Sam Raimi of Spider-Man fame returns to his horror beginnings in Drag Me to Hell.  As the man whose work in The Evil Dead trilogy helped establish his reputation as an exceptional producer/writer/director, Raimi brings his singular style, and humor, to his latest effort about a woman’s frantic attempt to lift a curse before time runs out, resulting in her consignment to the fiery depths of Hell.

If there’s one lesson to be learned from Drag Me to Hell, it’s “beware of wizened old gypsy women with discolored prosthetic eyeballs and rotting dentures oozing phlegm and pus.” Should one accidentally cross your path, don’t make her angry. Ambitious loan officer Christine Brown (Alison Lohman) has her eye on the Assistant Manager position at her bank. Mrs. Ganush (Lorna Raver) an elderly woman living on a fixed income hopes to avoid foreclosure and homelessness by requesting an extension on her loan.  For Christine, it’s a tough call. Morals and ethics clash with the possibility of a promotion. In the end, career advancement considerations take precedence, and Christine denies Mrs. Ganush’s request. Enraged, the surprisingly vigorous senior citizen assaults Christine then pronounces a curse upon her -- the demonic Lamia will torment her for three days before dragging her to Hell.

The scares are plenty here, but not the terror; however, you hardly notice or even care. Though many of those scares have a build-up, some occur unexpectedly. The one thing they have in common? An element of shock and surprise. You can’t predict what Raimi is going to pull out of his unique bag of tricks. Suspense is a crucial element of Drag Me to Hell. Raimi skillfully ratchets up the tension by creating a palpable mood of anxiety and apprehension.

Unintentional laughter seems a common audience response to horror films.  In Raimi’s work, -- and Drag Me to Hell is no exception -- the laughs are intentional and perverse, part of his distinctive approach to tweaking and poking fun at the well-worn genre. Though dismembered and sticky body parts appear frequently, bombarding the audience with blood and gore isn’t Raimi’s goal or specialty. Serving up a full throttle, gross-out fun fest is.

In Drag Me to Hell, Raimi again proves he’s an inventive director in firm command of his material. His deft orchestration of the writing, directing, editing, and sound gives rise to a first class horror feature with high production values, the best yet of 2009.

(Released by Universal Pictures and rated "PG-13" for sequences of horror violence, terror, disturbing images and language.)

Review also posted at www.moviebuffs.com.