The Serpent and the Rainbow
Theatrical release poster.
Directed by	Wes Craven
Produced by	Doug Claybourne David Ladd Robert Engelman
Written by	Wade Davis (book) Richard Maxwell Adam Rodman
Narrated by	Bill Pullman
Starring	Bill Pullman Cathy Tyson Zakes Mokae Paul Winfield Brent Jennings Conrad Roberts
Music by	Brad Fiedel
Cinematography	John Lindley
Editing by	Glenn Farr
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release date(s)	February 5, 1988 May 11, 1988 June 10, 1988
Running time	98 min.
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$7,000,000 (estimated)
Gross revenue	$19,595,031 (USA) (sub-total)
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

The Serpent and the Rainbow is a 1988 American horror film, directed by Wes Craven and starring Bill Pullman. The film is very loosely based on a non-fiction book by ethnobotanist Wade Davis, dealing with his experiences in Haiti as he investigates the story of Clairvius Narcisse, allegedly poisoned, buried alive, and given an herbal brew whose effects mimicked zombification. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Wesley Earl Craven (born August 2, 1939 in Cleveland, Ohio) is an American film director and writer best known as the creator of many horror films, including the famed Nightmare on Elm Street series featuring the redoubtable Freddy Krueger character. ... David Ladd (born February 5, 1947 in Los Angeles, California) is an actor who appeared in the film A Dog of Flanders in the 1960s. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Richard Maxwell is an experimental director and playwright in New York City. ... William Pullman (born December 17, 1953) is an American film and television actor. ... William Pullman (born December 17, 1953) is an American film and television actor. ... Cathy Tyson (born June 12, 1965 in Liverpool) is an English actress. ... Mokae with Donald Sutherland in the film A Dry White Season Zakes Mokae is a South African-born actor. ... Winfield as Captain Clark Terrell in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. ... Brad Fiedel (born March 10, 1951 in New York, New York) is an American film composer. ... John Lindley (February 8, 1799 - November 1, 1865) was an English botanist. ... Universal Pictures is the main motion picture production/distribution arm of Universal Studios, a subsidiary of NBC Universal. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... is the 36th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... is the 131st day of the year (132nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Finland. ... is the 161st day of the year (162nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... “Horror Movie” redirects here. ... Wesley Earl Craven (born August 2, 1939 in Cleveland, Ohio) is an American film director and writer best known as the creator of many horror films, including the famed Nightmare on Elm Street series featuring the redoubtable Freddy Krueger character. ... William Pullman (born December 17, 1953) is an American film and television actor. ... Ethnobotany is the study of the relationship between plants and people: Fromethno - study of people and botany - study of plants. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Clairvius Narcisse was reported to be zombie. ... This article is about the undead. ...

• Tagline: Don't Let Them Bury Me, I'm Not Dead!.

Synopsis

Dennis Alan, an ethnobotanist/anthropologist from Harvard University, narrowly escapes the Amazon Jungle at the beginning and returns to Boston. Word of his exploits gets around and he is approached by a large pharmaceutical corporation looking to investigate a drug that is part of the Voodoo religion in Haiti that they want to acquire in order to mass produce. They send him to Haiti to find out about the drug, but he winds up learning more about zombification instead. In essence, the drug is an alternate and less dangerous method of anesthesia.

When Alan arrives in Haiti the country is in the middle of a revolution of sorts. The government is taking anyone prisoner who they think is against the current political powers. He eventually meets another doctor who helps him research and investigate the so-called zombies. What he finds is the evil that lurks behind the Voodoo religion and the destruction it can cause to the human mind.

Background

The drug named in the film is tetrodotoxin. In the real-life "zombification" case of Clairvius Narcisse of Haiti, the poison that caused the appearance of death was reported to be tetrodotoxin, but the mind-control drug given after he was unburied was a brew derived from Datura stramonium. The film depicted the poisoning attack with the powdered drug being blown into the victim's face, which is most consistent with involuntary dosing of scopolamine. Scopolamine is one of the alkaloids in Datura, known to facilitate behavior control, but not the appearance of death. Tetrodotoxin (anhydrotetrodotoxin 4-epitetrodotoxin, tetrodonic acid, TTX) is a potent neurotoxin with no known antidote, which blocks action potentials in nerves by binding to the pores of the voltage-gated, fast sodium channels in nerve cell membranes. ... Clairvius Narcisse was reported to be zombie. ... Tetrodotoxin (anhydrotetrodotoxin 4-epitetrodotoxin, tetrodonic acid, TTX) is a potent neurotoxin with no known antidote, which blocks action potentials in nerves by binding to the pores of the voltage-gated, fast sodium channels in nerve cell membranes. ... Binomial name L. Datura stramonium, also called Jimson Weed, Gypsum Weed, Loco Weed, Jamestown Weed, Thorn Apple, Angels Trumpet, Devils Trumpet, Devils Snare, Mad Hatter, Crazy Tea, Malpitte and Zombies Cucumber is a common weed in the Nightshade Family. ... Scopolamine, also known as hyoscine, is a tropane alkaloid drug obtained from plants of the family Solanaceae (nightshades), such as henbane or jimson weed (Datura species). ...

Wade Davis' Reaction

Wade Davis has frequently voiced his displeasure with the final film. "When I wrote my first book, 'To Circle the Rainbow', it was made into one of the worst Hollywood movies in history. I tried to escape the hysteria and the media by going to Borneo." ^[1] This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ...

See Also

• Clairvius Narcisse
• Tetrodotoxin
• Scopolamine
• Datura

Clairvius Narcisse was reported to be zombie. ... Tetrodotoxin (anhydrotetrodotoxin 4-epitetrodotoxin, tetrodonic acid, TTX) is a potent neurotoxin with no known antidote, which blocks action potentials in nerves by binding to the pores of the voltage-gated, fast sodium channels in nerve cell membranes. ... Scopolamine, also known as hyoscine, is a tropane alkaloid drug obtained from plants of the family Solanaceae (nightshades), such as henbane or jimson weed (Datura species). ... Species See text below Datura is a genus of 12-15 species of vespertine flowering plants belonging to the family Solanaceae. ...

References

External links

• The Serpent and the Rainbow at the Internet Movie Database