Samuel and His Amazing Technicolor Wigs

The Departed and Borat are still collecting dust at my house. You can now add Half Nelson to that list but I suspect I’ll have watched that by the end of the week. I went to the movies for the second week in a row. Watch out now! Back in my heyday, I went to the movie theatre two times every weekend. Due to time constraints, I’m a lot more select about what I see.

Black Snake Moan was my choice yesterday. Brought to us by the writer/director of Hustle & Flow Craig Brewer, BSM tells the story of Lazarus (Samuel L. Jackson), a reclusive farmer and retired bluesman who is reeling from his wife leaving him. A parallel story is told of the emotionally fragile Rae (Christina Ricci) whose boyfriend Ronnie (Justin Timberlake) has just left for the National Guard. Ronnie’s departure leads Rae back into her old role as the town slut, a role that leaves her beaten up and half naked near Lazarus’ remote home. There is no great surprise that Lazarus chains Rae to his radiator to cure her evil sinful ways but what follows is great storytelling and human nature.

The profound thing about this film is Jackson and Ricci who both disappear into their characters. This wouldn’t have worked with Will Smith or Scarlett Johansson. They simply don’t inhabit their roles completely enough to make this believable. Watching Jackson is like viewing a master class on acting. It’s fun to see what wigs he will wear and how they connect to the character. This time around he went for Grady-chic just like Fred Sanford’s crusty sidekick. Ricci breathes life and humanity into the girl from the wrong side of the tracks that faces her abusive past through sexual encounters.

The other great thing about the film is the sultry hot southern location. The south lends itself to colorful characters with eccentric habits. It’s a nice escape from the usual slick polished characters and plots of most blockbuster films. The plot exists on a realistic plane with the support of the always-stellar S. Epatha Merkerson as the sweet pharmacist with a liking for Lazarus. I enjoyed John Cothran Jr. as the town minister and Lazaro’s childhood buddy Reverend R.L. I liked his practical religious take on Rae’s situation. He acts as confidant and counselor to several characters in the film. Hell, Timberlake held his own in this movie. Granted much of the role called for him to be in some state of anxiety but he did it convincingly. I didn’t snicker once while he was on screen.

The soundtrack was absolutely haunting. The old school blues set the tone and understanding the characters. Lovely. the ending was a little too packaged for me but at least the characters weren't completely changed. I appreciate that the movie didn’t take the convenient route of making them lovers. It reminded me of other excellent films that brought lonely people together under extraordinary circumstances like Monster’s Ball and Lost in Translation. Loneliness has a way of bonding unlikely people.

What did you see this weekend?