The survival of the fittest is a corporate promotion from hell. Our JP gives his take on Sam Raimi’s “Send Help,” starring Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien.
“Send Help”
20th Century Studios
- Directed by Sam Raimi
- Written by Damian Shannon, Mark Swift
- Produced by Sam Raimi, Zainab Azizi
- Starring Rachel McAdams, Dylan O’Brien, Edyll Ismail, Xavier Samuel, Chris Pang, Dennis Haysbert
Studio Synopsis:
Two colleagues become stranded on a deserted island, the only survivors of a plane crash. On the island, they must overcome past grievances and work together to survive, but ultimately, it’s an unsettling, darkly humorous battle of wills and wits to make it out alive. “Send Help” is directed by genre-bending visionary Sam Raimi and stars Oscar® nominee Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien. The film is produced by Raimi and Zainab Azizi, executive produced by JJ Hook and written by Damian Shannon & Mark Swift, with original music by Danny Elfman. The all-original darkly comedic psychologi
JP’s Take:
The classic rhetorical question often posed by psychologists and everyday people alike — “What would you do if you found yourself stranded on a deserted island?” — takes on a new twist in Sam Raimi’s latest dark comedy/thriller, “Send Help.”
With the added layer of being marooned with someone you can’t stand, the film goes off the rails when seemingly meek yet highly motivated and intelligent office accountant Linda Liddle (Rachel McAdams) faces off against her insufferable new frat boy-like boss, Bradley Preston (Dylan O’Brien), to the tune of who will outlast whom …on said island. And they get down and dirty with the raucous schemes they inflict on each other.
The trio of director Sam Raimi (“Evil Dead,” “Spider-Man” trilogy) and writers Damian Shannon and Mark Swift (“Freddy vs. Jason,” “Friday the 13th” reboot) concocted a feverish account that explores the pervasive issues of sexism and social inadequacies in a corporate setting.
We peer into the lonely life of Linda Liddle, who, although passed over for a promotion and overlooked by her peers, remains steadfast in her pursuit of acceptance and to prove them all wrong. There is obviously a power dynamic between them, and that only stokes the fires in Linda to bring the pain to her future boss later on.
Where things begin to unravel is when Linda is called into the office of the new CEO, Bradley, who takes over the company from his father after his death. Bradley propositions her on the condition that if she can crunch the numbers on their Thai account, she can move up the ranks as promised. Leveraging her remarkable analytical skills to enhance the company’s portfolio and secure lucrative business opportunities, Linda’s dedication proves invaluable. As a result, Bradley invites her to join him on a private jet to meet their Thai business partners.
Disaster strikes when their plane goes down somewhere between the mainland and some offshoot island, and the two of them are the only ones who survive. This is where the showdown begins, and the dark humor takes hold. Yet, the build-up here takes its time, as Linda finds a way to get the upper hand over her boss. Linda once auditioned to be a contestant on “Survivor,” the renowned CBS adventure and reality series, where she demonstrated exceptional survival skills.
Raimi brings an unsettling depth to Linda, making it hard to decide whether to cheer for her or her boss. The moment she hits the island, it’s as if she has primal instincts, whereas she carves out a spear to hunt down a boar so they can eat. At first, she appears as though she’s nursing Bradley back to health after sustaining injuries from the plane crash. But all the while, she’s really setting him up for a grueling session of slow-acting revenge.
In a captivating twist, she evolves into his worst nightmare halfway through the film, leading to unnerving scenes as she embraces her new identity … whom I call “Linda of the Jungle.” The transformation is infused with dark humor, characteristic of Raimi’s style, featuring his trademark in-your-face jump scares that catch the audience off guard. Notably, there’s a chilling moment when she brutally kills a boar with a spear she fashioned from bamboo. That scene keeps on bringing the blood, as it drenches her all over.
The narrative also introduces supernatural elements towards the end, particularly involving Bradley’s fiancée coming to their rescue, adding further disturbing elements, and deepening Linda’s already fractured mindset. To Bradley’s credit, he makes a last-ditch effort to outsmart her, driven by an instinctual urge to survive, like a trapped animal. This creates engaging moments of tension, akin to a game of cat and mouse, sparking curiosity about who will ultimately emerge victorious.
It goes to show you, you can’t judge a book by its cover, and Linda Liddle had me on edge and uneasy as to her underlying plans. She adapted to whatever the island threw at her, and in the end, I was given a nice shock that I honestly didn’t see coming, yet it felt complete.
I can chalk up “Send Help” as another one of Sam Raimi’s masterworks in a thrilling hybrid genre.
Official Site: Send Help
