DMTH is classified as a supernatural horror film but I think it is important to note that there is also some comedy mixed in there. This has a lot to do with the style of directing that Sam Raimi enjoys utilizing and for the right type of person (like me) it works just wonderfully.
When i say "comedy" I definitely am not saying this is a good film to park in front of the kids while you try to get some work done, not unless you enjoy traumatizing them and giving them night-terrors for years to come. This film is definitely scary and gruesome. I mean it is comical in some of the situations and puppetry that is used in the movie such as the completely over-the-top fight scenes that take place with an elderly gypsy woman.
Oh yeah, the plot of the movie centers around a curse placed on Christine Brown (played by the lovely Alison Lohman) who works at a bank. She is seeking a promotion and in an effort to impress her boss she ignores her sympathetic instincts and wont give an extension on an old gypsy woman's house loan. Seeing no other option because her house will be taken away from her, Sylvia Ganush (the gypsy) attacks Christine in her car after work and a ridiculous fight ensues in the conveniently empty car park. Knowing she is bested in the fight, Sylvia Ganush instead places a curse on Christine and the removal of said curse is the major focus of the film.
I find it ironic that a gypsy has a house loan since that kinda makes her not a gypsy, right? I wonder if Raimi did that on purpose... probably.
Anyway, for people who are unfamiliar with Raimi's earlier work, he specialized in making fantastic films with little to no CGI. The primary example of this is a movie called Evil Dead, where with an almost non-existent budget he managed to make what is largely considered one of the best horror films of all time.
When i first started watching this movie I didn't know Raimi directed and co-wrote it but it doesn't take a very long time to figure out that he was involved. I think that most old-school horror fans have a soft spot in their heart for Raimi's comical gore-fest directing style. Plus certain parts of the movie are genuinely terrifying. This movie has jump-scares as well as duration-dread-scares (i made that second term up, i bet it doesn't catch on.) The thing i like about Sam Raimi is that by making certain parts of the movie a bit comical it's almost as though he is trying to ease the tension a bit - I think he created this style, or if he didn't create it he certainly mastered it.
I can't rate this film too terribly high because some of the actors are kind of annoying and well, the storyline is something that would fit into a short story but they made it an hour and a half long. The fact that the bank teller just happens to be great pals with a psychic is a bit corny, but i suppose i can deal with that. I am not saying the movie is bad because it is definitely not. I like it a lot. However, we cant just rate everything nine or ten out of ten. We need to be a little more impartial.
