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Movies / On DVD / The Serpent and the Rainbow
The Serpent and the Rainbow

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The Serpent and the Rainbow (1987)

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59 %
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Reviews Counted:27

Fresh:16

Rotten:11

Average Rating:5.6/10

Runtime: 1 hr 38 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

Synopsis: Dennis Alan heads to Haiti in hopes of obtaining a mysterious potion that represses the nervous and respiratory systems without causing death; this draught would also scientifically explain the... Dennis Alan heads to Haiti in hopes of obtaining a mysterious potion that represses the nervous and respiratory systems without causing death; this draught would also scientifically explain the myth of the zombie. Once on Caribbean soil, however, Alan encounters powerful cults, government corruption and a poverty-stricken populace ready to revolt -- and he finds himself deeply seduced by voodoo, though his sense of logic cannot comprehend its mystical nature. But more earthly dangers lurk in the form of an evil magistrate and the local police, who do not hesitate to torture Alan when he defies their leader. In the end, Alan emerges from the experience radically changed, with the realization that Western notions of science cannot explain the many things he's witnessed in this world. [More]

Starring: Bill Pullman, Cathy Tyson, Zakes Mokae, Paul Winfield

Starring: Bill Pullman, Cathy Tyson, Zakes Mokae, Paul Winfield

Director: Wes Craven

Director: Wes Craven
Story: Wade Davis

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Nov 30, 1999

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for The Serpent and the Rainbow

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1 - 20 (sorted by source)
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Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

A trippy, guilty pleasure.

comment Comment
08/30/04
John Wirt
John Wirt
Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA)

No review available.

comment Comment
02/18/05
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Genuinely frightening.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
09/25/07
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The Serpent and the Rainbow is uncanny in the way it takes the most lurid images and makes them plausible.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
07/26/02
Scott Weinberg
Scott Weinberg
eFilmCritic.com

No review available.

comment Comment
07/19/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

Genuinely chilling, one of Wes Craven's best.

comment Comment
01/12/03
Rob Vaux
Rob Vaux
Flipside Movie Emporium

No review available.

comment Comment
01/24/04
Spence D.
Spence D.
IGN Movies

Wes Craven chiller that thinks it's ten times the picture it actually is.

comment Comment
08/04/02
Alex Sandell
Alex Sandell
Juicy Cerebellum

Craven tries something different, with mixed results

comment Comment
01/05/03
James Sanford
James Sanford
Kalamazoo Gazette

A scary, hallucinogenic and underrated horror movie, and one of Wes Craven's best.

comment Comment
11/04/03
Blake Davis
Blake Davis
KFOR Channel 4 News

A lame documentary-flavored horror story.

Full Review Source: Lessons of Darkness | comment Comment
01/25/06
Nick Schager
Nick Schager
Lessons of Darkness

The Serpent and the Rainbow is well worth renting, particularly if you're a fan of Voodoo films, or Wes Craven's work in general -- be sure and check it out.

Full Review Source: Mike Bracken's Horror Films | comment Comment
02/13/01
Mike Bracken
Mike Bracken
Mike Bracken's Horror Films

Mildly effective "fact" based horror from Wes Craven.

comment Comment
10/19/03
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

An invisibly smart film, a lot brighter underneath than its surface gloss would suggest.

Full Review Source: Netflix | comment 1 Comment
11/07/02
James Rocchi
James Rocchi
Netflix

Possibly Craven's best -- an original voodoo thriller that's also primo Pullman

comment Comment
01/09/03
Luke Y. Thompson
Luke Y. Thompson
New Times

The Serpent and the Rainbow has a screenplay that often breaks its spell.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
08/30/04
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Despite the strongly emphasized exoticness its Haitian scenery, The Serpent and the Rainbow may be Wes Craven's most pedestrian film.

Full Review Source: Projection Booth | comment Comment
10/26/07
Rob Humanick
Rob Humanick
Projection Booth

Surprisingly solid effort from Wes Craven.

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Mark R. Leeper
Mark R. Leeper
rec.arts.movies.reviews

No review available.

comment Comment
11/19/04
Robin Clifford
Robin Clifford
Reeling Reviews
 
 
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