‘Send Help Review: Sam Raimi Returns to His Roots with Gory, Demented Darwinist Horror Comedy
Nobody does horror comedies like Sam Raimi. Not since Army of Darkness – which predates all of Gen Z, including me – has the impeccable maestro made an R-rated horror comedy. But at long last, Raimi got his hehe-horror groove back. All he needed to do was trap Rachel McAdams and Dylan O'Brien on an island and put them in a scenario that's a blend of Misery, Horrible Bosses, and Triangle of Sadness. With Send Help, in which an exhausted and repressed workaholic and Survivor fan is stranded on a deserted island with her nepo-baby boss, Raimi reverts to his perverse persona. All I can say is hail to the king, baby.
Image copyright (©) Courtesy of 20th Century Studios
MPA Rating: R (for strong/bloody violence and language.)
Runtime: 1 Hour and 54 Minutes
Language: English
Production Companies: Raimi Productions, TSG Entertainment
Distributor: 20th Century Studios
Director: Sam Raimi
Writers: Damian Shannon, Mark Swift
Cast: Rachel McAdams, Dylan O'Brien, Edyll Ismail, Dennis Haysbert, Xavier Samuel, Chris Pang
U.S Release Date: January 30, 2026
Meet Linda Liddle (Rachel McAdams), head of strategy and planning for a Fortune 500 company for seven years. Her years of hard work are evident in her appearance: frizzy hair, stressed, anxious body movements, dark circles under her eyes, and opting out of lunch breaks in the open air, preferring tuna sandwiches at her little cubicle. But her ultimate dream is to be a contestant on Survivor. At the precipice of her promotion, her boss Preston passes, and his self-absorbed, fratty, and bratty immature son, Bradley (Dylan O'Brien), inherits the CEO role. He has one awkward interaction with Linda and sets out to make her life a living hell, giving away her well-deserved promotion to his unqualified frat friend Donovan (Xavier Samuel).
Bradley invites Linda on a business trip to Bangkok for the company. On his private jet, Bradley gets a hold of Linda’s Survivor video and mocks her for it alongside his colleagues. But considering karma's a bitch, the plane crashes, and Linda and Bradley find themselves washed ashore on a deserted island in the Gulf of Thailand as the sole two survivors. On some Darwinism shit, the power shifts as Linda’s survival skills come in clutch, and Bradley’s coddled upbringing and an injured leg render him useless. While waiting for help to arrive, Linda holds power, running the island like a boss, with Bradley following her demands to survive.
To anyone who’s had a shitty boss, Send Help plays like a cathartic release.
Rachel McAdams as Linda Liddle in 20th Century Studios' SEND HELP. Photo by Brook Rushton. © 2026 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.
Even at her most insane, you'll think, "Linda did nothing wrong." This is not a horror movie; it's a fantasy.
The film capitalizes on its straightforward premise with a slow burn, going from being a dark comedy to a grotesque survival horror. That first hour, crash included, plays as a manic screwball comedy. Many of the funniest bits involve Bradley becoming increasingly desperate for Linda's food or shelter, and the comedic interactions and dialogue are borderline cartoonish, but in a good way. It's reminiscent of the “Club SpongeBob” episode – the one with the magic conch – and Madagascar with the bits of Alex going mad over not getting off the island while Marty nonchalantly builds a fort. That's just one of many humorous interactions that highlight the power disparity and fuel the comedy while bubbling the tension simultaneously.
Scribe duo Mark Swift and Damian Shannon (Freddy vs. Jason, Baywatch, lol Shark Tale) realize the best of their horror and comedic suits by essentially setting forth its basic concept. Although what you see is what you get, it firmly grabs your attention with decent characterization from its leading duo. When Send Help examines Linda's values and her readiness to take charge after spending so much time as a subordinate to awful men (not just Bradley), it functions at its best.
McAdams and O'Brien are equally matched in terms of comic fortitude and sinister foils.
(L-R) Dylan O'brien as Bradley Preston and Rachel McAdams as Linda Liddle in 20th Century Studios' SEND HELP. Photo by Brook Rushton. © 2026 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.
As per Send Help and Game Night, the ingredients for an unforgettable Rachel McAdams performance are to write her a perky, spirited character amid a dark and life-threatening scenario. The Canadian queen of charisma sparkles in a slow build to actualization. By stepping into action and letting go of Linda's inhibitions, McAdams makes us feel like we're there with her as she realizes her survival instinct. You feel the weight of Linda's triumph in her joy after succeeding as a survivor: building a fire, laughing hysterically after her first successful boar hunt, and, most importantly, scaring her bitch-ass boss with intimidating line deliveries when he tries to exert his weightless power.
O'Brien, after his underrated performance in Twinless last year, has yet another fantastic performance, this time exercising his silly comic prowess. Every line delivery, whether he’s seething with envy, disbelief, or douchiness, is paired with a weird vocal stim that always garners a laugh. At his most hateful, O'Brien makes Bradley a sheer delight with his charm and impeccable comedic timing.
As simplistic as it is, Raimi truly bolsters Send Help to its maximum potential through his idiosyncratic direction. He throws all his auteur traits and the kitchen sink into style and content, just to make sure it has that big red S.R. stamp on the film reel. The crazy use of Dutch angles, effective jump scares featuring Evil Dead-coded body horror, gross bodily violence that’ll leave you squeamish; It’s all textbook Raimi. If his eccentric style tickles your twisted fancy, as it does mine, then you’ll have an absolute blast throughout.
Send Help’s poor CGI quality distracts from the fun.
(L-R) Dylan O'brien as Bradley Preston and Rachel McAdams as Linda Liddle in 20th Century Studios' SEND HELP. Photo by Brook Rushton. © 2026 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.
That said, within this boss vs. employee battle, Raimi is referring to his own battle between CGI and practical effects. It's a brutal one. For all its CG assets, the film has awful digital compositing. Oftentimes, thankless CG objects, blood, or those that would be present in some action set pieces, come off as a distraction due to shoddy rendering and poor optimization in the scene.
For a 114-minute film, Send Help overstays its welcome. Not to the point of exhaustion, but when it leans into elements akin to Misery or even Triangle of Sadness (Linda and Abigail would be besties) in terms of the power dynamic involving soliciting food and resources for affection, the enticing character work between Linda and Bradley starts to wear thin. I want to state this as professionally as I can: no matter how much you try to “cat lady” Rachel McAdams, she’s still Rachel McAdams. Sorry, guys, she’s too pretty for that, especially since several scenes have her doing a beauty care routine on the island.
Final Statement
Send Help is a twisted, hilarious, grotesque good time that lives up to its premise thanks to two killer comedic performances from McAdams and O'Brien, and director Sam Raimi relishing his unhinged R-rated state, which was long overdue.
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