Black Snake Moan (2007)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Directors C

  
  Although a misfire for the mainstream audience (who should avoid it like the plague) I am a huge fan of this movie. I am sure I will never be able to look at Christina Ricci or Samuel L Jackson the same way again after witnessing, in my opinion, their most breathtaking performances… More
  Although a misfire for the mainstream audience (who should avoid it like the plague) I am a huge fan of this movie. I am sure I will never be able to look at Christina Ricci or Samuel L Jackson the same way again after witnessing, in my opinion, their most breathtaking performances ever. Especially after watching them in a movie that's more aware of itself than anything i've ever seen. It's about Christina Ricci being shackled by Samuel L Jackson and chained to a radiator and from this the two of them, who are exact opposites, heal eachother emotionally...and it still manages to be clever. How much more aware can you get? The chemistry the two of them shared was phenomenaly impressive and it made the movie sophisticated from it, as it was very emotional to watch. The film itself has the best formula mix of utter hatred and hidden emotion i've ever seen. It's also got a brilliant blues soundtrack and well executed deliberately dark cinematography. Black Snake Moan is a piece of film making that goes where no actor, director or writer want's to go. Having said that anyways it's ironically directed solidly, acted brilliantly (the leads deserved trollies of awards but were overlooked) and it's much closer to a grim sexploitation movie than Tarantino and Rodriguez who made Grindhouse so desperately wanted to replicate. Except this is smarter and longer. One of my all time favourite films!

• Jason R

  
  Somehow, a charming message of love, devotion and morality shines through a movie that centers around Sam Jackson chaining nymphomaniac Christina Ricci to his radiator. While most of the movie plods along simply and effectively to its logical conclusion, there are a couple of… More
  Somehow, a charming message of love, devotion and morality shines through a movie that centers around Sam Jackson chaining nymphomaniac Christina Ricci to his radiator. While most of the movie plods along simply and effectively to its logical conclusion, there are a couple of well-done scenes of over-the-top melodrama that add serious emotional depth to the story. Not for everyone, but I'm a fan.

• Matt G

  
  Lazarus: You hungry? In rural Mississippi, Lazarus, a former blues musician who survives by truck farming, finds a young girl nearly beaten to death near his home. She's the white-trash town tramp, molded by a life of sexual abuse at the hands of her father and verbal abuse from… More
  Lazarus: You hungry? In rural Mississippi, Lazarus, a former blues musician who survives by truck farming, finds a young girl nearly beaten to death near his home. She's the white-trash town tramp, molded by a life of sexual abuse at the hands of her father and verbal abuse from her mother, who seems to delight in reminding Rae of her mistake in not aborting her. Lazarus, who is also facing personal crisis at the dissolution of his marriage, nurses Rae back to health, providing her with gentle, fatherly advice as well as an education in blues music. Rae's boyfriend, Ronnie, goaded by the man who nearly beat Rae to death, misunderstands the relationship between Lazarus and Rae, and vows to kill him. Lazarus, exhibiting a street-smart understanding of violence and its motives, calls Ronnie's bluff, senses that he is as troubled as Rae, and becomes a guiding force in the young couple's resurrection. Lazarus: God put you in my path and I aim to cure you of your wickedness. First off, wow. I've never seen a film this invigorating and real, while boasting such authentic performances by the gorgeous Christina Ricci, the always entertaining Samuel L. Jackson, and a surprise role by Justin Timberlake. Second, I want to give credit to Samuel L. Jackson for his performance. Being one of the most hard working actors in the country, I can't resist any film with him. Jackson's performance as a divorced bluesman who chains a drugged up whore to his house reminds me too much of the famous character Jules Winnfield from Quentin Tarantino's cult classic Pulp Fiction, which in a sense, is a great honor. The reminder probably stems from Jackson's constant use of the word "motherfucker" throughout the film, which cannot help but produce laughs. Christina Ricci's portrayal as Rae is brilliant and generates lots of intense moments as she projects her distorted fears onto Lazarus Woods, who is keeping her with him. This is definitely Ricci's top notch performance that is both disturbing and intriguing to watch, which is too insane not to watch. 'Hustle & Flow' director Craig Brewer has crafted something different and very entertaining. The film was also written by Craig Brewer, which proves how good he is at his profession, and for that, he has my full respect. 'Black Snake Moan' is a very intriguing film that will entertain anyone who enjoys a good flick.

• Dean !

  
  Quite a strange tale. This film brings together a man just split from his cheating wife who is a farmer and ex-musician and a young white girl who seems to be a bit of a nymphomaniac! It's a good film about a very unusual friendship that can restore the both of them in the right… More
  Quite a strange tale. This film brings together a man just split from his cheating wife who is a farmer and ex-musician and a young white girl who seems to be a bit of a nymphomaniac! It's a good film about a very unusual friendship that can restore the both of them in the right path for the future.

• Spencer S

  
  This was a strange mismash of down home southern blues, an exorcism worthy demon inhabiting the soul of Christina Ricci, and the sexual desires of a chained up, druggie, abused girl with no one to take care of her after her boyfriend goes into the army. After Timberlake, who can only… More
  This was a strange mismash of down home southern blues, an exorcism worthy demon inhabiting the soul of Christina Ricci, and the sexual desires of a chained up, druggie, abused girl with no one to take care of her after her boyfriend goes into the army. After Timberlake, who can only play an aggravated version of himself, leaves Ricci to her own devices, she immediately goes off and screws the first guy she sees. Jackson steps in and nurses her back to health after she is savagely beaten, then chains her to a radiator. The entire film is about salvation, and controlling the otherwordly demons within, though it felt like this was more of an excuse to make Ricci prance around half naked, and have Jackson play some otherwordly renditions of blues songs. There was little plot, or substance, though it was actually enjoyable, because it featured decent actors and actresses.

• Ken S

  
  I really enjoyed most of this. The endings a little weak but the music is great. Craig Brewer is the Hal Needham of Southern non-musical music movies.

• xGary X

  
  When an embittered blues guitarist finds a young woman battered and bloody by the side of the road, he decides to take her in and try to help her deal with her mental issues in a very unconventional way. Black Snake Moan looks and sounds fantastic, that's obvious from the start… More
  When an embittered blues guitarist finds a young woman battered and bloody by the side of the road, he decides to take her in and try to help her deal with her mental issues in a very unconventional way. Black Snake Moan looks and sounds fantastic, that's obvious from the start and a typically intense performance from the king of cool Samuel L. Jackson ensures that it's always deeply watchable. Especially since Christina Ricci is still hotter than an in-heat jalapeno holidaying in Death Valley, even if she is playing the town bike. Reminiscent of a more offbeat version of Monster's Ball, this film is essentially about two damaged people finding peace with themselves but despite a very strong opening it feels like a bit of a case of style over substance. It's well written and well acted all round (yes, even by Jasper Timberland himself) but it kind of loses its way towards the end and just kind of peters out. Entertaining, and well worth watching for yet another powerhouse performance by SLJ, but don't expect anything life changingly profound.

• Dan S

  
  A solid movie. Its hard to take content wise the first 20 minutes and Justin Timberlake's character grows tiresome, but the ending is one that is encouraging. Without two terrific performances from Jackson and Ricci, this film is nothing. It does have its share of flaws, but… More
  A solid movie. Its hard to take content wise the first 20 minutes and Justin Timberlake's character grows tiresome, but the ending is one that is encouraging. Without two terrific performances from Jackson and Ricci, this film is nothing. It does have its share of flaws, but these two actors do a good job keeping this probably so-so movie afloat enough, allowing it to burst to life periodically. That keeps it interesting enough.

• KJ P

  
  One of the dumbest movies I have ever seen, but it was so dumb, that I watched it for a second time and tried to focus on it, and it actually had a pretty good story to it!

• Lady D

  
  A set of unusal circumstances throw these characters together, with the type of performance I really enjoy from Samual L Jackson and a good one from Christina Ricci too, who seems to be getting beter and better. The film covers the prejudices that surround people and an enjoyable… More
  A set of unusal circumstances throw these characters together, with the type of performance I really enjoy from Samual L Jackson and a good one from Christina Ricci too, who seems to be getting beter and better. The film covers the prejudices that surround people and an enjoyable Blues theme. Whilst the film doesn't knock your socks of, it's still an enjoyable watch.

• Tim S

  
  A great flick: one great big blues number realized on-screen.

• ♥˩ƳИИ &

  
  Samuel L. Jackson, Christina RIcci, Justin Timberlake, S. Epatha Merkerson, John Cothran Jr. A God-fearing bluesman (Jackson) takes to a wild young woman (Ricci) who, as a victim of childhood sexual abuse, looks everywhere for love, never quite finding it.… More
  Samuel L. Jackson, Christina RIcci, Justin Timberlake, S. Epatha Merkerson, John Cothran Jr. A God-fearing bluesman (Jackson) takes to a wild young woman (Ricci) who, as a victim of childhood sexual abuse, looks everywhere for love, never quite finding it. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Two very unlikely people come together in unsuspected ways and end up having a very strong connection to one another. One a lost soul, the other a nymphomaniac. One in helping the other ends up healing themselves in the process. Very different movie then what I had anticipated it being. In a good way though Didn't have high hopes for this movie, cause I was under the assumption it was going to be a different film then what it actually was. It was a good movie with strong performances. Really surprised with Justin Timberlake. Seen a few movies with him in them, and he is growing on me as an actor. Good movie, good story, and worth the watch.

• Daniel J D

  
  Ahh, the blues. Justin Timberlake, kill yourself.

• Anthony L

  
  Excellent film, a real surprise! Ricci & Jackson work really well together but its Samuel L who really steals the show with a knock-out performance. It annoys me that people are comparing to his role in Pulp Fiction though, the only similarity is that he reads a passage from the… More
  Excellent film, a real surprise! Ricci & Jackson work really well together but its Samuel L who really steals the show with a knock-out performance. It annoys me that people are comparing to his role in Pulp Fiction though, the only similarity is that he reads a passage from the bible! Anyway, great film!

• Lorenzo v

  
  One thing this movie had that I didn't expect so much was power. The scenes were wonderfully crafted to evoke as much emotion as possible. A help to this was the great musical sound of the blues. Just a guitar and a voice that pound their way into your brain. We all know that… More
  One thing this movie had that I didn't expect so much was power. The scenes were wonderfully crafted to evoke as much emotion as possible. A help to this was the great musical sound of the blues. Just a guitar and a voice that pound their way into your brain. We all know that Samuel L. Jackson is basically some sort of God sent to earth to better it with his greatness. Christina Ricci did an equally amazing job.

• Chris G

  
  The first thing that I have to warn you about Black Snake Moan is that Samuel L. Jackson should never be allowed to sing on film for as long as he lives. Black Snake Moan is about a Tennessee blues singer (Jackson) whose wife just left finding a young girl (Christina Ricci who is no… More
  The first thing that I have to warn you about Black Snake Moan is that Samuel L. Jackson should never be allowed to sing on film for as long as he lives. Black Snake Moan is about a Tennessee blues singer (Jackson) whose wife just left finding a young girl (Christina Ricci who is no longer Wednesday Addams) left for dead on the side of the road near his house. He nurses her back to health, but eventually decides to chain her up in his house so that he can save her soul from the addiction that haunts her. The movie opens with Rae (Ricci) having sex with Justin Timberlake before he leaves for his tour in the service. She then proceeds to have sex with a crack dealer in a motel room. Then she goes to a party where she gets high and drunk, leading to some random guy having sex with her while she is wearing football pads. Finally she almost has sex with yet another guy but laughs at the size of his equipment, causing him to beat her and leave her on the side of the road. Honestly, this film seems like an excuse for Christina Ricci to have simulated sex and Samuel L. Jackson to drop "mother fucker" a dozen times in a song. Jackson and Ricci are well cast and are good in their roles, but the plot seems to lag, especially the ending. The concept was great, but the execution was tainted.

• Michael G

  
  Black Snake Moan started off alright but that last third took a total shit. Jackson was good when he wasn't singing (which he can't, by the way.) As much as I've always wanted to see Christina Ricci 80-100% nude, this was before she lost a lot of weight and looked like… More
  Black Snake Moan started off alright but that last third took a total shit. Jackson was good when he wasn't singing (which he can't, by the way.) As much as I've always wanted to see Christina Ricci 80-100% nude, this was before she lost a lot of weight and looked like an alien as a result. And as much as I like Justin Timberlake he should really stick to music and quit playing hopeless bitches.

• Chris W

  
  This is a very strange, off-the-wall film, and though it looks and sounds at first glance like a grade-B exploitation flick, it is FAR from it. There is a lot of depth to this film that unfortunately the ads and trailers failed to reveal. This is a film about pain, loss, hurt, hope,… More
  This is a very strange, off-the-wall film, and though it looks and sounds at first glance like a grade-B exploitation flick, it is FAR from it. There is a lot of depth to this film that unfortunately the ads and trailers failed to reveal. This is a film about pain, loss, hurt, hope, and redemption. Christina Ricci being chained to a radiator is symbolic, not sleazy. Ricci and Jackson are beyond superb here. Both give some of the absolute best performances of their respective careers. The supporting cast also gives some very strong performances, including an especially sensitive and emotional one by Jusitn Timberlake, who yes, does have the ability to act. Don't take this film at face value. It is a powerful and moving film. Brewer is a great director, even if he chooses to direct a film like this in such an unusual way.

• Wildaly M

  
  Ricci was very good, I've always liked her films. I was especially impressed at Samuel Jackson's guitar playing. I think I actually liked the music more than the story itself. And Justin Timberlake impressed me.

• Megan S

  
  I don't even really know what to say about this movie. We were laughing throughout because it was so ridiculous. And the ending was pretty contrived.

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