With the fantastic Send Help, a movie far better than the traditional January fare, Sam Raimi has now directed 16 movies over the course of 45 years. Throughout those four and a half decades he has shown himself to be one of the most versatile talents out there, dipping a toe in just about every genre under the sun. But, of course, he’s excelled in two different areas. One is with the horror-comedy, having helmed what is arguably the best one of such a thing ever made (it’s also an umbrella Send Help fits under). The other is the superhero film, a subgenre in which he’s found himself during three different phases of his career.
Does his best film overall fit within one of those categories? Are those the only types of movies he’s knocked out of the park? Let’s find out.
16) For Love of the Game
image courtesy of universal pictures
There have been a few Raimi films that played like director for hire movies, because they were. But even in those there was a personal connection he felt with the material.
That includes the Kevin Costner vehicle For Love of the Game, which Raimi made because he liked the script and had always loved baseball. But no moment of the movie feels distinctly Raimi’s, and of all the sports movies Costner has made his bread and butter, this is the stalest. On the upside, it did establish his working relationship with J. K. Simmons.
Stream For Love of the Game for free with ads on YouTube.
15) Crimewave
image courtesy of columbia pictures
The Coen brothers have a long history of working with Raimi. They even included Bruce Campbell in The Hudsucker Proxy, Intolerable Cruelty, The Ladykillers, and Fargo (in which he pops up on a TV in the background at one point). Joel Coen was an assistant editor on The Evil Dead, Raimi sought their advice when making A Simple Plan, the list goes on.
They also collaborated on Crimewave, which the Coens wrote alongside Raimi. The result is undoubtedly inferior to what you might expect from a collaboration between the three. But a lot of that can be blamed on Embassy Films Associates, because this is definitely a case of a tampered-with product. It’s too zany by half, but at least that’s more memorable than For Love of the Game.
Stream Crimewave for free with ads on Tubi.
14) Oz the Great and Powerful
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Raimi took on Oz the Great and Powerful because he wanted to make a full-on family film. The closest he’d come was the Spider-Man movies. Unfortunately, it’s just another one of those Raimi movies that doesn’t show many signs of his fingerprints. It’s just a bland, glossy, too-saccharine and ultimately unnecessary prequel to The Wizard of Oz. 99 times out of 100 people are going to choose Wicked if they want that (the play existed a full decade before the Great and Powerful landed in theaters).
The CGI overtakes any personality the film attempts to have. It’s not unlike fellow Disney turkey John Carter from the previous year. And, while Taylor Kitsch was fine enough in that movie, James Franco’s casting here feels like a total misfire. Thankfully, Mila Kunis, Michelle Williams, and Joey King turn in performances that at least help buoy what is overall a very skippable $215 million motion picture.
Stream Oz the Great and Powerful on Disney+.
13) Spider-Man 3
image courtesy of sony pictures releasing
Were it not for Spider-Man 3, Raimi’s Spidey trilogy would be one of the best of all time. Granted, now that there’s about 20 years between its release and now, the blow has been cushioned a bit, but it is still undoubtedly a massive step down from the trendsetter first one and the masterful second one.
It’s problems are the stuff of legend by this point, from the idiotic Saturday Night Fever dancing to the fact Raimi was forced to shove Venom into the narrative. It’s so stuff that nothing really lands. Thomas Haden Church was wonderful as Sandman, though. He should have been the primary of two villains (with the other being Hobgoblin, even if James Franco’s performance in this movie is…off).
Stream Spider-Man 3 on Disney+.
12) Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Image courtesy of Marvel Studios
After being developed by the first film’s director, Scott Derrickson, for a few years, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ultimately went to Raimi. It wasn’t long after that when the film went in front of cameras. And to a degree that switch and rush helps explain why Multiverse of Madness feels as tonally unsure as it does. It’s not really anybody’s vision, it’s just a requisite catch-up with Doctor Strange and conclusion (?) to Scarlet Witch’s arc.
On the upside, there are definitely some Raimi touches here. The set-piece where Wanda is trying to make her way through reflective surfaces is perfectly him, the Zombie Strange sequence feels right out of Evil Dead, and the scene where the back of Black Bolt’s head blows out (not that we really see blood there) feels far more Raimi than standard MCU. Plus, you know, Pizza Papa. Regardless, while it’s incredibly cool that we got a Raimi-helmed MCU movie (or a Raimi-helmed superhero movie at all after the divisive reaction to Spider-Man 3), Multiverse makes us yearn for a Raimi MCU movie that is his from the very beginning. Marvel is notoriously controlling over directors on these movies, but this one showed them willing to step out of the way and let Raimi do his thing. It would be interesting to see what that would look like if he was doing so from moment one of development.
Stream Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness on Disney+.
11) The Gift
image courtesy of paramount classics
The Gift is of that The Sixth Sense and Stir of Echoes brand of horror-dramas. And while it’s nowhere near as compelling as either of those films, at least it has an intense lead role (her first in a U.S. film, two years after breaking through via Elizabeth).
This is the type of psychic vision thriller that you would find frequently playing on basic cable, probably right before or after a screening of What Lies Beneath. It’s very much in line with that glossy, star-studded Robert Zemeckis movie because, while it has a lot of talent behind it, it’s ultimately just a hollow package that you won’t remember long after it’s done.
Stream The Gift for free on Kanopy.
10) The Quick and the Dead
image courtesy of sony pictures releasing
Some might argue that The Quick and the Dead is more director for hire Raimi than passion project Raimi, but it’s still definitely Raimi. It’s energetic, features a ton of extreme close-ups, and focuses on a character who has suffered greatly.
Is Quick as good as Gene Hackman’s other big ’90s Western, Unforgiven? No, but it’s also not really trying to be as deep as that film. Instead, it’s just a well-paced, highly entertaining Saturday afternoon movie with a simple premise (showdown competitions) put to great use.
Stream The Quick and the Dead on MGM+.
9) Army of Darkness
image courtesy of universal pictures
Some people love Army of Darkness, and more power to them on that front. It does make a good deal of sense why it’s so different from the first two movies. After all, Evil Dead II was really just an intentionally corny version of the straightforward horror narrative of film one.
So, Army of Darkness‘ strategy is to make it an action comedy with a few horror elements. And when those horror elements pop up it’s a good bit of fun, especially with the two-headed Ash scene. But the whole Medieval soldiers versus cackling skeletons finale is just a bit too far into wacky territory. It just doesn’t feel like Evil Dead anymore. Then again, if you feel this one should be a spot or two higher up, that’s not at all disagreeable. It is a nice display of Raimi’s sensibilities and Campbell’s rubber-faced genius.
8) Darkman
image courtesy of universal pictures
After three micro-budgeted films, Darkman represented a step up the studio ladder for Raimi. It was also his first time working with a superhero film, and while it’s certainly no Spider-Man, it’s impressive in its own right. For one, the title character was entirely original, it was a story thought up by Raimi himself. Two, it predated Taken by about 20 years in terms of making Liam Neeson a leading man action star.
Darkman is the early indicator that the director was as adept with superhero material as he was with straightforward horror or, especially, comedy-horror. This is the happy medium between his two great strengths, with a title hero that has leapt from the Universal Monsters world as the pages of a Marvel comic. The result is a high-concept entertainer with a great villain performance by Larry Drake and a runtime that doesn’t allow the film to overstay its welcome.
Stream Darkman on Philo.
7) Drag Me to Hell
image courtesy of universal pictures
Raimi is deservedly known as a horror legend, but the irony is he’s only directed one straightforward horror movie. The rest of his horror works have merged the genre with another. Primarily, comedy. And, after a long 17 years, he finally returned to that genre blending with Drag Me to Hell. The closest he had come to horror since Army of Darkness were certain scenes in the Spider-Man trilogy that wore their genre influence on their sleeve (the operating room scene in Spider-Man 2, for instance).
What’s great about Drag Me is its tone, which is forever walking between growing hopelessness and silly gooey gags that make you want to, well, gag. It’s a movie that recognizes curses are inherently kind of silly and really has fun with what they could do to the accursed, what trials and tribulations it might put them through. And, as far as endings, this one’s might actually beat Evil Dead II‘s back in time cliffhanger.
Stream Drag Me to Hell on HBO Max.
6) Send Help
image courtesy of 20th century studios
There might be some recency bias in play here putting Send Help above Drag Me to Hell, but suffice to say they’re wonderful companion pieces. Not because their narratives are similar, but because their tone reflects Raimi bringing his Evil Dead tone to narratives featuring zero Deadites.
Here, though, we’re even further removed from Evil Dead, and while Evil Dead is a strength, that’s a plus here. That brand of outlandish horror isn’t a hefty part of this one (though it definitely pops up here and there, e.g. in a scene with a boar that had at least one theater in Virginia cracking up), instead focusing more often than not on being a character study and survivalist thriller with some tricks up its sleeve. However, while Raimi’s style and energy are total assets to Send Help, and give it immense rewatchability, it’s really Rachel McAdams who is the film’s greatest asset. This may be the best performance of her career, and that’s really saying something.
5) The Evil Dead
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The Evil Dead is a horror movie every budding horror fan should watch in their youth. It’s just such an iconic member of its genre with budgetary restrictions that only amplify its impact.
This is the definitive cabin in the woods horror movie, full stop. It’s the reason why cabins in the woods have remained an oft revisited staple of the genre. Because it’s essentially a student film, The Evil Dead has a way of playing almost like a documentary, which is an aesthetic that ropes you in from moment one. And, because the film is so tightly-paced your roped-in status will remain as such until the credits roll. Its sequel is undoubtedly a better film but, if this list were based fully in subjectivity, you might see The Evil Dead ranked right up there at number one.
Stream The Evil Dead for free with ads on Tubi.
4) Spider-Man
image courtesy of sony pictures releasing
Seeing Spider-Man in theaters as a 10-year-old felt like a landmark moment. As well it should, because it was. Superman and Batman set the ground for it, but Spider-Man was just as important in making the superhero subgenre a commercially viable presence in Hollywood. It was an event, and rightly so, because it was ridiculously entertaining, charming, and well-paced enough to be a four-quadrant success.
Its sequel may have been deeper, but this film had the more important task of establishing the character, from how he got the powers to his loss of Uncle Ben. It did those things so well that, when The Amazing Spider-Man came along, one of the audience’s biggest faults with it was that it treaded that same ground. This remains the definitive superhero origin story movie. There’s a reason why so many movies copied its general formula throughout the first few years after its release, right down to the final “here’s the hero jumping around the city” shots. Plus, this may be the ultimate sign that Raimi knows how to cast the right people in a movie. The studio wanted Leonardo DiCaprio. Raimi wanted Tobey Maguire. Then of course there’s Willem Dafoe as the Green Goblin. Few villain castings have been so inspired and note-perfect.
Stream Spider-Man on Disney+.
3) A Simple Plan
image courtesy of paramount pictures
As mentioned in the Crimewave blurb, Raimi sought the advice of his buddies the Coen brothers when making A Simple Plan. It shows, because this and their Fargo are visually and thematically similar works. The only real difference is that A Simple Plan has none of Fargo‘s winking sense of humor.
Few types of narratives are as engrossing as ordinary people finding themselves in a situation where a big chunk of someone else’s change becomes available to them. We watch them change, tear one another apart, and pay heavy prices for the money, be it death or dramatically altered personalities toting around guilty consciences. A Simple Plan makes us believe its characters are real, every day average Joe and Joannes, which makes the narrative’s twists and turns feel all the more impactful.
Stream A Simple Plan on MGM+.
2) Spider-Man 2
image courtesy of sony pictures releasing
To this day Spider-Man 2 is cited as one of the best superhero movies ever made. That’s not going to change, because it’s just as entertaining as its predecessor but with an even tighter focus on building upon Peter Parker as a character. His attempts to keep his life in balance ring as true just as his interactions with Doc Ock make for a layered dynamic built upon two strong desires to be selfless.
Then there was the brilliance of casting Alfred Molina as Doc Ock. It seemed like a mountain of a task to replace Dafoe’s Goblin but by God they did it. Molina does a wonderful job of turning the villain into a human being swiftly thrust into the role of a tragic figure with lying mouths in his ear.
Stream Spider-Man 2 on Disney+.
1) Evil Dead II
image courtesy of rosebud releasing corporation
Everything you need to know about the exact tone Raimi brought to Hollywood can be summarized by watching the almost indescribable Evil Dead II. There aren’t really any movies exactly like this out there. Night of the Demons, The Cabin in the Woods, and Dead Alive have flecks of it, but none of them capture live-action bloody Looney Tunes brilliance quite as well as this film.
There isn’t a dull moment in Evil Dead II. Even its predecessor had a least a little bit of set-up. Not in this one. Here, we get a breezy re-do of the first film (with the cast of characters brought down to just Ash and Linda) which is in and of itself the start of the film’s true narrative. Once we get to Linda’s headless body dancing around we are fully away from the narrative of the first one. It’s as if The Evil Dead was a compromise for Raimi, and this was his true vision. It’s cinematic brilliance, simple but far from plain.
Stream Evil Dead II for free with ads on The Roku Channel.