Wes Craven really is kind of a hit or miss director. He made The Serpent and the Rainbow in 1988 at an interesting time of his career after having some success with Nightmare on Elm Street but after the disaster of Deadly Friend. The Serpent and the Rainbow has a few interesting ideas but Craven never really develops them very well. This is really a big miss film from Craven.
Dennis Alan (Bill Pullman ) a researcher out of Harvard goes to Haiti to tackle the mystery of a zombie legend and also a type of drug that might be connected. There is also a voodoo theme as the drug is used in Haitian voodoo rituals.
You really to have to question what Craven was doing with this film. He starts with what seems like an interesting plot and the really lets it sink. The plot really goes everywhere and is very hard to follow. There is also a love story that is very shallow as well as dream scenes that never seem to end. By act 3, you expect that it can't get much worse but you would be wrong. It also has an ending that has you saying "What am I even watching?" Frankly, this is a movie where in the end, you don't even know what you just watched.
Interestingly, this was Bill Pullman's second film ever and before he had his big roles. Actually, he plays his role very well and the character is smart, has a heart and is easy to root for. Pullman makes this movie somewhat bearable along with some rather different zombies.
I think this is a case where Craven basically had a couple of random ideas and put them together and called it a film. I hated this movie with a passion even more so considering what it could have been.
2/5
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