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Review: ‘Send Help’ Blends ‘Cast Away’ and ‘Misery’ to Tell a Tale of Empowerment, Office Politics and Bloody Revenge
January 26, 2026Ben MK
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We've all had them — a bad boss who makes our work week a living nightmare or an unbearable manager who gives new meaning to the phrase "daily grind." But while there's nothing funny about a toxic work environment, that hasn't stopped Hollywood from making light of this all-too-familiar scenario. Whether it's laugh-out-loud comedies like Office Space and Horrible Bosses or darker satires like Swimming with Sharks and Glengarry Glen Ross, moviegoers are no stranger to films depicting upper management as ruthless egomaniacs. And with Send Help, director Sam Raimi is making his contribution to this niche sub-genre, with a blood-splattered tale about an under-appreciated office worker who finally gets the chance to turn the tables on her self-centered jerk of a boss. Linda Liddle (Rachel McAdams) has spent seven years toiling away at her cubicle for Preston Strategic Solutions. However, despite her hard work and dedication to the company, she has yet to be promoted. As one of the hardest workers in Preston's Strategy and Planning department, Linda has proven herself time and time again to be a key asset to her superiors. Yet, even though she's used to being treated like week-old leftovers, that hasn't put a damper on her goals of moving up the corporate ladder. Unfortunately for Linda, Preston's new CEO, Bradley Preston (Dylan O'Brien), doesn't see her as management material. So when he invites her to join him and three other executives on a private jet to Bangkok, to help them prepare a presentation for an important meeting about the company's new merger strategy, Linda has no idea that he plans to ship her off to a satellite branch once all is said and done. Unbeknownst to all of them, however, their plane is about to encounter some nasty turbulence high above the Gulf of Thailand. And when it violently crashes, leaving Linda and Bradley as the two sole survivors of the wreck, it sets the stage for a surprising shift in the power dynamics between the two. Stranded on a remote island with nary another living soul in sight, Linda swiftly begins putting her survival know-how — skills she learned while training to be a contestant on the reality TV show Survivor — to good use. And before her injured boss even regains consciousness, she's already gathered the materials needed to build a makeshift camp. Bradley, on the other hand, isn't quite as impressed with Linda's ability to turn branches and leaves into a shelter or to start up a beachside bonfire. But when he starts to order her around as if they were back at the office, it causes something inside Linda to snap. Consequently, she decides to show Bradley just how much he truly needs her, letting him suffer without food or water for hours. Yet, despite how much fun it is for Linda to turn the tables on Bradley, just how far will she go to lord her newfound dominance over her boss? And when the opportunity for rescue finally arises, will Linda opt to return to civilization — or will she choose to stay on this island, forcing Bradley to bow down to her by relying on her for his very survival? Written by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift, the result plays like a twisted mash-up of Cast Away and Misery, with a dash of Triangle of Sadness thrown in for good measure. Still, despite a handful of jump scares, a ghastly hallucination or two, and a modicum of blood and gore, Send Help may not be quite what Sam Raimi fans had in mind, especially coming from the director of movies like The Evil Dead, Darkman and Drag Me to Hell. Granted, horror fans will no doubt get a kick out of a few scenes, including one involving the hunt of a vicious wild boar and another featuring a bloody brawl to the death. However, if you're looking for a gruesome tale of terror that will send chills down your spine, then you may want to dial down your expectations. Make no mistake, for anyone who's ever worked for an insufferable boss, Send Help delivers precisely the type of cathartic release that makes for a fun and entertaining time at the multiplex. Just don't go in expecting a blood-drenched fright-fest like some of Raimi's previous horror films. Because while his latest foray into the genre is certainly something worth celebrating, this one's more about the real-life terror of surviving a toxic workplace, rather than the fictitious horror of the supernatural unknown. Send Help releases January 30th, 2026 from 20th Century Studios. The film has an MPAA rating of R for strong/bloody violence and language. Its runtime is 1 hr. 53 min. |
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