Sssssss

Sssssss (1973)

Runtime: 99 minutes

Directed by: Bernard L. Kowalski

Starring: Strother Martin, Dirk Benedict, Heather Menzies-Urich, Richard B. Shull, Tim O’Connor

From: Universal

A movie reviewed via request. Recently I talked about Venom, the wild movie starring Klaus Kinski, Oliver Reed, and a black mamba snake. Someone suggested I view this picture-wild in a different way-concerning mad scientist Strother Martin attempting something extremely unethical w/ his new assistant Dirk Benedict. Normally it’d be hard to track this down… except that sometimes, it plays on the Universal Monsters streaming channel. Well, this was on last night and I was curious to view something that had an outlandish 70’s body horror sort of plot yet was hoping would be a hoot.

It was. There is a slew of different serpents shown: a black mamba, a boa constrictor (which Martin gives bourbon to!), a hognosed pit viper, a two-headed snake, and the species that is put over hard: a king cobra. The movie has what I call “measured 70’s pacing” which I know not everyone is in favor of, especially if you suspect the end of this journey. However, like typical I didn’t really mind. Wacky moments occur and I was amused that Benedict fell in love with the scientist’s daughter, portrayed by Heather Menzies-Urich. The most hysterical scene: the two skinny-dip, only foliage obscures the nudity a la Austin Powers. This foliage was obviously superimposed after the fact, as if they decided afterwards to make this PG instead of R.

I was also amused by such things as the various characters shown at a carnival (including one named TIM MCGRAW), two goofball cops & a minor role for Reb Brown. There was enough entertainment in the first two acts before business picked up in the final act. Heck, one scene is the 70’s version of a Saw trap. The opening of the film noted all the venomous snakes in the film & credited the cast and crew for interacting w/ such creatures. The legit danger did help set the proper mood for the viewer.

I dare not spoil the finale, except that its OOT nature charmed me. A nice cast, a decent score, and general B-movie cheese made this a fun time. The practical 70’s effects were rather rad in my eyes; a dream sequence was of its time, as was a big moment in the final act involving optical effects. My enjoyment of the characters kept me invested with the plot when the horror elements weren’t present. The film isn’t as glorious as its title, but that’s what I suspected even before seeing the film.