The Serpent and the Rainbow is a 1988 American voodoo–horror film, directed by Wes Craven and starring Bill Pullman. The film is very loosely based on the non-fiction book of the same name by ethnobotanist Wade Davis, wherein Davis recounted his experiences in Haiti investigating the story of Clairvius Narcisse, who was allegedly poisoned and buried alive; and who, when released from the grave, purportedly received an herbal brew whose effects produced what was called a zombie. Ethnobotanist/anthropologist Dennis Alan, in visiting the Amazon, receives a potion connecting him to his... protective totem through a series of visions, and is later guided by a jaguar from the Rainforest itself. Returned to Boston, he is sent to Haiti by a pharmaceutical corporation looking to investigate a drug used in Haitian Vodou, in the hope of using it as anesthesia. Alan's exploration in Haiti to find the drug, assisted by the doctor Marielle, draws the attention of the authorities, so that the commander of the Tonton Macoute, Captain Dargent Peytraud, warns Alan to leave Haiti. Alan refuses to leave, and continues to investigate.
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| Release date: | February 5, 1988 |
| Directed by: | Wes Craven |
| Rated: |  |
| Runtime: | 98 Minutes |
| Producer: | David Ladd |
| Music by: | Brad Fiedel |
| Cinematography: | John Lindley, John Lindley |
| Screenplay by: | Richard Maxwell, Adam Rodman |
| Estimated budget: | $7,000,000 |
| Adapted from: | The Serpent and the Rainbow |
| Genre: | Thriller |