Send Help (2026)

4 Stars (out of 4)

Shudder Island

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

Filmmaker Sam Raimi has done it again with the devilish thriller Send Help, a bloody, exceedingly clever, darkly funny thriller that takes a nuanced look at gender and the corrupting nature of power.

Linda Liddle (Rachel McAdams) works in the Strategy & Planning Department of a successful company. She's great at her job, but socially awkward. She's also a devoted fan of the show Survivor. When the company CEO dies and his son Bradley Preston (Dylan O'Brien) takes over, she expects a promotion. But Bradley gives the job to his golfing buddy instead. She complains and Preston invites her along on a business trip to Bangkok, giving her a chance to prove herself.

The plane crashes, and Linda and Bradley are the only survivors, stranded on a remote island. Miraculously, Linda's obsession with Survivor has left her uniquely qualified to keep them alive. She builds shelters, collects water, and finds food. She begins to thrive in ways that she never did back home, and she realizes that she never wants to leave. And she wants Bradley to stay with her. Thus begins a deadly cat-and-mouse game that gets dark fast.

Packed with brilliant touches (including a visual homage to Hell in the Pacific), Send Help is another gem in the director's crown, fitting in nicely with the Evil Dead movies, Drag Me to Hell, A Simple Plan, and even, to some extent, the Spider-Man trilogy.

It initially seems to be a simple story about a misogynist corporate "bro" who views women only in terms of their looks, and a socially awkward woman whose looks and personality make her a target, and then watching the tables turn. But the movie goes much deeper than that, digging into Bradley Preston to find his positive qualities, and likewise Linda Liddle to find negative qualities. It winds up with two nuanced characters who sometimes lie and scheme, are sometimes cruel, and are sometimes genuinely trying to make a connection, trying to find a balance.

It's especially fascinating watching how the island changes them; in one scene Linda discovers a waterfall. She lets her hair down and bathes in it, and we realize that she's actually growing more beautiful. But let's not forget that this a very dark movie, and Raimi isn't afraid to go there. The climax of a wild boar hunt includes some of the director's most insane imagery, and it doesn't stop there. Yet Send Help isn't a movie to be discussed too deeply lest its most bonkers secrets be revealed. Suffice to say that Raimi fans and cinephiles with strong stomachs are in for a treat.