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Reviewed by Steve Rogers
Film:	B+
Video Quality:	A-
Audio Quality:	A
Special Features:	B+
DVD Review:	A-

With a marketing campaign that featured poster art showing a scantily clad Christina Ricci bound with chains held by a dour looking Samuel L. Jackson looming over her, it was difficult to imagine what to expect from Black Snake Moan. Racially charged sexploitation flick? B-movie, Roger Corman-styled homage? Well, actually, all of the above are true to an extent, but there's a lot more going on in Craig Brewer's second major feature. After the film opens with some archival black and white footage of legendary bluesman Son House sermonizing on the relationship between the blues and male/female love, you realize this ain't your daddy's exploitation flick. Brewer is a sharp, passionate young filmmaker and he's crafted something of a Southern Gothic fable to offer his take on the time-honored conundrum of sin and redemption. And it's a fable drenched in the blues. Not the slick, guitar hero showcase blues, but the dirty, swamp-fused moaning blues of the Mississippi Delta.

Jackson's Lazarus (symbolism alert), is a luckless aging farmer, and erstwhile bluesman, whose wife has just dumped him for his brother. He lives in a rundown little house in the backwoods of Tennessee, where he tends his small patch of crops and spends his nights drinking in the local hooch joint. One morning he discovers the bloodied, half-naked body of Rae (Christina Ricci) on the road leading to his house and that's where things begin to get interesting.

Rae is a nymphomaniac who's just bid her neurotic boyfriend Ronnie (Justin Timberlake) adieu as he ships off to Iraq. After a night of drunken debauchery leaves her in a situation where she's beaten up and left for dead, Lazarus takes it upon himself to nurse her back to physical and spiritual health. Of course the fact that his ministrations include chaining the near naked Rae to a radiator while she mends her "wicked" ways is what originally raised some eyebrows. But in this film parable the chain simply serves as a metaphor for any number of elements in the film: Rae and Lazarus' relationship (which remains platonic throughout); her connecting bonds with Ronnie, Sandy, her estranged mother (played by Kim Richards), and an ugly past. Eventually, we learn to care about these characters, and understand their pain, lust and fears, with Lazarus and Rae both forced to confront their inner demons.

Jackson and Ricci are both outstanding in their roles, with the former utterly convincing as a hard-bitten bluesman (Jackson sings and plays guitar in the film) and Ricci reaching further out than ever before in here ongoing oeuvre of offbeat characters. The music however, which permeates the atmosphere of this unusual movie, is really the glue that holds things together. Brewer has captured the gritty feel and pathos of the blues, and the soundtrack features top-notch players like Charlie Musslewhite, Luther Dickinson, and Cedric Burnside (grandson of blues great R.L. Burnside to whom the film is dedicated.) Black Snake Moan is grounded in the soil and toil of the blues idiom. As a Memphis native, Brewer is in familiar territory and his knowledge of the songform infuses the film with an integrity that belies the poster art.

Video Quality

No complaints with the video transfer. The picture quality is sharp and bright with deeply saturated, lush colors that enliven the rural Tennessee locations where the film was shot. Fleshtones are natural and there are no visible artifacts or grain as to be expected in this brand new release.

Audio Quality

The 5.1 surround track is used to great effect in the movie and really kicks some butt. All channels are firing from time to time and effects like that darn chain clanging off the radiator as Rae tries to escape and the fabulous soundtrack offer ample reason to make sure you've invested in a surround sound setup. A highlight is Jackson's rendition of the title track, played on an electric guitar as a thunderstorm howls outside at night and Jackson howls the classic Blind Lemon Jefferson tune. It's a scenes that will keep you seated throughout.

Special Features

A standard making of doc "Conflicted: The Making of Black Snake Moan" gives us an inside look at the creative thought process that went into making the film, with particular emphasis on Brewer's affinity for the traditional American music he has so expertly woven into his very untraditional film. "Rooted in the Blues" is a featurette that spotlights the crack blues players who came together under Brewer and musical director Scott Bomar to construct the impressive soundtrack. "The Black Snake Moan" is another featurette that highlights the filming of the title track scenes and chronicles Jackson's successful efforts learning to play guitar. Five deleted scenes are perfunctory, with only a minor flashback of Rae's meeting Ronnie at a party of interest. Brewer's commentary is thoughtful and intelligent and he provides further insight into how his own anxieties translated into the creation of the film. It's clear from Brewer that the music was the driving force behind the creation and production of Black Snake Moan.

Summary

Craig Brewer's Black Snake Moan is a southern-fried tribute to the blues that, with an off-kilt version of its timeless theme and standout performances by Samuel L. Jackson and Christian Ricci, works on many levels. Solid video and super audio quality, along with involving special features rank Black Snake Moan up there with the best new DVD releases for 2007.