Review of The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988) by Megan B — 18 Apr 2009

This film is a fascinating (and somewhat cheezy) look into indigenous spirituality and voodoo. It did stereotype them a bit, but at the same time it showed how our world has multiple dimensions, many of which we don't understand.

I'm not a big fan of this film. I honestly think this was too much, but this film still has some things going for it.

(SPOILERS AHEAD!).

I liked how the evil and tyrranical general turned out to be a powerful voodoo magic user in the end. It gave the existing political evil that was already present a new and frightful dimension. It also revealed the should of that said evil in a more honest and brutal light than what we're used to.

What was even better, however, was how Bill Pullman's character fought back. He remembered his encounter with his totem in the Amazon jungles and that same guardian spirit( I would call it an angel, but that's just me) leapt to his defense and showed him that in the face of black magic and barbarism, he was not defenseless.

My only beef with the jaguar spirit, however, is that I wonder why this totem spirit didn't come into play a lot sooner. Bill Pullman's character was put into many dangerous situations before the totem spirit came to his rescue.