Home > Horror News > Interviews > Interview with Sam Raimi


Rated: 0.00/5 | Votes: 1 | Views: 91 |Submitted: 06/03/09

Question: What was your inspiration behind DRAG ME TO HELL?

Raimi: I was triyng to do an original piece with this and do something very different than what’s out there now. I wanted to tell a different story with a lot of familiar elements that I love in horror stories. I needed to stay true to the characters and and built suspenseful sequences in ways I hadn’t done before. I wanted this to be something that audiences hadn’t experienced before either.

Q: What do you say to those who feel that DRAG ME TO HELL might have similar thematic elements to your EVIL DEAD trilogy?

Raimi: I tried to stay away from duplicating the EVIL DEAD type of horror as much as possible. But I admit, it can be hard to stray from something that worked so well.

Q: Can you discuss the character development of Christine (played by Alison Lohman) and why she’s the anti-hero of DRAG ME TO HELL?

Raimi: Christine starts out with the idea that she is a good person but by the end, she is a despicable character. I think the audience can identify with her in the beginning and she seems generous, but when push comes to shove and she has to get this job promotion, she makes the wrong choice.

Christine sins with greed and forces this old lady out of her home hiding behind the rules of the bank. I wanted the audience to make this choice with her. We are all nice people but we are sinners too. This old woman is unpleasant looking and you know that when this demon was coming for her, it’s also coming for the audience because they are sinners too since they made that choice with her. 

There are all sorts of reasons to be greedy or cruel. There are logical or institutional rules and all sorts of reasons to torment others because of rules in society. People hide behind those rules to make their choices, just like Christine did.

What I did like about the character of Christine was that she is  flawed and capable of making mistakes- it made her interesting to me. I understand her because I am all those things too. I like to explore the things that trouble me but I wish I had more noble problems.

Q: What was the DRAG ME TO HELL shoot like?

Raimi: DRAG ME TO HELL was really a team of entertainers and artists coming together in complete creative collaboration. It was a tight budget and time schedule for me at least because I am slow with my work. I just hope we made a fun and entertaining movie for everyone. I made it really clear to our cast and crew we weren’t doing an art picture and I think they enjoyed that.

Q: Can you discuss the challenges of working on the SPIDERMAN films?

Raimi: With the SPIDERMAN pictures (which I honestly love making) there is still a lot of responsibility on the director’s shoulders because you have a character that has been around for 40 years and is much loved the world over. People have a sense of ownership and look up to him you have to be very careful what you do and respect their ownership.

It’s my job to present him in a proper light. It’s a great job but it much more freeing to take a break from that and work with your own characters where people don’t have any expectations of them.

- Heather Wixson

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