The Serpent and the Rainbow
Don't bury me... I'm not dead!
Wes Craven (The People Under the Stairs, Shocker) directs this terrifying story of one man's nightmarish journey into the eerie and deadly world of voodoo.
A Harvard anthropologist (Bill Pullman) is sent to Haiti to retreive a strange powder that is said to have the power to bring human beings back from the dead. In his quest to find the miracle drug, the cynical scientist enters the rarely seen netherworld of walking zombies, blood rites and ancient curses.
Based on the true life experiences of Wade Davis and filmed on location in Haiti, it's a frightening excursion into black magic and the supernatural.
Member Reviews
Killer Movie!! heres how to get it fast! - hellbully626
I just noticed that this movie is not available to ship and wanted to share how i received this and The People Under The Stairs in record time from zip.
search for The Wes Craven collection, the first disc is the People Under The Stairs and i received it in 2 days after adding it. The Serpent and the Rainbow is disc 2 and i received it in 2 days as well!The mystical culture of Haiti introduced in outstanding manner - Porkchop
The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988) is a sci-fi, mystical, pagan movie
based on the culture of Haiti.
Those involved in this project are incredibly talented.
The quality of the DVD transfer is glossy and crystal clear, and the
audio is done to perfection.
The actors take the picture up another notch. Bill Pullman as Dennis mandated by his employer, a pharma company, to retrieve samples of a narcotic rumored to be used in Haiti by the Tonton Macoutes chief of police. It is also associated with Voodoo mystical rituals and with torture techniques, mind control experiments, and more to repress political
dissidents, persona non grata, etc.
Zakes Mokae masterfully plays Peytraud, the Macoutes police boss,
leading a double life as the underground voodoo shaman.
Remarkable events happen to Pullman on the island, as his jaded,
atheistic, dismissive and Wall St Journal view of what his trip will
be about, is turned on its head, as he becomes the object of
strong-arm tactics by Moake. Not even after submitting to torture
interrogation at one point, and getting involved with dissidents does the American stop.
Some of the sets would naturally trigger a panic from city slickers,
if visiting the Rain Forests of the Amazon or the jungles of Haiti,
if falling down a 30 foot deep pit,
Mokae's character is deeply involved with the occult, and
psychologically manipulates victims, implanting hallucinations,
flashbacks, over 12 hour drug trips, imprinting massive fear.
Some of the special effects are extraordinarily well done, such as
when adversaries are thrown against the wall.
The compound's preparation is apparently owed to the voodoo shamen,
over many generations, requiring the Bufo Marinus sea toad fish, sea
worm, puffer fish, skeleton bones, fire, various rituals, and is
explained and played well by Brent Jennings's "Bokor" character.Good, but could have been great. - Manuel
The main problem I have with this film is the direction by Wes Craven. He hasn't quite grasped the fact that sometimes the scariest moments don't come from special effects. This movie should work, and it should work very well. It doesn't. Even though Craven was given a better than average screenplay to work from, from an even better novel, he messes up every chance he has to truly bring this film to the next level.
While better than your average horror film it could have been great. A classic even. Bill Pullman gives us a great performance as he usually does. If Craven did only one thing right with this film it is the atmosphere. He has created a truly bleak and harrowing atmosphere around the whole used up voodoo plotline. From the strange Amazon rainforest style music to the casting of the minor roles the atmosphere is pitch perfect for this film. As most everyone knows, Craven would go on to do great things in the genre (well at least succesful things) and make a name for himself as a horror master. This is evidence of the better things that would follow. While I have mixed feelings about it, you should check it out.
Member Reviews
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Killer Movie!! heres how to get it fast! - hellbully626
I just noticed that this movie is not available to ship and wanted to share how i received this and The People Under The Stairs in record time from zip.
search for The Wes Craven collection, the first disc is the People Under The Stairs and i received it ...The mystical culture of Haiti introduced in outstanding manner - Porkchop
The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988) is a sci-fi, mystical, pagan movie
based on the culture of Haiti.
Those involved in this project are incredibly talented.
The quality of the DVD transfer is glossy and crystal clear, and the
audio ...Good, but could have been great. - Manuel
The main problem I have with this film is the direction by Wes Craven. He hasn't quite grasped the fact that sometimes the scariest moments don't come from special effects. This movie should work, and it should work very well. It doesn't. Even though Craven ...