Black Snake Moan

Black Snake Moan (2007)

Written and Directed by: Craig Brewer
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Christina Ricci, Justin Timberlake, John Cothran Jr., S. Epatha Merkerson, Michael Raymond-James, David Banner, Neimus K. Williams, Kim Richards, Adriane Lenox

Well, in an unexpected turn of events, I went to see this movie. Don't worry, I didn't pay for it. I won tickets from The Coast (watch me plug The Coast) which is about the best newspaper in the maritimes.

It's about an old blues musician named Lazarus (what a cool name. I wish I was named Lazarus) who finds a young woman beaten up on the side of the road. Turns out she's the local slut, so he chains her to the radiator. Why? Who knows. Anyway, some stuff happens... she weeps and screams and has weird hallucinations, he reads the Bible and plays some blues, her boyfriend shows up and gets all pissy about everything...

So. Black man chaining up a white woman. That's... different. Traditionally it's a white man chaining up white women. And maybe some white men. And occasionally one black woman, but that's fairly unusual. He doesn't really have that much of a motive for chaining her up, though. He says it's to keep her from running off. That sure makes sense... I would have just broken her legs myself, but it isn't really that kind of movie.

Justin Timberlake was okay, I guess. He was working really hard. I had a difficult time believing him, but maybe that's just because he's Justin Timberlake, and I kept expecting him to jump up on the table and dance around like Michael Jackson.

Actually, just about everyone in the movie was okay. No one was outstandingly good. Sam Jackson is weird enough to stand out, looking about twenty years older than usual (though in reality he's almost sixty. Apparently). I wonder if he specifically asked for the purple guitar. That man does love purple. Purple Lightsaber, purple hat, purple suit (which makes him look like a pimp, by the way).

While I'm on the subject of clothing, I loved Christina Ricci's wardrobe (or lack thereof). I thought it was great.

I also loved (and I mean loved) the music. It was... so... good. And I loved the setting. It made me want to become a blues singer and live in Tennessee. Mmm, Tennessee... But those were the highlights of the movie.

Once again, the ending didn't seem particularly conclusive. People just don't know how to end things, I guess. I would know, I suppose. I can't end shit either.

Anyway, I'm glad I didn't pay to go see it. I would be very depressed right now if I had.

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