Venom

I've just had the pleasure of re-acquainting myself with this forgotten gem of early '80s British horror which scared me half to death as a little kid.

"High concept" years before the term was invented, the plot ostensibly hangs on a series of belief-stretching co-incidences which result in a hostage siege taking place in a posh London home, with the police camped outside and a deadly (as we are repeatedly reminded) black mamba snake loose in the heating ducts.

Made many years before CGI came along and gave us bloated nonsense like Anaconda and Snakes on a Plane the film-makers had to be fairly economical with their beastie's screen time. Going down the Jaws route , Venom makes highly effective use of POV camera shots, shadowy lighting and an unsettling score (an early work from the much missed composer Michael Kamen; and no, I have not forgotten that he was also responsible for that Bryan Adams monstrosity) to suggest the snakes' presence. When the creature is fully revealed it is more often than not the exceedingly dangerous real thing; borrowed from London Zoo, and provoked into getting the hump in the direction of the nearest camera by their, at the time, resident reptile expert Michael Ball (who gets both an un-credited cameo in the film, and himself played by a cranky Michael Gough in to the bargain).

However, all of these slithery shenanigans are a mere aside to the real terror on show here. The casting of the infamously intense and insane Klaus Kinski opposite the famously drunk and antagonistic Oliver Reed. By all reports these two hated each other on sight and spent the whole shoot at war with each other, with Reed referring to Kinski as a Nazi at every possible opportunity. However, what must have a nightmare situation for director Piers Haggard (parachuted in after Tobe Hooper walked with shooting already under way) as they share virtually every scene together, paid off in dividends as the warring actors enthusiastically pour every ounce of their scenery-chewing one-oneupmanship onto the screen. Stir into this mix a few more well-renowned "difficult" actors: Nicol Williamson (The famously OTT Merlin from Excalibur) getting his Sweeney on, Sarah Miles, and Sterling Hayden among them; and what results is a glorious bombast of angry intense thesping, that grabs this would-b-movie by the balls and drags it into "forgotten classic" territory. A daft, wonderful, guilty pleasure. Seek it out.

"Venom" is an enjoyable thriller directed by Piers Haggard("Satan's Skin").A deadly black mamba snake threatens the denizens of an elegant townhouse.As long as the slithering creature is on the loose,no one is safe...The film has its share of surprises-some scenes are actually pretty nerve-wracking.The acting is exceptionally good with pretty familiar cast(Klaus Kinski,Susan George,Nicol Williamson,Oliver Reed)to boost.Highly recommended.

Not to be confused with Spasms, another early-'80s Oliver Reed snake-themed horror movie, Venom sees a kidnapping go awry when a deadly black mamba escapes into the house where the villains are holding ten-year-old Philip (Lance Holcomb) and his grandfather Howard (Sterling Hayden) hostage.

Reed is chauffeur Dave, who, along with sexy maid Louise (Susan George) and German terrorist Jacmel (Klaus Kinski), find themselves cornered by police Commander William Bulloch (Nicol Williamson) and his men (after a shotgun toting Dave gets trigger happy with a cop) and menaced by the highly venomous and very aggressive reptile, the result of a mix-up of orders at a pet shop.

Despite a top-notch cast (which includes Sarah Miles as toxicologist Dr. Marion Stowe, and Michael Gough as a snake expert), director Piers Haggard (The Blood on Satan's Claw) is unable to elevate his film from mediocrity thanks to a pedestrian script that is a little light on the snake action and a touch too heavy on police procedure, delivering not nearly enough suspense or horror. Kinski is as slimy and menacing as always, Ollie turns to the booze when the pressure is on (no surprises there), and George strips to her underwear (no surprises there either!).

5.5 out of 6, rounded up to 6 for IMDb.

A trio of kidnappers headed by Klaus Kinski plan to snatch a young boy, but things go awry & through a series of unforeseen events they're hold up in the house with a deadly venomous snake. Pretty taunt & lean thriller. Most of the actors do a fine job. One of the better killer snake movies out there.

My Grade: B-

DVD Extras: Director's commentary; Theatrical trailer; 4 TV spots; poster & stills gallery; Bios for Klaus Kinski & Oliver Reed

VENOM (1982) ***½ Klaus Kinski, Oliver Reed, Nicol Williamson, Sarah Miles, Susan George. Even though this film is called "Venom" and features a snake, this is no "creature feature." Two English domestics (Reed and George), along with an international criminal (Kinski), conspire to kidnap their wealthy employers' ten-year-old son. The plan goes awry after the boy mistakenly receives a highly aggressive, super-poisonous black mamba (originally intended for a research facility), which kills one of the conspirators and transforms the attempted kidnapping into a tense armed standoff. A box-office flop in its day, American audiences were probably turned off by the film's stodgy English production values and – thanks to a misleading advertising campaign – probably felt duped once they realized it wasn't a killer snake movie. Still, a strong script and Kinski and Reed's explosive performances make this a powerful thriller. Highly recommended.