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The Serpent and the Rainbow
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Movie Details
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Videos & Photos
- Trailer for this thriller directed by Wes Craven (01:22)
Movie Info & Cast
Synopsis
An anthropologist goes to Haiti to research a drug that makes someone appear dead by suspending all vital signs.
Cast
- Bill Pullman
- Cathy Tyson
- Zakes Mokae
- Paul Winfield
- Brent Jennings
- Conrad Roberts
- Badja Djola
- Theresa Merritt
- Michael Gough
- Paul Guilfoyle
Letterboxd User Reviews
3.3
43.7K
20.8K
9.0K
- Sep 21, 2015
'The Serpent And The Rainbow' is a frustrating film to both watch and review. Based somewhat loosely on Wade Davis' non-fiction account of ethnobotanical exploration in Haiti in the 1970's and 1980's, and his research into the psychopharmacological and cultural roots of…
nathaxnne [goodbye <3]Jun 29, 2014"The Serpent and the Rainbow" is one of Wes Craven's best films, and, for much of its running time, it is one of the horror director's most restrained films. Telling a story based on actual events, Craven eschews gore and token exploitative touches for authentic fear and…
Travis LytleAug 25, 202570 Wes Craven's sense of the nightmarish is given anthropological weight here, which doesn't necessarily negate its clumsy plotting and thematic incoherence, but it at least establishes a framework by which to examine the barriers between life and death. Very good and…
SilentDawn -
"I want to hear you scream" "Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh" "Not good enough...." Anyone who has seen this film knows what happens next....
DirkHMar 18, 2023"The Serpent and the Rainbow" presents the zombie topic in a different way and also shows the voodoo cult more precisely than other representatives do. But all in all it just wasn‘t for me. Most of the time it was quite boring to me. But I love Wes Craven‘s work and had to…
kat🕷Sep 30, 2025So many nutt cracking scenes you’d think it’s a Christmas movie
Hailli - Oct 13, 2019
Geoff T's Hoop-Tober 6.0 Challenge Craven Triple Bill #1 The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988) Felt like treating myself to a trio of previously unseen films from the late Wes Craven. Very loosely based on the accounts of Wade Davis, Serpent and the Rainbow felt to me…
Geoff TJun 28, 2019Craven tapping into more psychological fare while not forgetting his Fango-fans. Kinda dated but still very disturbing. Also, is Bill Pullman 200% committed or was Craven committed to just torturing him? Damn. Brad Fidel completely “Horner”’s his TERMINATOR score here…
Joe LynchJul 23, 2024A decent Haitian zombi flick, with a somewhat engaging story. I liked the shot choices in certain scenes, such as the burial and nightmare sequences. If only Bill Pullman put in a little more effort, as his performance felt kind of stale. Everyone else in the film did…
gregs1999
Queue Community Reviews
80%
Community 294
Top Reviews
- Big E is "meh" onThe Serpent and the Rainbow
A little convoluted and confusing, had some decent effects for being from the 80s, but it was a story about a “good guy”working for big pharma, stealing a special drug from a poorer country to use “for good”, and refusing to leave the country after being told several times to go.
kendra jo likedThe Serpent and the Rainbowi surprisingly liked this one! the story is interesting & horror/spooky elements are fun & chilling. i liked the cinematography & i think the film was well made. i’m curious as to how much of this story was actually true, it’s pretty interesting.
CvptvinHowdy is "meh" onThe Serpent and the RainbowI went into this blind anticipating a good Wes Craven zombie film, but it was just bland with few cool moments
- Figo Nyberg likedThe Serpent and the Rainbow
Nice horror movie by the talented director Wes Craven. Overall interesting story with some intense scenes.
Angela likedThe Serpent and the RainbowHoly moly it just keeps getting crazier and crazier. one dude never stops coming back istg
Orlando Ramone likedThe Serpent and the RainbowA hidden gem by Wes Craven. I still wonder how much of this story is actually true.
- Nova lovedThe Serpent and the Rainbow
This was deep in words I can’t put together.
Brett Bettendorf likedThe Serpent and the RainbowGood movie. Would watch again.
South Philly Dilly Dilly Jawn likedThe Serpent and the RainbowCreepy.
Atom Users Reviews
Metacritic
Mingling a frank trashiness with unexpected ambition, Wes Craven's The Serpent and the Rainbow emerges as one of the more commanding horror movies of recent months.
Dave Kehr
Chicago Tribune
The Serpent and the Rainbow does for the old Caribbean zombie movie what Steven Spielberg's Raiders of the Lost Ark did for the serials. It preserves all the spooky fun of a movie like White Zombie while drawing upon all the sophisticated resources of big-budget modern film making: richly photographed authentic locales, wondrous special effects and amazingly acute sound recording...The result is an ambitious, entertaining--though not flawless--feat of the imagination, a highly visual and skillful blending of supernatural and political terror, high adventure and anthropology.
Kevin Thomas
Los Angeles Times
More than a little has been lost in the translation. Screenwriters Richard Maxwell and A.R. Simoun have created a horrific Indiana Jones adventure with Davis being portrayed by Bill Pullman, an actor who does a poor imitation of Michael Douglas doing a poor imitation of Harrison Ford.[6 Feb 1988, p.2D]
Hal Lipper
Tampa Bay Times
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