Post by Absinthe on Jun 20, 2007 21:24:32 GMT -6
Black Snake Moan
- Drama/Romance
- Starring:
Samuel L. Jackson
Christina Ricci
Justin Timberlake
- Drama/Romance
- Starring:
Samuel L. Jackson
Christina Ricci
Justin Timberlake
I'm not quite sure what I was expecting from Black Snake Moan, but whatever it was, this movie was so much more. The story of a bluesman named Lazarus (Jackson), and his interactions with Rae (Ricci), Black Snake Moan exceeded all expectations. As the victim of sexual abuse when she was a child, Rae seeks love in all the wrong places, suffering from a sort of sexual addiction. When Lazarus comes upon her lying half-dead in the street in front of his house, he decides to help her. Lazarus takes it upon himself to "cure Rae's wickedness" and soon the two find themselves bonding in an unlikely friendship. The tagline of this movie is "To save his soul, he must save hers." That tagline fits the blues-driven, spiritual message of Black Snake Moan.
I was thoroughly surprised when I watched this film. I'm not going to lie, I was half expecting another raunchy, meaningless, should-have-been-porn movie. There seem to be a lot of those hitting theaters and shelves lately. But Black Snake Moan actually had a message. Even for the non-spiritual, this movie makes you feel something. The characters are vastly flawed, but even in the more extreme flaws, such as Rae's "affliction", they are believable. The story is resonating and unexpected. Even the acting was far above the expected quality.
Let's just say that after a string of laughable action flicks, Samuel L. Jackson is back in a big way. His portrayal of Lazarus is harsh, significant and oh so wonderful. Christina Ricci, who can most recently be recognized as indie-horror's queen (not necessarily a good thing) gave a wonderful performance, adding layers to a character that, if played incorrectly, could have easily been laughable. But Ricci pulls it off and kudos to her for it. Most shocking of all was Justin Timberlake's performance as Rae's army guardsman boyfriend, Ronnie. Now, let me just say this - I didn't know JT had it in him.
Black Snake Moan was a surprise all around and that is a very good thing. I gave it 4.5 out 5 chimps.
*Black Snake Moan will be availabe on Tuesday, June 26th