Send Help
A financial CEO and his belittled female minion are stranded on an isolated island in Sam Raimi’s gory and goofy romp.
Gender bender: Dylan O’Brien and Rachel McAdams
Image courtesy of Walt Disney Studios.
by JAMES CAMERON-WILSON
A tropical island is as good a place as any to examine gender dynamics. The balance of power stripped to its environmental basics was superbly explored in Ruben Östlund’s Triangle of Sadness (2022), which was partly set on a deserted island. Taking his lead from Östlund, Sam Raimi has now added his own comic-book angle to what is an occasionally entertaining schlockfest. Much like The Housemaid, featuring Rachel McAdams’ Mean Girls co-star Amanda Seyfried, Send Help certainly keeps us guessing.
Rachel McAdams plays Linda Liddle, an essential cog in the strategy and planning department of a financial management company. Described as “a real workhorse” by the company’s senior executive (Dennis Haysbert), Linda is all but guaranteed to take over a major managerial position by her former boss, particularly after her seven years of impressive commitment to the firm. But this being something of a boys’ club, Linda is passed over by the new CEO, who happens to be the son of her former boss. Much like the cruel misogynistic office politics of Neil LaBute’s seminal In the Company of Men (1997), Linda is not only robbed of her promotion, but is openly made fun of by her male superiors, with her new boss, Bradley Preston (Dylan O’Brien), mocking her “noxious odours” and her taste in shoes. “She makes me sick,” he tells one colleague. Then, on a business trip to Bangkok, the company plane is hit by a storm, plunges into the depths below and leaves just Linda and Bradley to fend for themselves on a deserted tropical island. Suddenly, the tables would appear to have turned…
Send Help, from the director of such gross-out classics as The Evil Dead (1981), Evil Dead II (1987) and Drag Me to Hell (2009), is likely to be remembered for a series of scenes that Sam Raimi’s fanbase will cherish. Tapping into the appeal of such shows as Survivor, I’m a Celebrity… and anything with Bear Grylls, the film is also full of useful tips on how to subsist on a deserted island in the Gulf of Thailand. From the title spines of Linda’s bookshelves, we know that she is something of an enthusiast for off-the-grid living. This particular island being densely populated by coconut palms, Linda is in luck, as this tree is the most useful on the planet, providing food and drink, timber, basket materials and even vessels to capture rain water and to serve as bowls. With the agreeable climate, and a sea of tasty edible fish to roast on her open fire, Linda is in seventh Heaven.
A gender-switch on Lina Wertmuller’s Swept Away (1974), Send Help is enormous fun for much of its running time. But after a while, both Linda and Bradley’s irritating character traits begin to grate and we wonder who we are meant to root for. While the constant shift in circumstances makes for an engaging guessing game, the superficiality of the premise prevents the movie from being anything more than a nasty, one-dimensional romp. There’s plenty of eye candy (Thailand is good for picturesque beaches), and Rachel McAdams is obviously having considerable fun in a rare role for her. If, however, one is looking for anything more credible and substantial, Triangle of Sadness is certainly worth a re-visit (I’ve already seen it three times).
Cast: Rachel McAdams, Dylan O’Brien, Edyll Ismail, Xavier Samuel, Chris Pang, Dennis Haysbert.
Dir Sam Raimi, Pro Sam Raimi and Zainab Azizi, Screenplay Damian Shannon and Mark Swift, Ph Bill Pope, Pro Des Ian Gracie, Ed Bob Murawski, Music Danny Elfman, Costumes Anna Cahill.
Raimi Productions-Walt Disney Studios.
112 mins. USA. 2025. US Rel: 30 January 2026. UK Rel: 6 February 2026. Cert. 15.
