Wonderful character development!

Dreadfully Boring

Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

Venom (1981) *** (out of 4)An excellent cast highlights this crime picture that throws in some horror elements for a grand entertainment. A butler (Oliver Reed) and maid (Susan George) agree to help a terrorist (Klaus Kinski) kidnap a young boy who belongs to a rich bounty hunter (Sterling Haden). Their plans don't work out too well but it takes an even deadlier turn when they're all held up inside the house with a black mamba on the loose. I can't comment on what it was like watching VENOM back when it was released in 1981 but when you're viewing it today you can't help but watch it with your brain rolling as well as your eyes glued to the screen. I mean, check out the cast of this thing! I'm really not sure how everything came together but I must say that this little crime picture actually manages to have quite the bite as far as entertainment goes.I will say that there are some major flaws with the picture including the fact that this "terrorist" group has to be the cheapest and most pathetic from any movie that I recall. I mean, their entire plan is just crazy and stupid and the way the situation unfolds is just somewhat embarrassing. With that said, the film certainly picks up once the criminals and their hostages are trapped inside with the police on the outside and a deadly snake inside.The entire snake aspect seems to have been thrown in to try and sell this off as a horror picture but it works. I'm personally scared of snakes so this here helped add to the uneasy factor I had watching it. The point of view snake attacks are clever in their own way and there's no question that the violent reaction of the humans adds some entertainment value. It should go without saying but what keeps VENOM so entertaining is the wonderful cast. I mean, you've got Kinski and Reed in the same movie! Having them as your bad guys just makes the film worth watching. Throw in Susan George from STRAW DOGS and it's even better. Her part is rather forgettable but it's still fun watching her. Throw in Nicol Williamson as the lead officer, Sarah Miles as a snake expert and then Hayden as the grandfather and you've really got a stellar cast.VENOM was originally to be directed by Tobe Hooper but he was fired (or quit) after a couple day's filming. WHo knows how it would have turned out in his hands but as it stands, this is a fast and fun movie.

Before there were Snakes On A Plane, there was one snake, in a house...with a f*cking vendetta against Klaus Kinski and his gang of kidnappers.This is basically a film about a hostage situation gone horribly wrong...because, as usual, Oliver Reed is a f*cking psychopath.Kinski and his gang plan to kidnap the child of a wealthy family- his minions having infiltrated their house, as the help.But from the very beginning, things go awry. The boy leaves on his own to pick up a pet snake, right as they are about to put their plan into action.They give him the wrong snake. A black mamba, instead of an African house snake.When they open it, it bites the maid in the face, killing her.Now it's on the loose in the house.This causes Oliver Reed to panic, and he shoots a cop.Now, they are stuck in the house, with a dead cop, and a killer snake on the loose inside.They do a good job of managing the hostage situation at first...taking a doctor prisoner, in the process.But as soon as the cops try and break in...sh*t hits the fan...and everyone runs terrified from the snake.Except Reed...who gets bit in the dick (insert trouser snake joke here).As you might have guessed, it all comes down to a one on one showdown between Kinski and the snake...resulting in humorous consequences.There is something hilariously satisfying about watching Kinski roll around on the ground like he's being killed by a black mamba.Classic Kinski! And a pretty decent film too.6.5 out of 10.

It's mainly/mostly a crime story where terrorists are trying to get money over holding a young rich boy hostage. The boy's mom went on a trip, left him with a maid and her dad at her place. The boy ordered a harmless snake but received the mamba by mistake - the mamba was suppose to have gone to the local toxicologist (the toxicologist received the boy's pet snake).Most of the film is about the crime being committed - arguing crooks! Only a little is shown of the snake - mainly the beginning of the film and the ending. This could have simply been a crime-thriller (that is mainly what it is anyway) and left out the horror aspect with the rarely shown snake.Okay film - just not great as a horror film. Good when viewed as a crime-thriller.5/10

By all accounts this is basically a formulaic kidnapping flick that would be standard B-movie fare. Having a poisonous snake thrown into the mix only adds to the B-movie feel.However, it is saved by its A-cast. Klaus Kinski, Oliver Reed, and Nicol Williamson all chew the scenery as only they can (though one has to pity the director, who had to work with the 3 most ornery actors alive at the time). The only disappointment was that Sterling Hayden didn't get more material to work with for what would be his last movie.The other highlight is the fact that they used a real and professionally handled black mamba in most of the scenes. In most movies of this type, they would just throw in a harmless rat snake or something and hope that nobody would notice the difference.