--- title: "Send Help: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/send-help/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/send-help" critics_score: 79 critics_reviews: 10 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Send Help (2026): what the critics said Critics' score 79 from 10 reviews: 9 positive, 1 mixed, 0 negative. Most critics greet Send Help as a return to form for Sam Raimi, and the praise lands most heavily on Rachel McAdams. Reviewers repeatedly describe her mousy office worker, stranded on an island with her boss after a plane crash, as the film’s engine, with Dylan O’Brien admired alongside her as the power between them flips. The gore is the second talking point: most find the set pieces gleefully revolting, though a couple note that the digital effects look weaker than practical work would have. Reservations cluster around the script and the satire. A few critics feel the film backs away from the more uncomfortable parts of its role reversal, and that its eat-the-rich comedy is thinner than in similar films. The spread is fairly wide. The Telegraph finds it more stressful than funny and calls it a strained disappointment, and The Guardian judges the plot twists derivative and the gore silly, but they are outnumbered by reviews that simply call it fun. ## The Independent — Clarisse Loughrey Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 30 January 2026. The critic finds Raimi's return to horror disgusting yet brilliant, praising the film's witty and visceral take on an eat-the-rich parable. McAdams and O'Brien deliver forceful performances in the survival power struggle, though digital gore effects are noted as a weakness compared to practical effects. [Read the review](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/send-help-review-sam-raimi-rachel-mcadams-b2907542.html) ## Empire — Helen O’Hara Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 26 January 2026. The critic calls the film gnarly, gross and delightfully unconventional, a satisfying Sam Raimi return carried by McAdams' committed performance. It blends office satire, body horror and power dynamics on the island with tension over shifting sympathies and unpredictable outcomes. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/send-help/) ## Little White Lies — David Jenkins Rating 4/4/4. 3 February 2026. The critic finds it an absolute hoot and rip-roaring dose of pure Raimi, riding on extremely entertaining lead performances that deliver insight into gender wars and corporate bro culture. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/send-help) ## Los Angeles Times — Katie Walsh Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 30 January 2026. The review calls it a gonzo and fun survivalist riff that succeeds thanks to game performances from McAdams and O’Brien, who deliver expressive, clownish turns in Raimi’s irreverent, bloody style. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2026-01-30/send-help-review-rachel-mcadams-sam-raimi-dylan-obrien) ## The AV Club — Jesse Hassenger Rating B. 26 January 2026. McAdams elevates the film with a complex performance in this loopy, messy Raimi thriller that mixes gore, gender politics, and fun, though it doesn't fully merge his style with deeper human elements as successfully as his best works. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/send-help-review) ## Variety — Peter Debruge Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 26 January 2026. The critic enjoys the twisted B-movie premise and unpredictable power reversal on the island, praising McAdams’ unexpected stretch into a dowdy role and Raimi’s gross-out humor and audience-baiting shocks. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2026/film/reviews/send-help-review-1236637527/) ## Radio Times — Emma Simmonds Rating 3 out of 5 stars. The critic describes a madcap survival thriller with recognisably manic Raimi energy and strong lead performances that plumb the depths of derangement, though it falls short of the satirical success of similar films. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-9qjyoj/send-help/) ## The Guardian 26 January 2026. The film starts promisingly with its desert-island survival premise and satire but is undermined by derivative plot twists and gratuitous, unconvincing gore that turns it silly. McAdams gives a solid performance in an otherwise exasperating black comedy. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/jan/26/send-help-review-sam-raimi-rachel-mcadams-gore-laced-plane-crash-survival-story) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Frank Scheck 26 January 2026. The critic praises the audacious concept and Raimi's filmmaking in this darkly comic survival thriller, highlighting McAdams' transformative performance as a standout. The film is fun, freaky, and full of surprises, with virtuosic sequences that mix horror and humor effectively. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/send-help-review-rachel-mcadams-dylan-obrien-sam-raimi-1236481704/) ## The New York Times — Jeannette Catsoulis Rating Critic’s Pick. 29 January 2026. The critic finds this a jubilantly wicked thriller identifiable as a Sam Raimi product, praising its darkly humorous tone, yucky effects and steadfast support for the awkward heroine played by a dorkified Rachel McAdams. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/29/movies/send-help-review.html) ## The Telegraph 5 February 2026. McAdams and O’Brien go feral on a desert island in a tale of shifting power dynamics, but the film stresses viewers out more than it amuses or scares, with gratuitous gore and a dubious script that makes it a strained disappointment from Raimi. [Read the review](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2026/02/05/rachel-mcadams-send-help/) ## The Times — Tom Shone 7 February 2026. McAdams is dazzling and unstoppable as the mousy employee who turns the tables on her boss after a plane crash strands them on a desert island, powering a boisterous horror-comedy that mixes eat-the-rich satire with Looney Tunes violence. [Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/send-help-review-rachel-mcadams-is-unstoppable-8l2ljfrqj) ## Time Out — Phil de Semlyen Rating 4 out of 5 stars. 27 January 2026. The critic calls it a major return to form for Raimi and a queasy funhouse ride featuring wild, committed performances from McAdams and O'Brien as the power dynamic flips on a remote island. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/send-help-review-2026) ## Vulture 30 January 2026. McAdams delivers fun physical comedy and line readings in this survival thriller, bringing energy to the role reversal on the island, though the film pulls back from fully exploring uncomfortable dynamics in its characters' power shift. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/rachel-mcadams-is-all-wrong-and-so-right-for-send-help.html) ## Deadline — Pete Hammond Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 26 January 2026. The critic praises it as a delightful, genre-bending dark comic thriller with Rachel McAdams delivering one of her best performances in a story of role reversal between an employee and her boss stranded on an island. The film is lauded for its originality, humor, and entertainment value. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2026/01/send-help-review-rachel-mcadams-dylan-obrien-sam-raimi-1236696378/) ## Den of Geek — Joe George Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 30 January 2026. The critic celebrates Rachel McAdams' fearless, committed performance as an office worker who unleashes chaos on a deserted island. They single out the gruesome, absurd boar-hunting sequence as emblematic of Sam Raimi's signature blend of terror and comedy. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/send-help-rachel-mcadams-full-bruce-campbell-amazing/) ## Digital Spy — Ian Sandwell Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 26 January 2026. The critic calls the film a deliciously entertaining, disgusting and twisted survival thriller that is enormous fun and unmissable. They single out the multiple outrageous, gory set pieces and the comic timing of McAdams and Dylan O'Brien. [Read the review](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a70109322/send-help-review/) ## Collider — Aidan Kelley Rating 6/10. 26 January 2026. The critic describes it as a darkly comedic return to horror that could use more scares, with inconsistencies in tone and script. They praise the dynamite performances by McAdams and O'Brien along with Raimi's creative visuals and overall fun, campy entertainment value. [Read the review](https://collider.com/send-help-review-sam-raimi-rachel-mcadams-dylan-obrien/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/send-help.md