Harvard anthropologist Dr. Dennis Alan (Bill Pullman) is hired by a pharmaceutical company to travel to Haiti in search of a drug that they want to use as a super anaesthetic. Upon his arrival in Haiti, Dennis meets with Dr. Marielle Duchamp (Cathy Tyson) who assists him on his quest. After meeting with a man who was believed to be dead, whom he’d had a vision of while studying rare herbs in the Amazon forest, Dennis finds himself caught-up with the Haitian secret police spearheaded by Captain Dargent Peytraud (Zakes Mokae), who warns him to leave Haiti. Refusing, Dennis continues his quest putting his life in danger as he exposes Haiti’s black magic underbelly.
‘The Serpent and the Rainbow’ is based on the book of the same-name by Wade Davis, which is about Davis’ real-life experiences. How much of what we see in the film is actually true is a moot point, but the disclaimer that it’s based on true events is enough to send chills down your spine. With the late horror maestro Wes Craven at the helm, ‘The Serpent and the Rainbow’ was released in cinemas 1988. It came after Craven’s iconic ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ but before his resurgence with the ‘Scream’ franchise in the 90s.
Storywise, ‘The Serpent and the Rainbow’ is fairly nightmarish from the start, opening with a man being buried alive but unable to move because he’s paralysed by a drug. From that point on, we see Dennis descend into the pits of hell in his quest to get to the truth about the drug. The closer he gets, the more trouble he finds himself in and Captain Dargent Peytraud is always on his trail. Despite the threats to his life, Dennis presses on with Marielle at his side, and the two find time to fall in love amidst the chaos. The film explores voodoo and black magic, and will probably put you off ever considering Haiti as a holiday destination.
As you would expect from a Wes Craven film, there are some effective scares and visual effects. A reoccurring vision of a woman in a wedding dress provides one of the biggest jump scare moments, and the effects are superb when you consider the time it was made. The film is surprisingly gory and one scene involving Dennis being tortured will make you wince. Pullman gives a strong performance and it’s interesting to note that this was the first horror film he starred in.
Bonus features on the Blu-ray release include a trailer and a double-sided poster featuring all-new artwork created by Rich Davies.
‘The Serpent and the Rainbow’ is a perfectly serviceable horror and thanks to the involvement of Craven, it’s always watchable. It doesn’t deliver the scares or the lasting impact that you’d hope for, but it’s suitably chilling and dark. The film hasn’t gone on to become one of Craven’s best-known but if you’re a fan of his work and you haven’t seen it, I recommend getting yourself a copy.
Cast: Bill Pullman, Cathy Tyson, Zakes Mokae Director: Wes Craven Writers: Richard Maxwell and Adam Rodman (screenplay), Wade Davis (novel) Certificate: 18 Duration: 94 mins Released by: Fabulous Films Ltd / Spirit Entertainment Release date: 3rd March 2025 Buy ‘The Serpent and the Rainbow’ now
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