Black Snake Moan

Rating: 7/10 (23 July 2010)

A tale of an unusual companionship set in the southern USA. A troubled young woman named Rae (Christina Ricci) is leading a promiscuous and self-destructive life, especially after her boyfriend Ronnie (Justin Timberlake) leaves the town to serve in the National Guard. One night she is severely beaten up and left unconscious on a roadside where she is found by a religious farmer and former blues guitarist Lazarus (Samuel L. Jackson), himself no stranger to trouble. He takes her to his home and decides to help her get on her feet again a lot more wholesomely than by just mending her physical wounds. His methods are highly unorthodox, however.
In the beginning the movie portrays the poorer regions of the South as a depressing hellhole where people are just too disillusioned to care about the ever-present emptiness in their lives. The colours of the cinematography add to the atmosphere of sunburned, old and worn out environment. Over the course of the story the characters grow more sympathetic and the sense of forlornness diminishes, but a feel of sadness is always retained. The actors have internalized their roles well: Christina Ricci really gets to wallow in the depths of her character's personal state of decline and the always charismatic Samuel L. Jackson is great as the bearded farmer who has been through many disappointments in his life.
Besides the fitting visual look of the film, the music also deserves a special mention. Both the score by Scott Bomar and the songs performed by Lazarus and his band are enjoyable and powerful blues pieces that perfectly capture the spirit of the hardened people living in the world of Black Snake Moan. Especially the menacing title song, performed by Lazarus during a thunderstorm, is a very haunting moment and the best scene in the film.
However depressing the beginning, the film concludes with a hopeful message: we all have our personal burdens to carry but together we can overcome them all. Fortunately the ending is not presented in a forcibly positive way but instead leaves a feel of vulnerability lingering in the air. Despite all the good qualities of the film, there are some things I didn't like as much though, such as the sparseness of motivations for Lazarus to do what he does. Showing more of his past experiences could have helped to justify his actions to the audience better and make him feel even more like a real person, even though it's not like he lacks charisma as he is now. Also, I don't feel Justin Timberlake's acting is quite on par with the two leads. In any case, the film is worth a recommendation for fans of powerful character dramas and anyone interested in blues music and the culture of Southern USA.