Drag Me to Hell
After denying a woman the extension she needs to keep her home, loan officer Christine Brown sees her once-promising life take a startling turn for the worse. Christine is convinced she's been cursed by a Gypsy, but her boyfriend is skeptical. Her only hope seems to lie in a psychic who claims he can help her lift the curse and keep her soul from being dragged straight to hell.
Despite a respectable budget of $30.0M, Drag Me to Hell became a financial success, earning $91.4M worldwide—a 205% return.
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Drag Me to Hell (2009) showcases strategically placed story structure, characteristic of Sam Raimi's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 39 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.4, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Christine Brown works as a loan officer at a bank, competing for assistant manager position. She's eager to please, professional, and trying to overcome her farm-girl past to impress her boyfriend Clay's wealthy family.. Notably, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 11 minutes when Mrs. Ganush, a desperate elderly woman, begs Christine for a third extension on her home loan. Christine must choose between showing mercy and demonstrating "toughness" to her boss Mr. Jacks to secure the promotion.. At 11% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 21 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 21% of the runtime. This indicates the protagonist's commitment to Mrs. Ganush ambushes Christine in the parking garage, engaging in a brutal physical fight. She tears a button from Christine's coat and places a curse on it, damning Christine to be tormented by the Lamia demon for three days before being dragged to hell., moving from reaction to action.
At 48 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 49% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. The analysis reveals that this crucial beat Christine learns Mrs. Ganush has died, seemingly ending hope for lifting the curse directly. False defeat: the source of the curse is gone. Rham Jas reveals Christine has only one option left - sacrifice another soul to the demon by giving away the cursed button., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 72 minutes (72% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, At a desperate dinner with Clay's parents where Christine hoped to secure her future, she suffers a violent demonic attack in front of everyone, vomiting and experiencing a public humiliation. Her social aspirations collapse completely; she's exposed as "crazy" and loses all dignity., shows the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 78 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 79% of the runtime. Christine exhumes Mrs. Ganush's corpse and performs the ritual, forcing the cursed button into the dead woman's mouth. The demon releases her. Christine believes she has found the solution by giving the curse back to its originator, maintaining her morality while saving herself., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Drag Me to Hell's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs structural analysis methodology used to understand storytelling architecture. By mapping Drag Me to Hell against these established plot points, we can identify how Sam Raimi utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Drag Me to Hell within the horror genre.
Sam Raimi's Structural Approach
Among the 12 Sam Raimi films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 7.1, reflecting strong command of classical structure. Drag Me to Hell represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Sam Raimi filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional horror films include Lake Placid, A Nightmare on Elm Street and Cat's Eye. For more Sam Raimi analyses, see The Evil Dead, Spider-Man 2 and Army of Darkness.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Christine Brown works as a loan officer at a bank, competing for assistant manager position. She's eager to please, professional, and trying to overcome her farm-girl past to impress her boyfriend Clay's wealthy family.
Theme
Christine's rival Stu tells her the assistant manager position will go to whoever "makes the tough decisions" - establishing the theme of moral compromise versus personal advancement.
Worldbuilding
Setup of Christine's world: her relationship with supportive boyfriend Clay, her ambitions at the bank, meeting Clay's dismissive parents, her insecurities about her background, and the competitive workplace dynamic with Stu.
Disruption
Mrs. Ganush, a desperate elderly woman, begs Christine for a third extension on her home loan. Christine must choose between showing mercy and demonstrating "toughness" to her boss Mr. Jacks to secure the promotion.
Resistance
Christine debates the decision, seeks her boss's approval, and ultimately denies Mrs. Ganush's extension to impress management. Mrs. Ganush escalates from begging to fury, groveling and then attacking Christine in the office before being escorted out.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Mrs. Ganush ambushes Christine in the parking garage, engaging in a brutal physical fight. She tears a button from Christine's coat and places a curse on it, damning Christine to be tormented by the Lamia demon for three days before being dragged to hell.
Mirror World
Clay remains supportive and skeptical of the supernatural, representing the rational world Christine is trying to join. Their relationship embodies the theme: will Christine sacrifice her soul (literally and figuratively) for material success, or choose authenticity and compassion?
Premise
Christine experiences escalating supernatural attacks: séances, demonic visitations, violent haunting. She consults fortune teller Rham Jas who confirms the Lamia curse. The "fun and games" horror set pieces include the séance with possessed goat, fly attacks, and nightmarish visions.
Midpoint
Christine learns Mrs. Ganush has died, seemingly ending hope for lifting the curse directly. False defeat: the source of the curse is gone. Rham Jas reveals Christine has only one option left - sacrifice another soul to the demon by giving away the cursed button.
Opposition
The Lamia's attacks intensify. Christine attends Mrs. Ganush's wake to steal an object to perform a ritual sacrifice. She considers giving the curse to her boss, her rival Stu, or even innocent people. Clay begins to believe her but can't fully help. Time is running out.
Collapse
At a desperate dinner with Clay's parents where Christine hoped to secure her future, she suffers a violent demonic attack in front of everyone, vomiting and experiencing a public humiliation. Her social aspirations collapse completely; she's exposed as "crazy" and loses all dignity.
Crisis
Christine reaches her dark night: she cannot damn an innocent person. Despite everything, she retains her moral core. Clay proposes marriage, showing unconditional love. Christine decides to perform the ritual to transfer the curse back to Mrs. Ganush herself - to the dead woman.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Christine exhumes Mrs. Ganush's corpse and performs the ritual, forcing the cursed button into the dead woman's mouth. The demon releases her. Christine believes she has found the solution by giving the curse back to its originator, maintaining her morality while saving herself.
Synthesis
Christine appears free from the curse. She and Clay plan their future together at the train station. But Clay finds the cursed button in his coat - Christine accidentally gave him her coat button at dinner, not the cursed one. The cursed button was in her own coat the entire time.
Transformation
The Lamia drags Christine screaming into hell from the train platform while Clay watches helplessly. The closing image mirrors the opening: someone being damned for their moral failure. Christine's choice to prioritize career over compassion has literally cost her soul.