Black Snake Moan
Encyclopedia
Black Snake Moan is a 2006 American drama film
written and directed by Craig Brewer
. It was filmed in and around Stanton, Tennessee
, and stars Samuel L. Jackson
, Christina Ricci
, and Justin Timberlake
. The title of the film derives from the 1927 Blind Lemon Jefferson
song, while the plot, as confirmed by director Brewer in the commentary to the DVD of the film, is loosely based on George Eliot
's 1861 novel Silas Marner
. The film draws numerous references to the Mississippi Blues movement
, not least in its title and soundtrack.
), a deeply religious farmer and former blues
guitarist, and Rae (Christina Ricci
), a young nymphomaniac. Lazarus's wife and his brother were having an affair, which has left him a bitter and angry man. Rae's boyfriend Ronnie (Justin Timberlake
) leaves for deployment with the 196th Field Artillery Brigade, Tennessee National Guard
, and in his absence, she has bouts of promiscuity
and drug use. During one of Rae's binges, Ronnie's friend Gill (Michael Raymond-James
) tries to take advantage of her. She laughs at his advances, comparing him unfavorably with another man, and he severely beats her. Believing she's dead, Gill dumps Rae, barefoot by the side of the road and drives away.
Lazarus discovers Rae unconscious in the road the next morning and brings her home to nurse her back to health. Lazarus goes to see Tehronne (the man who Lazarus thought had beaten her) and learns of her promiscuity. Over the course of several days, Rae, delirious with fever, occasionally wakes up and tries to flee from Lazarus. He tethers her to the radiator with a heavy chain to keep her from running away. After Rae regains her wits, Lazarus announces that it is his spiritual duty to heal her of her sinful ways and refuses to release her until he does so. Rae makes several attempts to escape, but eventually comes to tolerate her position. Lazarus buys her a proper dress to wear, plays guitar for her, and feeds her home-cooked meals. Lazarus' pastor and close friend, R.L. (John Cothran, Jr.
), visits Lazarus at his house and discovers that Lazarus is imprisoning Rae. The pastor tries to reason with Lazarus and the group shares a meal.
Meanwhile, Ronnie returns to town after being discharged from the National Guard due to his severe anxiety disorder
. While searching for Rae, who has disappeared, he meets Gill, who informs him that Rae cheats on him whenever he is out of town. Ronnie attacks Gill, steals his truck, and continues searching for Rae.
In the morning, Lazarus frees Rae, having decided that he has no authority to pass judgment on her. Rae chooses to stay with Lazarus of her own will. Later, Rae and Lazarus take a trip into town, where Rae confronts her mother (Kim Richards
) about the sexual abuse
she suffered at the hands of her mother's partner. Meanwhile, Lazarus has formed a budding romance with the local pharmacist, Angela (S. Epatha Merkerson
). He plays a blues concert at a local bar, which Rae attends. Ronnie spots Rae and follows her to Lazarus' house. He confronts the pair with a pistol, but Lazarus talks him down and summons the pastor. Ronnie and Rae decide that they are stronger together than apart and get married. While driving away, Ronnie suffers a panic attack and Rae begins to break down, but together they overcome their afflictions.
(18 kg) chain during filming and ate only foods of no nutritional value to achieve a sickly appearance. She told Entertainment Weekly
that she remained scantily-clad even when the cameras were not rolling: "Sam [Jackson] would be like, 'Put some clothes on!'" she says. "I was like, 'No, you don't understand. I'm doing something important.'"
reported a 66% "Fresh" rating based on 150 reviews, with an average rating of 6.3 out of 10 while Metacritic
awarded the film an average rating of 52 out of 100 based on 34 reviews.
On the television program Ebert & Roeper, filmmaker Kevin Smith
, filling in for Roger Ebert
, described the film as the best of the year thus far. Smith praised Ricci and Jackson, saying this was Ricci's best performance and Jackson's best performance since Pulp Fiction
(1994). Richard Roeper
also gave the film a "thumb up" rating. Matt Glasby of Film4
, however, awarded the film only 1 star out of 5, calling it a "pressure-cooked mess" that was "bad enough to make gums bleed".
The film was also criticized by feminist activists for its portrayal of sexualized violence.
Peter Travers of Rolling Stone
declared the film the year's Worst Soft-Core Sex on his list of the Worst Movies of 2007.
and Zodiac
.
commented on the promotional poster for the film, criticizing it as exploitative of women:
featuring various artists including four tracks performed by Jackson himself. The 17 tracks cover classic to modern blues
.
briefly reviewed and praised the album: "It should make anyone who loves the blues, er, happy."
Chad Grischow at IGN
reviewed the album at length, concluding with, "The album does an excellent job at capturing the sweaty underbelly of the southern blues scene, and is a recommended listen, even if not for the reasons you originally picked it up."
On February 16, 2007, Sarah Linn of Sound the Sirens Magazine wrote in her final paragraph,
James B. Eldred at Bullz-Eye.com concluded his favorable review with,
ranked the album #8,894 in its music category. When considered within the blues subcategories, it was #91 in Regional Blues and #13 in Delta Blues
.
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
written and directed by Craig Brewer
Craig Brewer
Craig Brewer is an American film director and screenwriter. His 2005 movie Hustle & Flow won the Audience Award at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival and achieved commercial success, along with an Academy Award for Best Original Song, "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp".- Life and career :Hustle & Flow...
. It was filmed in and around Stanton, Tennessee
Stanton, Tennessee
Stanton is a town in Haywood County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 615 as of the 2000 census.-Geography:Stanton is located at ....
, and stars Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel Leroy Jackson is an American film and television actor and film producer. After becoming involved with the Civil Rights Movement, he moved on to acting in theater at Morehouse College, and then films. He had several small roles such as in the film Goodfellas before meeting his mentor,...
, Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
, and Justin Timberlake
Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake is an American pop musician and actor. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez...
. The title of the film derives from the 1927 Blind Lemon Jefferson
Blind Lemon Jefferson
"Blind" Lemon Jefferson was an American blues singer and guitarist from Texas. He was one of the most popular blues singers of the 1920s, and has been titled "Father of the Texas Blues"....
song, while the plot, as confirmed by director Brewer in the commentary to the DVD of the film, is loosely based on George Eliot
George Eliot
Mary Anne Evans , better known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, journalist and translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era...
's 1861 novel Silas Marner
Silas Marner
Silas Marner: The Weaver of Raveloe is a dramatic novel by George Eliot. Her third novel, it was first published in 1861. An outwardly simple tale of a reclusive weaver, in its strong realism it represents one of Eliot's most sophisticated treatments of her attitude to religion.-Plot summary:The...
. The film draws numerous references to the Mississippi Blues movement
Delta blues
The Delta blues is one of the earliest styles of blues music. It originated in the Mississippi Delta, a region of the United States that stretches from Memphis, Tennessee in the north to Vicksburg, Mississippi in the south, Helena, Arkansas in the west to the Yazoo River on the east. The...
, not least in its title and soundtrack.
Plot
The film centers on two main characters: Lazarus (Samuel L. JacksonSamuel L. Jackson
Samuel Leroy Jackson is an American film and television actor and film producer. After becoming involved with the Civil Rights Movement, he moved on to acting in theater at Morehouse College, and then films. He had several small roles such as in the film Goodfellas before meeting his mentor,...
), a deeply religious farmer and former blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
guitarist, and Rae (Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
), a young nymphomaniac. Lazarus's wife and his brother were having an affair, which has left him a bitter and angry man. Rae's boyfriend Ronnie (Justin Timberlake
Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake is an American pop musician and actor. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez...
) leaves for deployment with the 196th Field Artillery Brigade, Tennessee National Guard
United States National Guard
The National Guard of the United States is a reserve military force composed of state National Guard militia members or units under federally recognized active or inactive armed force service for the United States. Militia members are citizen soldiers, meaning they work part time for the National...
, and in his absence, she has bouts of promiscuity
Promiscuity
In humans, promiscuity refers to less discriminating casual sex with many sexual partners. The term carries a moral or religious judgement and is viewed in the context of the mainstream social ideal for sexual activity to take place within exclusive committed relationships...
and drug use. During one of Rae's binges, Ronnie's friend Gill (Michael Raymond-James
Michael Raymond-James
Michael Raymond-James , is an American actor. He is best known for playing Rene Lenier in the first season of HBO's series True Blood and Britt Pollack on FX's series Terriers....
) tries to take advantage of her. She laughs at his advances, comparing him unfavorably with another man, and he severely beats her. Believing she's dead, Gill dumps Rae, barefoot by the side of the road and drives away.
Lazarus discovers Rae unconscious in the road the next morning and brings her home to nurse her back to health. Lazarus goes to see Tehronne (the man who Lazarus thought had beaten her) and learns of her promiscuity. Over the course of several days, Rae, delirious with fever, occasionally wakes up and tries to flee from Lazarus. He tethers her to the radiator with a heavy chain to keep her from running away. After Rae regains her wits, Lazarus announces that it is his spiritual duty to heal her of her sinful ways and refuses to release her until he does so. Rae makes several attempts to escape, but eventually comes to tolerate her position. Lazarus buys her a proper dress to wear, plays guitar for her, and feeds her home-cooked meals. Lazarus' pastor and close friend, R.L. (John Cothran, Jr.
John Cothran, Jr.
John Cothran, Jr. is an American actor.In the Madagascar video games, he voiced Maurice the aye-aye, replacing Cedric the Entertainer.-Biography:Cothran, Jr...
), visits Lazarus at his house and discovers that Lazarus is imprisoning Rae. The pastor tries to reason with Lazarus and the group shares a meal.
Meanwhile, Ronnie returns to town after being discharged from the National Guard due to his severe anxiety disorder
Anxiety disorder
Anxiety disorder is a blanket term covering several different forms of abnormal and pathological fear and anxiety. Conditions now considered anxiety disorders only came under the aegis of psychiatry at the end of the 19th century. Gelder, Mayou & Geddes explains that anxiety disorders are...
. While searching for Rae, who has disappeared, he meets Gill, who informs him that Rae cheats on him whenever he is out of town. Ronnie attacks Gill, steals his truck, and continues searching for Rae.
In the morning, Lazarus frees Rae, having decided that he has no authority to pass judgment on her. Rae chooses to stay with Lazarus of her own will. Later, Rae and Lazarus take a trip into town, where Rae confronts her mother (Kim Richards
Kim Richards
Kimberly "Kim" Richards is an American actress, former child actress, and television personality. She had roles in several Disney movies in the 1970s and later TV shows in the late 1970s and early 80s before returning to the screen with her sister Kyle Richards on Bravo's The Real Housewives of...
) about the sexual abuse
Sexual abuse
Sexual abuse, also referred to as molestation, is the forcing of undesired sexual behavior by one person upon another. When that force is immediate, of short duration, or infrequent, it is called sexual assault. The offender is referred to as a sexual abuser or molester...
she suffered at the hands of her mother's partner. Meanwhile, Lazarus has formed a budding romance with the local pharmacist, Angela (S. Epatha Merkerson
S. Epatha Merkerson
S. Epatha Merkerson is an American film, stage, and television actress. She has won a Golden Globe, Emmy Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, Obie Award and four NAACP Image Awards. She has also received two Tony Award nominations...
). He plays a blues concert at a local bar, which Rae attends. Ronnie spots Rae and follows her to Lazarus' house. He confronts the pair with a pistol, but Lazarus talks him down and summons the pastor. Ronnie and Rae decide that they are stronger together than apart and get married. While driving away, Ronnie suffers a panic attack and Rae begins to break down, but together they overcome their afflictions.
Cast
- Samuel L. JacksonSamuel L. JacksonSamuel Leroy Jackson is an American film and television actor and film producer. After becoming involved with the Civil Rights Movement, he moved on to acting in theater at Morehouse College, and then films. He had several small roles such as in the film Goodfellas before meeting his mentor,...
as Lazarus Redd - Christina RicciChristina RicciChristina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
as Rae Doole - Justin TimberlakeJustin TimberlakeJustin Randall Timberlake is an American pop musician and actor. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez...
as Ronnie Morgan - John Cothran, Jr.John Cothran, Jr.John Cothran, Jr. is an American actor.In the Madagascar video games, he voiced Maurice the aye-aye, replacing Cedric the Entertainer.-Biography:Cothran, Jr...
as R.L. - S. Epatha MerkersonS. Epatha MerkersonS. Epatha Merkerson is an American film, stage, and television actress. She has won a Golden Globe, Emmy Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, Obie Award and four NAACP Image Awards. She has also received two Tony Award nominations...
as Angela - David BannerDavid BannerLavell Crump , better known by his stage name David Banner, is an American rapper, record producer and occasional actor. Banner was born in Jackson, Mississippi and graduated from Southern University. He started his music career as a member of the rap duo, Crooked Lettaz before going solo in 2000...
as Tehronne - Kim RichardsKim RichardsKimberly "Kim" Richards is an American actress, former child actress, and television personality. She had roles in several Disney movies in the 1970s and later TV shows in the late 1970s and early 80s before returning to the screen with her sister Kyle Richards on Bravo's The Real Housewives of...
as Sandy Doole - Son HouseSon HouseEddie James "Son" House, Jr. was an American blues singer and guitarist. House pioneered an innovative style featuring strong, repetitive rhythms, often played with the aid of slide guitar, and his singing often incorporated elements of southern gospel and spiritual music...
(archive footage) as Himself - Neimus K. Williams as Lincoln James
- Michael Raymond-JamesMichael Raymond-JamesMichael Raymond-James , is an American actor. He is best known for playing Rene Lenier in the first season of HBO's series True Blood and Britt Pollack on FX's series Terriers....
as Gill Morton - Adriane LenoxAdriane LenoxAdriane Lenox is an American stage and film actress whose performance in the play Doubt: A Parable garnered her the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play in 2005. She also appeared as Hattie in the Broadway revival of Kiss Me, Kate and had a role in the 2009 film The Blind Side, as Denise...
as Rose Woods - Leonard L. Thomas as Deke Woods
- Jeff PopeJeff PopeJeff Pope is a British television producer and screenwriter who co-wrote the film Pierrepoint and the television drama The Fattest Man in Britain and who won a BAFTA in 2006 for the drama See No Evil: The Moors Murders. He is also the Head of ITV Productions Factual Drama.Pope's first media job...
as Batson - Clare GrantClare Grant-Career:While at the University of Memphis she met director Craig Brewer who cast her in two indie films in Memphis before casting her in the film Black Snake Moan and later as the lead in his MTV series $5 Cover....
as Kell
Production
For the film, Jackson spent six or seven hours a day for half a year learning how to play blues guitar for several songs he plays throughout the film. Ricci wore an actual 40-poundPound (mass)
The pound or pound-mass is a unit of mass used in the Imperial, United States customary and other systems of measurement...
(18 kg) chain during filming and ate only foods of no nutritional value to achieve a sickly appearance. She told Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
that she remained scantily-clad even when the cameras were not rolling: "Sam [Jackson] would be like, 'Put some clothes on!'" she says. "I was like, 'No, you don't understand. I'm doing something important.'"
Critical response
Reviews for the film were mixed. As of August 18, 2011, Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reported a 66% "Fresh" rating based on 150 reviews, with an average rating of 6.3 out of 10 while Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
awarded the film an average rating of 52 out of 100 based on 34 reviews.
On the television program Ebert & Roeper, filmmaker Kevin Smith
Kevin Smith
Kevin Patrick Smith is an American screenwriter, actor, film producer, and director, as well as a popular comic book writer, author, comedian/raconteur, and internet radio personality best recognized by viewers as Silent Bob...
, filling in for Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
, described the film as the best of the year thus far. Smith praised Ricci and Jackson, saying this was Ricci's best performance and Jackson's best performance since Pulp Fiction
Pulp Fiction (film)
Pulp Fiction is a 1994 American crime film directed by Quentin Tarantino, who co-wrote its screenplay with Roger Avary. The film is known for its rich, eclectic dialogue, ironic mix of humor and violence, nonlinear storyline, and host of cinematic allusions and pop culture references...
(1994). Richard Roeper
Richard Roeper
Richard E. Roeper is an American columnist and film critic for The Chicago Sun-Times and now a co-host on The Roe Conn Show on WLS-AM...
also gave the film a "thumb up" rating. Matt Glasby of Film4
Film4
Film4 is a free digital television channel available in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, owned and operated by Channel 4, that screens films.-Programming:...
, however, awarded the film only 1 star out of 5, calling it a "pressure-cooked mess" that was "bad enough to make gums bleed".
The film was also criticized by feminist activists for its portrayal of sexualized violence.
Peter Travers of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
declared the film the year's Worst Soft-Core Sex on his list of the Worst Movies of 2007.
Box office
During its March 2 – 4, 2007 opening weekend in the US the film earned $4 million, putting it in eighth place behind films including other new releases Wild HogsWild Hogs
Wild Hogs is a 2007 comedy film directed by Walt Becker and starring Tim Allen, John Travolta, Martin Lawrence, and William H. Macy. It was released nationwide in the United States and Canada on March 2, 2007, though preview film screenings were held in select areas on February 24, 2007.-Plot:Doug...
and Zodiac
Zodiac (film)
Zodiac is a 2007 American mystery-thriller film directed by David Fincher and based on Robert Graysmith's non-fiction book of the same name. The Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros...
.
Marketing
In April 2008, Christina RicciChristina Ricci
Christina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
commented on the promotional poster for the film, criticizing it as exploitative of women:
- "The way that movie was marketed was probably one of the most disappointing and upsetting things that's ever happened to me in my career. I have no interest in exploiting women any further than they've already been exploited...All they [marketing bosses] cared about was college-age boys going to see it."
Soundtrack
Black Snake Moan was released January 30, 2007 by New West RecordsNew West Records
New West Records is a record label based in Los Angeles, California, Austin, Texas, and Athens, Georgia. It was established in 1998, and has been home to several indie rock and alternative country bands as well as representing the PBS show Austin City Limits...
featuring various artists including four tracks performed by Jackson himself. The 17 tracks cover classic to modern blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
.
Critical reviews
Glenn Gaslin at Moving Pictures MagazineMoving Pictures Magazine
Moving Pictures is a magazine focusing on the film industry and the art of film. The editor-in-chief is Howard Burns. The magazine, which celebrated its fifteenth anniversary in 2005, is published by the Maitland Primrose Group...
briefly reviewed and praised the album: "It should make anyone who loves the blues, er, happy."
Chad Grischow at IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
reviewed the album at length, concluding with, "The album does an excellent job at capturing the sweaty underbelly of the southern blues scene, and is a recommended listen, even if not for the reasons you originally picked it up."
On February 16, 2007, Sarah Linn of Sound the Sirens Magazine wrote in her final paragraph,
James B. Eldred at Bullz-Eye.com concluded his favorable review with,
Commercial rankings
As of May 20, 2008, Amazon.comAmazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
ranked the album #8,894 in its music category. When considered within the blues subcategories, it was #91 in Regional Blues and #13 in Delta Blues
Delta blues
The Delta blues is one of the earliest styles of blues music. It originated in the Mississippi Delta, a region of the United States that stretches from Memphis, Tennessee in the north to Vicksburg, Mississippi in the south, Helena, Arkansas in the west to the Yazoo River on the east. The...
.