Drag Me To Hell: Interview with Alison Lohman
In Drag Me To Hell ( read our review of the film here!), Alison Lohman stars as Christine Brown, a young woman whose idyllic world becomes a living hell when she's placed under a merciless curse. Fortunately for Lohman, this initiation to the macabre comes under the guidance of horror maestro and acclaimed director, Sam Raimi (The Evil Dead; Spider-Man), whose new film, anchored by Lohman's performance, is already generating considerable buzz. A child actor since the age of nine, Lohman first made her mark in Hollywood in 2002 with the drama White Oleander, opposite Michelle Pfeiffer, Renée Zellweger and Robin Wright Penn. She's gone on to star in Matchstick Men with Nicolas Cage; Big Fish, for director Tim Burton; Things We Lost In The Fire, with Halle Berry and Beowulf, for director Robert Zemeckis.
Drag Me To Hell is a departure for you - your first
horror film; what attracted you to the role?
Alison Lohman -
Sam Raimi. I remember first talking
with him on the phone about it. I think it was a three-hour
conversation, maybe more. He went into such detail, like a little
kid telling a story around a campfire, and I just knew I had to do
this movie with him. The thing is, I'm not a big horror fan. It
takes a lot for me to be scared. Before I spoke with Sam, I didn't
think it would be right for me. I didn't think I had my
finger on the pulse of it or for any kind of horror movie.
Fortunately, I learned what makes the best horror movies so good
and what makes Sam so great. If you have rich characters and
circumstances interesting enough for the audience to get involved,
even without the horror part, only then do you have the makings of
a great film. Unfortunately, a lot of contemporary horror movies
I've seen don't have that which is why I wasn't initially
interested. I always felt like the characters in these movies were
kind of waiting for the horror, for the scary moments to
happen.
What did Sam Raimi teach you about horror
films?
Alison Lohman - I love Sam because it's never
about the horror only. Sometimes it is about those scary moments,
but it's more about the characters. In Drag Me To Hell, he really
cared about Christine, her relationships, and having these moments
that are very real, that we can all relate to. By the time she has
to confront this demon, you're there with her. The horror, in a
way, is just the icing on the cake. You enter this other world with
him that's so solid and detailed that you feel supported by it. And
you trust it to take you on that ride.
How did you prepare for the film?
Alison Lohman - I had meetings with Sam to get an
idea of what he was thinking in terms of the character. I also met
with a loan officer, which is what I play on screen. I didn't know
anything about banking and I'm awful with numbers, so I needed to
have an idea of what that life was like and the people who actually
live it. I also hung out with Justin Long, who plays my boyfriend,
just to get to know each other better, to have that rapport on
screen. And then, of course, I watched horror classics every day,
looking for those moments. Whatever film I was watching, I would
look at the rhythm and the pacing. I mean, I would just sit there,
turn off the lights, and watch films like The Shining. Other times,
I would watch just a single clip from a movie to find that
inspiration for what I needed to do.
Had you seen any of Sam's Horror Films
before?
Alison Lohman - Not the horror ones, no. So I
watched The Evil Dead movies, Army of Darkness. I'd seen A Simple
Plan and The Gift before, which I loved. I mean, I've always loved
Sam's work, especially the Spider-Man movies. You can see his
personality in all of them. He has a very wry and dry sense of
humor. And that humor that you see in this movie is also there in
his personality.
What was it like working with Sam?
Alison Lohman - Amazing. We actually did a lot of
rehearsal, going over scenes, talking them through and playing with
them, which was incredibly helpful. Sam is great in that way - very
collaborative and open to the actors being involved in the process.
It makes you want to bring even more, because he's so accepting of
it. I love that about him. It's really rare to find that in a
director.
What was it like filming the special effects and action
sequences?
Alison Lohman - Well, the fight scene in
the car took about two weeks to film. It was all very
choreographed, very specific, coordinating our actions with the
camera. A lot of it is about hitting marks while making it look as
wild, frenetic and spontaneous as you can, like when I knock Mrs.
Ganush's dentures out on the front seat. There are some
interesting moments, some uniquely Sam Raimi moments when you have
this older women, Lorna Raver, gnawing on your chin with her saliva
on your face. Weird and gross! I didn't believe him. I
would never believe him when he'd tell me about the things he was
planning. When you read the script, it actually describes it, "she
suckles on her chin." And I thought, 'Oh, yeah, right, he's
just trying to be flowery on the page.' No, he actually meant
suckling on the chin. I had no idea that he was really going to do
that until we did it (laughs). Yeah, we had some strange moments.
Sam choreographed the whole thing. But we had to make it look as
spontaneous as we could.
What was the biggest challenge for you?
Alison Lohman - Sleep. I didn't have any
sleep during this movie. It takes enormous amounts of energy to
keep your adrenaline high, filming scenes where you're being scared
all the time and fighting for your life. So I was really trying to
survive the movie while my character was trying to survive this
demon (laughs). I would come home and wouldn't know how to come
down from it. But, you know, you learn little tricks. A lot of
times just going for a long walk can do it. Or tequilla works too
(laughs). It was a wild movie, I'm telling you. Nothing that
I've experienced in my life comes close. I felt run down a lot of
the time. I actually got shingles afterwards. The only thing that
kept me going was Sam. Not only would he push me and force me to
keep going, but he also inspired me. Even though he was torturing
me throughout this movie, he's such a gentleman. I mean, he really
is a contradiction. He would be so sweet and nice and then he'd be
literally, bouncing me off the ceilings.
Did you do your own stunts?
Alison Lohman - I think there were a
couple of parts where I had a stunt person, but for the most part
it was me. It's definitely me flying throughout the room. And I
wanted that. So to be fair, it wasn't just Sam. I asked for it,
basically!
What surprised you most about the
experience?
Alison Lohman - Looking back on it, that I had
fun. I would have thought I'd say, 'Oh, that was a nightmare. I'm
never going to do that again. Why the hell did I do that?' But now,
looking back on it, I can easily say I had a lot of fun working on
it, while being tortured at the same time (laughs). But I
would really love to work on another Sam Raimi movie. That I'd do
in a heartbeat.
