Search - Sssssss on DVD

Slithery Fun...

Bindy Sue Frønkünschtein | under the rubble | 10/08/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Strother Martin is a herpitologist (snake guy) and Heather Menzies is his cute (in a Jane Fonda way), bespectacled daughter. They earn their living putting on shows where dad encounters a 14 foot king cobra, grabs it, and extracts venom from it's huge fangs! Along comes Dirk Benedict (TVs Battlestar Gallactica, and The A-Team) as a new lab assistant. He is given injections under the pretense of being immunized against snake bites. Little does he know that he's the latest guinnea pig in his new boss' lab! I saw this with it's double bill partner THE BOY WHO CRIED WEREWOLF when they came out. I hated the latter, but loved Sssssss! I just watched it again and enjoyed it immensely. If you like monster / sci-fi / horror / mad scientist / 70s cheese, you'll love this! Dirk Benedict is far more tolerable in Sssssss than he is in anything else! Strother Martin is the perfect madman! Reb Brown is excellent as the jerky jock! The carnival "snake boy" scene was shocking in 1973, and holds up well today. Sssssss belongs right next to WILLARD (the original version) and FROGS on your DVD shelf. Recommended..."

Sssssssilly, but Fun!

Stanley Runk | Camp North Pines | 01/03/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Nothing can prepare you for the heart-stopping terror of Sssssss(remember there are 7 of the letter S in the title). If you dig the animal/nature themed horror flicks of the 70s, you'll probably dig this. Ssssssstrother Martin is a mad scientist who believes that man is very close to extinction, so in order to survive upcoming plagues and holocausts, he wants to turn everyone into snakes. Sounds reasonable enough. His guinea pig in this experiment is his new assssssistant played by Dirk Benedict, who you may remember as Face in The A-Team. Face has no idea what's awaiting him, he thinks the injections Martin gives him are a venom vaccine. Face falls in love with Martin's nerdy snake studying daughter, and soon introduces her to a kind of snake she's never seen before. Before long his face is getting messed up, his skin is shedding and he's always feeling cold. Never once does he catch on to what's happening until it's too late. Produced by the guys who gave us Jaws, this film actually seems to be taking itself seriously. Things really don't start happening until the one hour mark. Before that it's actually more of a drama than anything, but the body count eventually starts. Martin is really what carries this film. His performance is very much above the average for the kind of mad scientist character you usually see in this genre. This film is only gonna appeal to fans of the cheesy big monster genre(and maybe not even them!), everyone else might as well stay away. There are quite alot of interesting snake facts throughout, so the movie isn't a total loss coz you come away a bit wiser about snakes. A point must also be made about the title. It's funny, and quirky, but it's one of those film titles that doesn't roll off the tongue so well when trying to tell someone about the film. "What did you watch last night?" "Sssssss". "What's your favorite movie?" "Sssssss". "Hey man, have you ever seen Sssssss?" See what I mean? It's similar to the film "Eegah!" or trying to tell someone you really like that Crash Test Dummies song, "Mmm..Mmm..Mmm..Mmm". Silly title or not, it's a must see if you like stuff like Food Of The Gods, Bug, Frogs, etc."

Campy, Creepy and Wonderful

Steve Arthur | Winslow, AZ USA | 06/18/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Yes, Ssssssss will never be considered one of the "great" lost 70s films, but it is a lot of fun to watch. The plot (almost scene for scene) was appropriated by Full Moon to make Curse of the Puppetmaster, so campy is definitely the word to use here. The craze of the time of skinny dipping is done here and the hair styles and slang are oh so 70s. The chiller is effective though, especially at the end. The carnival sideshow adds chills effectively, as well. This would make a GREAT DVD double feature with Race with the Devil. C'mon studios!"

Itssssss Fantassssstic!

GlennInOC@aol.com | Orange County, CA | 03/18/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Dirk Benedict was SO cute at 20! Imagine my horror when a mad scientist tells him to take off his his shirt to that he can inject him with a special "serum". Slowly Dirk's body changes until, to his horror, he is thrashing about a medical bench, covered in thick green scales and turning into a snake! It was fun to watch the bad script, servicable special effects and cute young guy combine to make for some B-movie sci-fi fun!"