetic, so I didn’t really care what happened to her, and the button mix-up at the end was so painfully obvious, I just checked out for the rest of the movie, knowing that everything she was doing was moot. (Also, I think Sam has some issues to discuss with his therapist regarding oral rape.) Did you see it? In what venue? And what was your opinion? ---
**Author:** ![Lobot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ce7236/32.png) [@Lobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobot)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2009, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/2 "2009-10-25T23:00:53Z")
I saw it with my brother, a fellow _Evil Dead_ fan, and we both loved it. Everything about it was perfect, IMHO. Dumb and gross with an unsympathetic lead? Doesn’t that describe the other _Evil Dead_ movies? The entire seance scene was just classic ED and so refreshing to see, primarily because it represents Raimi returning to his roots. Had it featured a Bruce Campbell cameo, it would have been even better, but I guess we can’t have everything… ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/3 "2009-10-26T00:07:15Z")
My wife and I rented it off of Netflix a week ago and I loved it (she was busy with something else). So many scenes reminded me of **Army Of Darkness** in they way they were shot. And it was cool that Christine actually fought back most of the time when the old woman’s ghost was haunting her. One of my favorite parts was when she was trying to give the button back, and then in the rain the old lady’s corpse popped up and floated over to her and she couldn’t shake the corpse off. ---
**Author:** ![Haunted](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/898d66/32.png) [@Haunted](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Haunted)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/4 "2009-10-26T00:57:57Z")
I just watched this on DVD a week ago. Jesus. What a piece of crap this piece of shit is. It’s not scary. It’s not funny. It’s just gross and stupid. The same gags happen over and over. Oh, look - the old lady’s eye popped out and flew into that chick’s mouth. Again. I’m very disappointed in Sam Raimi. He did much better freezing his ass off in the woods with no money 30 years ago. How the hell does that happen? Maybe he was trying harder? Maybe he wasn’t trying as hard? Maybe he was having more fun? Hmmm. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/5 "2009-10-26T01:13:41Z")
If it suffers, it suffers for the same reason that John Waters’s _A Dirty Shame_ suffered: because sometimes intentionally trashy or cliche movies work better with low production values. To a great extent it’s the audience’s fault: we see big budget shiny, we settle in to be _impressed_. On the other hand, part of what made Raimi’s earliest movies so much fun was that they were so clearly homemade. The medium isn’t always the message, but it’s not irrelevant either. ---
**Author:** ![Lobot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ce7236/32.png) [@Lobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobot)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/6 "2009-10-26T01:24:21Z")
> [@lissener](#): > > If it suffers, it suffers for the same reason that John Waters’s _A Dirty Shame_ suffered: because sometimes intentionally trashy or cliche movies work better with low production values. To a great extent it’s the audience’s fault: we see big budget shiny, we settle in to be _impressed_. On the other hand, part of what made Raimi’s earliest movies so much fun was that they were so clearly homemade. The medium isn’t always the message, but it’s not irrelevant either. Agreed, but by the same token, I find something impressive about a filmmaker still willing to make the fun, no-holds-barred junk they were making twenty years earlier, even with a budget and name-recognition behind them. I can understand some people struggling with this apparent contradiction between style and substance, but I quite like that aspect of it. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/7 "2009-10-26T01:26:32Z")
I saw it on DVD without having seen it in theaters and definitely sensed that I would have preferred to have people howling around me. Cute, but a tad too silly to be scary. I did like that she was downtrodden but far from perfect. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/8 "2009-10-26T03:03:29Z")
I thought it was meh. It was ok, but not great, and I wouldn’t watch it again (I saw it in theaters). All I could think about the entire movie, though, was that gypsies really need to get some perspective, especially irt the boy at the beginning. ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/9 "2009-10-26T03:52:01Z")
I saw it in the theater and hated it because of the ear-splitting volume levels for every scare moment. I’ve never thought a movie was too loud until this one. I think I would have been able to enjoy it more on DVD. Also, the theater only had two other people in it, so that didn’t help either. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/10 "2009-10-26T04:48:58Z")
> [@Erdosain](#): > > I saw it in the theater and hated it because of the ear-splitting volume levels for every scare moment. I’ve never thought a movie was too loud until this one. Apparently you never saw [this](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0356618/) movie then. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/11 "2009-10-26T05:15:45Z")
I saw it in a theater surrounded by like-minded people as everyone howled at how great it was. I loved every minute. Well, except when our heroine was dragged to hell, I didn’t think that was fair at all but I understand why it had to happen. Yes, she was a little selfish to deny the loan extension for the reasons she did, but that doesn’t then give someone license to attack you and then damn you to hell for all eternity. And besides that, the old woman was years behind on the loan, “selfish” or not, you have to draw the line somewhere. Also, I’m pretty sure I spotted the character Bruce Campbell would have played if he wasn’t too busy with Burn Notice. When the assistant is possessed and dances the jig he looks just like Evil Ash did in Army of Darkness. I think having a viewing history with Raimi helps the enjoyment of this movie tenfold. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/12 "2009-10-26T08:36:22Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > I saw it in a theater surrounded by like-minded people as everyone howled at how great it was. I loved every minute. Well, except when our heroine was dragged to hell, I didn’t think that was fair at all but I understand why it had to happen. > > Yes, she was a little selfish to deny the loan extension for the reasons she did, but that doesn’t then give someone license to attack you and then damn you to hell for all eternity. And besides that, the old woman was years behind on the loan, “selfish” or not, you have to draw the line somewhere. > > Also, I’m pretty sure I spotted the character Bruce Campbell would have played if he wasn’t too busy with Burn Notice. When the assistant is possessed and dances the jig he looks just like Evil Ash did in Army of Darkness. I think having a viewing history with Raimi helps the enjoyment of this movie tenfold. To be fair, the movies title does tell you what happens. She wasn’t cursed because she denied a loan, but because she “shamed” the gypsy. Sure it isn’t fair, but she has the power to curse and she abused it. The moral of the story: never fuck with gypsies. I think I’ve said before, there are two major things wrong with this movie. 1. Lamias are a demon who are unequivocally female, so why is this one obviously male. It insults people who know mythology. 2. No Bruce Campbell cameo. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/13 "2009-10-26T14:44:10Z")
I’d have gone back to the house and kicked five kinds of crap out of the gypsy chick, I know that. So what if I’m going to jail for it, not like I’ll be in there long. And I actually felt bad when she was dragged to hell-she didn’t do anything to deserve it. Stupid gypsies! I was also disappointed there was no commentary by Sam Raimi, though seeing how much crap Alison Lohman went through in the behind-the-scenes has reinforced my feeling that doing one of his movies is a right of passage. ``` Dileep Rao was very good and sympathetic. ``` ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/14 "2009-10-26T14:55:01Z")
I watched the DVD and thought it was good, not great, but entertaining, often funny in an outrageous way, and poor Alison totally didn’t deserve her fate. If I’d knocked over a corpse and its fluids got into my mouth, I’d be hurling everywhere. If I’d had a nosebleed that spurted all over my boss, I’d be apologizing for months. But that’s me. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Bird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Little\_Bird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Bird)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/15 "2009-10-26T16:21:25Z")
I always thought that when people said “And then I heard someone screaming, and realized it was me…” that was just a turn of phrase, or an excuse to scream. Until she stabbed the eye in the cake. And I realized the person yelling at the top of her lungs was me. That movie was awesome. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/16 "2009-10-28T16:56:48Z")
> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > I like Raimi.[…] Comic horror usually appeals to me. I saw it on DVD. I hadn’t heard much about it so I was surprised at the comedy elements and that it was a Raimi flick. I think the comedy made it more enjoyable for me, it didn’t really work as a strictly horror movie. > [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > . Actually, it was trying so hard to be unbelievably gross that it overshot and just became annoying and distracting. I could have done without the constant spewing of Old Gypsy Woman phlegm and other things into the girl’s mouth. I mean, sure be gross, but find a little variety in the grossness. > [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > The other things that killed it for me were the protagonist being unsympathetic, Really? She made perhaps one selfish decision, but she was trying to succeed at work. Certainly the old gypsy was not at all sympathetic. > [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > the button mix-up at the end was so painfully obvious Well perhaps. I mean obviously she didn’t give the button back to the gypsy, but I was thinking that perhaps she accidentally gave it to her boyfriend. > [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > (Also, I think Sam has some issues to discuss with his therapist regarding oral rape.) You mean Raimi? lol ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/17 "2009-10-28T17:15:55Z")
I think maybe I was expecting this to be scary, when I should have looked at it as goofy. I didn’t see the heroine as a clownish figure like Ash, so I think that put me off any footing to get into the cheese. I thought we were meant to sympathize with her, but she seemed kind of stupid and weak to me. Not denying the woman an extension per se, but stuff like immediately turning to stabbing her kitten, and considering sending someone to hell for eternity for being a douchebag or because, hey, he’s really old and close to death anyway. Maybe I should go back and watch it with the intent of enjoying her torture. And no, I didn’t think the gypsies were sympathetic either. After the opening scene I turned to my husband and said, “I think that was a bit of an overreaction to a stolen necklace!” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/18 "2009-10-28T17:20:46Z")
> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > I thought we were meant to sympathize with her, but she seemed kind of stupid and weak to me. Not denying the woman an extension per se, but stuff like immediately turning to stabbing her kitten, If you thought killing a kitten would save you from eternal damnation, you wouldn’t do it? > [@](#): > > and considering sending someone to hell for eternity for being a douchebag or because, hey, he’s really old and close to death anyway. So if a Gypsy damned you for eternity you’d just gracefully take it? I’m not sure who I’d give it to, but I’d be looking for a way to unload such a curse if it came upon me. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/19 "2009-10-28T17:31:27Z")
I really thought that Bruce **did** have a cameo–as the cop in the parking garage at around 22:30 or so–but I guess I was wrong. And I have to say that I’d share a muddy grave with Alison Lohman any day. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099/20 "2009-10-28T18:00:29Z")
> [@vivalostwages](#): > > If I’d had a nosebleed that spurted all over my boss, I’d be apologizing for months. I can take almost anything else, but nosebleeds I can’t watch. Just reading your sentence makes me shudder and cringe. So that was horrible. Otherwise, it was a fun romp. The funniest part was was saw this on a dark and stormy night, at the late show. We’re driving home through the foggy dark and all of a sudden someone appears on the side of the road!! :eek: We shriek like crazy people and gun it around him (a hitchhiker). All the way home every little thing looked like a threat and my usual fear of critters jumping out was multiplied many times over! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drag-me-to-hell-on-dvd-open-spoilers/515099.md?page=2)