Black Snake Moan
Blake Snake Moan has one great thing going for it—it's different. These days that's a rich commodity. From premise to conclusion, it's a fresh, vibrant film full of character and energy that rarely loses your attention.
When aptly named Lazarus (Sam Jackson in a standout performance), a God-fearing vegetable farmer and one-time roadhouse bluesman suffering a crisis of faith, stumbles upon the left-for-dead body of Rae, a nymphomaniac with a very troubled past, their stories seem fated to cross paths. Lazarus' wife has just left him for another man and Rae isn't just an exaggeration of his wife's infidelity, but a mission from God to save the soul of a wayward woman.
If that sounds like a fairly straightforward tale of mutual redemption set among poor southern folk, you'd be right... and wrong. The story eventually ends up where you think it will, but writer/director Craig Brewer keeps things bobbing and weaving, using a slick blend of blaxploitation and good ol' boy flicks from the 1970s for style and thematic elements out of a William Faulkner novel or Tennessee Williams play for substance. A distinct southern gothic vibe surrounds Black Snake Moan, making for a smart blend of personalities and cultures that's never as predictable as it should be. In other words: different.