Review - Send Help

There's something called nominative determinism - your name can influence who you are in life. If your last name is Baker you may become a chef. Usain Bolt’s name may have encouraged him to go as fast as lightning. And Linda Liddle, the main character of Sam Raimi’s Send Help, is a meek, awkward, and clueless marketing exec. Her company’s CEO just passed and his son (Bradley, played by Dylan O’Brien) is taking over. One of his first orders of business is passing over Linda (Rachel McAdams) for a promotion in favor of his frat buddy. The company knows that Linda is valuable, however, so she goes on their business trip to Thailand. The company plane runs into trouble, however, and Linda and Bradley wind up as the only survivors on a deserted island. 

 

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There’s plenty to like here. Director Sam Raimi is back making an R rated horror film after 26 years. He’s brought frequent collaborator Danny Elfman with him to do the score. McAdams, on her second go-round with Raimi after Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, and Dylan O’Brien are capable leads. In fact, McAdams and O’Brien do some excellent work in a particular campfire scene where they're sharing some past trauma that really lets them shine.

But. I didn’t love this movie. Trust me, no one is more upset about that than me. Raimi and his muse Bruce Campbell (who may or may not have a cameo in the film) served as my entryway into horror.

The movie revolves around two obnoxious characters...that’s the long and the short of my problems with it. There are definitely times where Linda and Bradley seem to be evolving, but I was ultimately left wanting more in the character department. Granted, Liddle’s cringey awkwardness is most felt in the beginning of the film, but it never quite goes away. And Bradley is just downright frustrating considering some of his actions.

As for Raimi, his signature stuff (over the top gore, extreme closeups) mostly just felt shoved into the film. Raimi didn’t write this, as opposed to Drag Me To Hell (now that’s a Raimi movie), so that probably explains it.

The film does have a few twists and plot turns, so if that’s your thing, you might get a bit more mileage here. You’ll have to check out the film to see what they are, and if Linda rises above her name.

⭐⭐⭐☆☆

Review - Five Nights at Freddy's 2

What does it mean when you can’t tell if a movie is bad, or if you’re just not familiar with the property’s lore?

Five Nights at Freddy's 2 is the sequel to the 2023 adaptation of the popular video game franchise about a Chucky-Cheeese-esque restaurant and its creepy animatronics. I watched the original film without having played Five Nights at Freddy’s (FNAF) at all and being very minimally aware of the game in general. I've since played a bit of the OG game. I don't think it helped at all.

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The movie starts in the ‘80s at a party at the original Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza location. There we witness the murder of a young girl named Charlotte. The parents at the party are unrealistic and unhelpful when Charlotte initially notices a young boy being abducted (this trope happens way too often). The movie then flashes forward to the present to continue the story of Mike (Josh Hutcherson).

FNAF 2 can be intense and eerie at times, particularly the beginning. A marionette character is a creepy addition. The gameplay from the original game focuses on simply flipping through different CCTV security channels at the restaurant to track the evil animatronics. It’s nerve-wracking, as the characters pop up at random. Why then, did they not recreate this in this film?

I've always been a bit on the fence about Josh Hutcherson but I think he's finally won me over. Mike isn’t a particularly complex character as far as horror films go, but that’s fine.

One of my biggest problems with the film is the logic, or lack thereof. For instance, why are the Freddy Fazbear's locations closed but still around? How is Abby (Piper Rubio), Mike’s young sister, able to ride her bike around town so fast? Does she have a rocket bike? Or are we to believe the Freddy locations are that close together? Most notably, there’s a Michael character in addition to Hutcherson’s Mike, and he also works at a Fazbear’s. Giving different characters similar names is a no-no, but there may be some sort of in-world reason for it? Again, I’m not sure if it’s bad writing or just the lore.

This film also doubles the “Scream” factor, with Matthew Lillard’s antagonist returning in a dream and now Skeet Ulrich appearing in a brief role. I was expecting the two horror alums to somehow share some screen time but it didn't happen. Another cast highlight is Wayne Knight as Abby’s teacher Mr. Berg. His character gets attacked towards the end of the film and suddenly I was nine years old again watching him get eaten in Jurassic Park. 

At the end of the day, I would watch more of these. They’re harmless and definitely have a fun vibe. I may try to play some more of the games, to catch up on that lore if nothing else.

Film Review: Dan Da Dan: Evil Eye (English Dub)

Does trauma hold as much power as a ghost?

Dan Da Dan is a Japanese horror manga, anime, and film series involving the world of the supernatural with high school protagonists.  Season one of the anime is available to stream on Netflix, with the second season set to premiere on July 3.  The first film, First Encounter, which is a collection of the first season’s initial three episodes, debuted in 2024. Evil Eye similarly is the first three episodes of the second season. 

IMDb

Some quick backstory on the first season, which the beginning of Evil Eye also covers. High schoolers Momo (Abby Trott), Okarun (AJ Beckles) and an expanding cast of characters populate the show. Momo would normally not be caught together with the nerdy and alien obsessed Okarun in high school society, but a random encounter brings them together and, subsequently, they devise a plan for Momo to investigate an abandoned hospital (reportedly an alien hotspot) and for Okarun to check out an allegedly haunted tunnel. The season plays out with Momo and Okarun questing, surviving supernatural attacks, and being joined by other characters.

Evil Eye picks up with Momo and Okarun joining their friend Jiji (Aleks Le) in his hot springs town to investigate his supposedly haunted house. 

Does Evil Eye feel like three episodes of a show? Yes and no. The film doesn’t hide that it’s for the fans, but it does a good job of leading into the new story.  It does obviously leave off on a cliffhanger but several big budget films have done that recently, namely Dune, Dune: Part 2, and Wicked. In short, fans of the show and casual viewers should both find plenty to like.

But fans of the show should definitely not be disappointed - the animation is as stunning as ever, the English voice work is still charming, and the characters are their compelling usual selves. The horror is on display as well, with creepy visuals, a not-quite-right haunted house (and its landlords) and a downright heartbreaking and disturbing backstory for the titular "Evil Eye" antagonist. 

The antagonist's tragic backstory does a good job of not just representing his own trauma, but that of the town and our heroes. The townsfolk have been complicit in the villain’s suffering, and their misdeeds are quite literally built one on top of one another. So too does the trauma get passed down to the town’s families, eventually affecting Jiji.