Make your way to the theater for a survival thriller starring Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien.
When you hear Rachel McAdams’ name, you might think of sweeping romances such as The Notebook or The Time Traveler’s Wife, but in her newest movie, Send Help, she trades in love for a dorky underdog on the receiving end of some mean-spirited tactics. When the near-death experience of a work trip gone wrong challenges the trajectory of her life and leaves her stranded with her boss on a remote island.
The film introduces Linda Liddle, a meek, awkward employee working for Bradley Preston, who passes over and ignores his father’s wishes to promote her to Vice President of their family company. His views of her are of full disgust when she is caught eating a tuna sandwich at her desk and has bits of food left in the corner of her mouth and hands.
Director Sam Raimi exaggerates Bradley’s character’s emotions by capturing and using close-up shots that tightly frame their facial expressions. The technique of closing in on the corner of her mouth, where the leftover tuna rests, as she speaks to him, intensifies the audience’s emotional response to the embarrassing encounter. It feels as though viewers experience the awkwardness. The way the scene was shot allows us to step into both perspectives, as Bradly boils in obsessive loathing and Linda’s clumsiness consumes her around her peers. The two quickly discover the truth about how they view one another, and, with an ulterior motive, Bradley invites Linda on a work trip. Things take a turn for the worse, and the two are left fighting over power and ego as they struggle to survive on a stranded island. Who will be the last standing survivor?
While Raimi’s direction intensifies the story’s emotional tension and thrill, Dylan O’Brien’s compelling performance leaves a lasting impression. His performance was refreshing, captivating, and emotionally intense. His timing in comedy is impeccable and heartening to witness. Though warming, kind, and likable, in interviews Dylan sheds new light on his ability to expand into an entitled, mean character, convincingly leaving the audience to view the cruelty and arrogance in Bradley.
Overall, the movie received positive reviews and combines horror, comedy, and chaos. It’s a refreshing new concept that will leave viewers on the edge of their seats, making it a memorable film. Fans will leave with a new love for Dylan O’ Brien and a new perspective on our classic Mean Girl, Rachel McAdams.
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
Written by Samantha Ysaguirre
