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Anyone who has had a job knows that office tremors are real. They come in many forms – manipulation, stealing credit, undermining others or just being selfish are their specialties. When the office man is the boss, that wild, unruly personality is unleashed with an extra dose of power.
In the hands of director Sam Raimi, the tables are powerfully turned. Arriving in theaters January 30, Send Help, starring Rachel McAdams as Linda Liddell and Dylan O’Brien as Bradley Preston, smears power dynamics in harrowing gore. The film throws its two main characters into a crisis that feels like a mix of Misery, Survivor, and Drag Me to Hell, with a touch of camp.
Send Help features Raimi’s signature style of horror, violence, and humor. Writers Damian Shannon and Mark Swift keep the drama, laughter and suspense going through a story centered around a shift in control between two colleagues. The result is an entertaining film that blends multiple genres (action, black comedy), with twists you wouldn’t expect.
Linda and Brad want someone to send help.
Sending Help sets the tone from the beginning by introducing Linda and Brad. She’s a rat, a geek, and arguably the hardest worker in the company. Linda has been working at the company for years – in strategy and planning – and Brad’s father promised her a big promotion before he died. I was immediately embarrassed when I saw her stumble during social interactions, but her secret powers were revealed through glimpses of the bookshelf in her apartment. Linda lives alone with a pet bird, and her personal interests are highly coded.
Brad, the new CEO, is not easily likable, with his obnoxious brother’s energy reinforced by his arrogant toddler status (yes, it’s a trope, but O’Brien uses the energy well). He has inherited the family business and has other plans for Linda: exploit her talents, without a promotion. Brad takes her on a business trip to Bangkok with him and his crew of workplace bullies. Then, in a terrifying and funny scene, the plane crashes.
Linda and Brad, stranded on a remote island, are the only survivors. She sets up camp like a pro, ditching her worker bee persona. As the weeks pass while they wait to be rescued, it becomes clear that Linda is a fearless badass in the wilderness who can kill giant pigs, build shelters, and weave hammocks and hats from palm fronds. Brad, still committed to being a toxic co-worker, soon finds that he must either be mediocre or an insufferable CEO.
Rachel McAdams’ Linda transforms from meek worker bee to warrior.
Brad has trouble feeling gratitude, and as punishment (or a lesson in humility), Linda leaves him alone for a day. In a hilarious sequence, Raimi’s camera cleverly captures his many facial expressions as the day progresses, culminating in his transition from smug to desperate. When Linda returns, you – like Brad – look at her the same way under attic. Talk about switching.
There’s a glimpse of Linda’s aggressive side when she goes hunting wild boar with nothing but a handmade spear. When she finds a weapon, an undercurrent of psychological warfare develops between her and Brad.
Then the pair begins to get along well. Linda teaches Brad some skills, shows him around the island and warns him of dangerous areas. The pace becomes a bit slow and repetitive after Linda and Brad do something friendly, and we seem to be wasting time and wanting to find them. However, there is a reason for this. Linda has other plans for Brad.
Soon, this movie is less about surviving the island and more about surviving each other. At some point, Brad tries to leave. It backfires, and the ocean brings him back to shore, where Linda rescues him in a nasty, vomit-filled scene that echoes Raimi’s Drag Me to Hell. This earns Brad another punishment, as he makes viewers intentionally inflammatory sounds and visuals.
The look on his face doesn’t sum up everything he feels.
McAdams gets dirty and fierce as Linda’s plot becomes clearer, and the timid Preston employee surprises herself too – shocking the audience along the way. (Maybe we’ll see Rachel McAdams, the action star?) When Brad figures things out, there’s frenzied, scary, and bloody fighting all over the forest. and Entertaining. Close-up camera shots of mutual damage may have you cringing or watching through your fingers. He deserves the reward.
McAdams and O’Brien’s performances lend themselves to this deadly dramatic match. Throughout the film, they gradually creep from basic office trivialities into destructive versions of themselves. Don’t try to classify anyone as a hero or villain in this movie, and don’t try to predict the ending.
Send Help is a gory thriller that blends horror, mystery, wit and drama. It also gives you a chance to understand that humans have different sides, and under certain circumstances, you don’t know which side you’ll get – especially when you’re not in the office anymore.