But it didn’t turn out that way. The opening weekend grosses were under $16 million — hardly a disgrace, but notably less than the money made by a piece-of-junk-of-the-week like My Bloody Valentine 3D (which opened on the same number of screens). This weekend, the film dropped more than 50 percent (as horror films tend to do), meaning that its run is already winding down, and that the terror and delight of Drag Me to Hell barely translated into the desire of audiences to go out and see it.
What happened? I think that the film’s disappointing box office performance can be chalked up to a single, revealing factor: It was rated PG-13. This is, to say the least, ironic, since it’s likely that the absence of an R rating was part of the studio’s commercial strategy, potentially opening the film up to a younger audience. But it’s a strategy that backfired. To put it in political terms: The PG-13 rating alienated the base.
Even before Drag Me to Hell opened, Raimi was getting flak from some horror junkies for having “compromised” with the milder rating. For the folks who swarm to slasher movies, or to holiday torture freakouts like the Saw films, horror is heavy metal: It’s got to be raw and brutal and extreme or it doesn’t count. To them, the R rating is a bloody scarlet letter that a horror movie wears like a badge of dishonor. The lack of an R made Drag Me to Hell look like a porn film that was too soft-core. In that light, even the overwhelmingly positive reviews may, in a subtle way, have worked against the movie. We critics inadvertently made Drag Me to Hell look like a “quality” film, instead of the “critic-proof” power-tool-and-body-part bash that the core horror audience craves.
Now it’s true, there’s nothing in Drag Me to Hell that can quite match the rubber-room ferocity of that moment from Evil Dead II in which Bruce Campbell — in a performance that has always struck me as a major influence on Jim Carrey — grabs a chainsaw, saws off his own possessed hand, and shouts “Who’s laughing now?” as he drenches himself in an orgiastic shower of blood. Still, Drag Me to Hell comes close: In a sane world, the image of a gypsy crone vomiting maggots onto Alison Lohman’s face would be sick enough for the room. Make no mistake: The movie is intensely scary. But fear itself may now seem like an almost delicate emotion within the debased universe of hardcore horror films. The horror audience doesn’t want to be scared, exactly. It wants to be shocked, ritually brutalized, wowed by sadism. To be scared, you have to imagine yourself in the place of the victim. Whereas in horror films today it’s the monster, unleashing his rock & roll havoc, who’s the secret hero, the one cool enough to rule over a frat house in hell.
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thank you for finally putting that in perspective. I liked the movie, but I knew the ending 30 min before it happened. In all honesty I am hesitant to see “horror” flicks that dont have the guts to go full “R”. I feel this is the biggest reason why, in my eyes at least, terminator failed. I don’t want to see judgment day and war with robots in freaking pg13, not worth it.
I really want to see this film, but it had competition with “Up” and now this week “The Hangover”. I would hope that the good reviews would alienate the way to violent horror lovers, but you’d think the good reviews would attract people who actually like good movies, regardless of whether or not it is a horror movie. But,anyway, I really want to see it, and “Up”. Maybe it would have done better later in the summer.
Yet, despite all you say about the R rating, Saw-type movies notwithstanding, most R rated movies today are no different from the PG-13 movies from 20 years ago. They have been toned down.
um, Sophie Holtz, I’m not too sure I understood that but I think I get what you are trying to say. I don’t think a PG-13 should be a factor–sometimes movies are scarier when there isn’t blood and guts all the time. Sometimes the not knowing is scarier than the knowing.
It could have been the timing, too. Bloody Valentine came during the cold, harsh time of year when horror movies tend to be released. Maybe folks on a beautiful summer weekend were inclined to see pretty balloons carrying a house instead.
I have to disagree. I think the sole contributor to the film’s perceived financial failure has to do with its trailer. Every one of my friends who saw the trailer said it looked stupid with a horrible plotline; girl turns down gypsy for a loan, so gypsy curses her. They groaned at how it was trying to be relevant in today’s economic crisis, etc… I think if the trailer had promoted the more campy aspects of the film, and had highlighted its unique, schlocky style, the film would have been more appealing to the mainstream because it would have put on display its director’s talents for hammy horror hijinks!
American public will rush out to see horrible horror films like the Unborn, My bloody Valentine and Haunting in Conneticut. Drag me to Hell is the most fun I have had at the movies in a long time. I do think the pg-13 was off putting. I know a few people who weren’t going to see it Because of that
The movie was terrific but I doubt the rating is the major factor in its’ disappointing take. Timing is. They should have released it in the fall were horror movies like Saw and The Grudge thrive. Summer is for spectacle and blockbusters and this season is certainly packed with that. Horror is perfectly suited for the Halloween time period when people are looking for a few chills and spooks. Seriously, how did they not see this coming?
I haven’t seen this yet, but I do want to see it, and normally I am a horror movie fan. I think the timing of its release was a bigger factor than its rating (I prefer scary to super-gory any day of the week, it doesn’t have to have both scares & gore for me to enjoy it). It looks really good, but there are just other summer movies that I wanted to see before I spent the time and money seeing this one. If this had come out in the winter or fall I think it would have been higher on my must-see list.
A R-rating might have helped, but if they had managed to keep Ellen Page in the lead role and released the movie in October instead of May, this would be a different story.
Releasing it in the heat of summer, surrounded by Star Trek, Night at the Museum, Terminator, Up and The Hangover was a little bit arrogant and a lot stupid. That doomed it from the start.
As with other horror films, I wait for the DVD to be released so that I can see the director’s cut of the film if there is one available. Mr. Raimi might have been contractually obligated to deliver a PG-13 rated film. My main question regarding the film is if Bruce Campbell makes another cameo appearance.
I don’t know why there is such a hatred for the PG-13 rating, it’s not like you can’t have a great genre movie that is PG-13 or less, take The Dark Knight for instance. And as for the gorehounds who love the early and late seventies slasher films, do not most of them realize that movies like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Halloween were originally made with the intentions of getting a PG rating in the respective times? If they were made today as they were in the seventies, they both probably would get PG-13. And that was because John Carpenter and Tobe Hooper were more interested in legitimate scares and stories rather than cheap blood and gore. In the remakes of those two movies the filmmakers went to far, opting out of campfire tales territory to go for cheap psychology to try to explain the origins of the characters and why they kill. It’s not the PG-13 it’s the filmmakers and blood crazy fans that are ruining box office for more legitimate horror films, like Drag Me To Hell.
Yeah, I don’t think people know what a horror film is anymore. Think of Saw 5, which has a ton of gross disgusting moments, but it isn’t really that scary.
Owen, I think this time you got it all wrong. I haven’t seen the movie yet, I’m planning to sometime this week but that’s exactly where the problem lies: It was released in the heat of May. There is just too many other movies out there that scream “come see me now” and therefore people rushed to those movies instead. Bloody Valentine and Co. got away with bringing more money because they got no competition whatsoewver, they were released on relatively quiet non-summer-wknds. Most horror film that make money during summer are always released around Agust, when all the would-be blockbusters’ dust have setted enough that people don’t have anything else to watch but this horror films.
It was the release date that hurt it, not the rating.
Have you noticed that during the scene in the graveyard, the mud on Alison Lohman’s face keeps changing between shots.
http://hahaha-havealaugh.blogspot.com
This movie had no business being PG-13. I was really looking forward to it but when I heard it was PG-13, no thank you. Just like Terminator Salvation and Die Hard 4, this is another movie I really wanted to see, but had to protest.
In many ways, you are blindly and ignorantly voting against this film for something so little it is absurd. Jaws still does not carry an R rating. Gremlins doesnt either. The Dark Knight is a new proponent of the PG-13 film.
You are saying “no” to a film you haven’t even SEEN despite all the rave reviews from true horror fans that have to slave through crapfests like the various Halloweens and Saws.
Die Hard 4 also got great reviews, and it was a fun film.
Am I displeased with PG-13 rated films at times? Sure. But if a film is getting awesome reviews DESPITE its PG-13 rating (unlike Terminator), then why not give a film a chance?
Did you not see The Dark Knight because it was PG-13?
The answer is, inherently, the ending. Spoilers!
I’m fine with films that have dark, depressing endings, but the fact that the movie ended with the title character dragged to hell did not fit with the tone of the movie, which up until that point had been much more “very dark comedy” than “straight horror.” In dark comedies you will laugh and laugh at and with the main character despite the crazy death and destruction going on around him/her, but if that character dies at the end in a merciless way, the laughter stops. It’s not funny anymore and you feel guilty for laughing at her before, which of course will decrease your enjoyment of the feature. Raimi never made the mistake of killing off Ash, and that is why the movies persevere. By killing off his main character here, he took away his audience’s trust and therefore our collective reaction wasn’t one of enjoyment, but guilt and anger. Why would we as a mass audience recommend that experience to our friends?
Because despite the downer ending, the film was STILL fun and I still had lively talks with the friends I saw it with. Everyone walked out of the theater with a laugh and some funny moments that happened instead of focusing on the ending.
I do agree that the theme of the film and then the ending clashed a bit, but it was still a fantastic experience overall.
I’m a horror fan and although I appreciate a good, ‘bad’ slasher film, ultimately I want to be scared. Drag Me to Hell left me gasping. It’s a perfect creepy ride and I loved it. I don’t need to be grossed-out to be entertained. Check out my Drag Me to Hell post at http://www.popsanctum.com.
Sure I was skeptical beforehand about the rating, but went to see it regardless because of the trailer and the Raimi pedigree. People shouldn’t make judgements on this movie because of that and see the movie and then make an opinion. I saw it twice in less than 24 hours! (Thanks to different friends who wanted to see it.) It was a super-entertaining film that was actually SCARY without having to resort to gore (and this is coming from someone who loves it). It was a relief from this tired “torture porn” horror that the studios have been churning out. Not to mention that it was an ORIGINAL script and not some overdone remake (thank you for nothing “Last House on the Left”, “My Bloody Valentine”, etc.). Without a doubt the timing of its release has got to be the main factor – summer is always rough, and what would be considered a success any other time in the year in terms of grosses and praises from the critics, just becomes another “bomb” in the summer. GO SEE THE MOVIE!
This just makes me despair for the future of horror. Here we have a clever, gross, completely entertaining horror flick with real characters to care about, fantastic effects, and an eerie atmosphere more interested in freaking you out than shocking you and it basically bombs. Yet tell me how boring drivel like the Saw films make huge bank. I am a horror fanatic and am rarely scared in films. Hostel and the general torture porn genre have never scared me even a little; I find them dull and uninspired. Shamefully, I though My Bloody Valentine was a good time – poor story, acting, etc, but great kills. Drag Me to Hell was so much fun! I actually jumped numerous times (again, never happens) and was completely freaked out a couple of times. As for the ending (spoiler alert!), Drag Me to Hell was originally conceptualized as a trilogy (no idea if that’ll still happen), so you can expect her being drug to hell is not the end of the story. Although I LOVED the ending, I thought it was perfect.
Two reasons this movie is not a hit. First, who releases a horror movie in the summer, the season of the popcorn flick? Stupid move. Second, the writer mentions a Sam Raimi cult out there wanting another Evil Dead type movie. There is no Raimi cult, it’s a Bruce Campbell cult, and I’m a card carrying member. He WAS the Evil Dead movies, and he rocks in everything he does, even when the material isn’t the greatest. Gimme some sugar, baby!
I really liked the movie BUT it was not scary.
i agree with brian g about the bruce campbell thing he was good in the 3 evil dead movies and even cooler on burn notice i just hope if ghost house pictures makes another horror i hope they include undead or a guy with a chainsaw in one hand and a boomstick in the other.
Anyone who skipped out on this because of the rating is an idiot – the movie is scarier and better than 90% of the R rated horror we’ve gotten of late… it was still disgusting as hell too. I was more surprised that it was only PG-13 while I was watching it, because it veers into a lot of R rated territory and doesn’t feel compromised at all.
I consider myself a major film fan and i respect the hell out of Sam Raimi (Simple Plan was awesome) but they have to realize alot of people just dont like horror movies. It was a good movie but i didnt see one person over 30 in the theater when i saw it.
Yes, there is a Sam Raimi cult. I’m a fully paid-up member, so I refute the claim that it’s all about The Bruce (although I love him). And also, the film IS scary. I’m a lifelong horror fan, and I lost count of the number of times I jumped during Drag Me To Hell. Wonderful film. Don’t be childish and let the rating put you off. It’s quite lucky to get away with such a low rating in my view, because there’s some serious gross-out moments and plenty of bodily fluids flying about. It just isn’t cold, sadistic and humourless like the Saw movies, which to my mind is a GOOD thing.
Yep, totally agree on the PG-13 thing. My initial reaction when I first saw a commercial was mild interest, but it evaporated when I saw the PG-13 rating at the end. Maybe I’m wrong, but that just screams “compromise” in a horror film. All sorts of bad stuff’s going down an no one’s allowed to really swear? There’s nothing more disturbing in this movie than something a 13-year-old can handle? Just sounds watered down and lame to me.
My friends and I always ended up referring to it as “Drag me to Heck”.
Let’s be honest here. Cursing IS allowed in PG-13 films. Which shows how much you have paid attention to films since you were eligible to see an R-rated film and never looked back.
PG-13 films are generally allowed one F word, but nearly EVER other curse word on the planet is allowed numerous times and often invades films like GI Joe or various other flicks.
Remember that the PG-13 rating has gotten more and more dark. Look at a film like The Matrix and tell me WHY it is rated R? Is The Dark Knight any less mature or disturbing?
Drag me to Hell uses crazy clever gags to get passed its PG-13 rating.
I can tell you a few reasons it underperformed:
(a) It’s a original film, it’s not a remake, or reboot, or super hero movie, and apparently that’s all most people will go and see anymore
(b) I do agree the PG-13 hurt it with the base. I think that’s also a part of why Terminator underperformed too (that and the fact the director is a hack)
(c) Evil Dead wasn’t exactly box office dynamite. It amassed a cult following over the years. This may gather steam on DVD, Blu-Ray, cable, etc
(d) Sam Raimi may be getting some backlash for the travesty that was Spider man 3.
I saw it on Friday, and I really enjoyed the film for the most part, but it wasn’t as good as Evil Dead.
I don’t think the previews did the film much good. Neither did the title. I’m a big fan of the Evil Dead films (especially, one and two) but barely reacted to the previews for this flick. It looks like an episode from Tales from the Crypt et al.