5 Snake-Filled Horror Movies To Watch This St. Patrick’s Day
The Irish patron saint feast day of St. Patrick is celebrated the world over with green pints, green rivers and plenty of shamrock-adorned revelers. The most well-known legend behind St. Patrick is that he journeyed to Ireland and banished all the snakes. In reality, St. Patrick was a Welsh slave brought over to Ireland by the god-fearing English to convert the Celtic pagan Irish. The snakes in this legend symbolize the pagan beliefs and druids of the indigenous Irish people, who were brutally colonized by the English. This association with snakes being evil and representative of deities such as the Devil is a theme found throughout theistic mythologies.
Even before any monotheistic religions were founded, the polytheistic Persian faith system told of the demon god Ahriman. He would lead a prince to commit patricide and feed the serpents sprouting from his body with human brains. In Judeo-Christian belief systems, the snake or the serpent represents evil, and in particular Satan. The serpent in the Garden of Eden tempted Adam & Eve. He’s referred to as a trickster, causing the first people to be banished from God’s supposed paradise.
While many cultures throughout history regard the snake as a symbol of fertility and healing, horror movies still depict snakes as representative of evil and the symbol of occult practices. In honor of the green holiday, check out these five horror films filled with snakes.
The Taking Of Deborah Logan (2014), dir. Adam Robitel
This found footage supernatural chiller follows a crew of documentary filmmakers as they investigate the effects of Alzheimer’s on the elderly Deborah Logan and her daughter/carer Sarah. After witnessing Deborah’s erratic and downright disturbing behavior, the filmmakers suspect there’s more than just a degenerative illness at work. During one of Deborah’s fits, she’s recorded speaking French about serpents and snakes. It soon comes to light that Deborah has become a vessel for a snake-like demon prowling for a younger body to possess. The snake symbolism is pretty obvious in this 2014 addition to the possession subgenre of horror. Deborah at one point unhinges her jaw and attempts to swallow her prey (a young girl) whole. The serpent-presenting demon is the embodiment of evil and was worshipped by the Desjardins cult.
The Lair of the White Worm (1988), dir. Ken Russell
Ken Russell’s The Lair of the White Worm is every bit as bonkers as you’d expect from the director of The Devils (1971). It’s loosely…and I mean loosely..based on the 1911 Bram Stoker novel of the same name as well, as the legend of the Lambton Worm. It stars a very green Peter Capaldi as a Scottish archaeologist who finds a very large snake skull in the Derbyshire countryside. He teams up with the local lord (Hugh Grant) and one of the managers of his bed and breakfast, to find the answers to why many local people have been going missing.
Enter the highly fashionable and completely seductive Lady Sylvia (Amanda Donahoe). It turns out she’s a snake-like vampire, sleeps in a cobra’s basket and is mesmerized by music. Armed with his bagpipes and kilt, which apparently all Scottish archaeologists carry around with them just in case they have to hypnotize a cobra vampire lady, Angus Flint must foil Lady Sylvia before any more sacrifices are made to her snake-god.
Death of Me (2020), dir. Darren Lynn Bousman
Directed by Darren Lynn Bousman of Saw fame, Death of Me follows a very folk horror-esque structure. But instead of being set in the rural English countryside or deserted American backlands, the two protagonists find themselves on a remote island off the coast of Thailand. dodging shifty locals and looking for answers. After waking up with no recollection of the night before, Neil and Christine, played by Luke Hemsworth and Maggie Q, attempt to retrace their steps to find answers after watching a video in which Neil murders and buries Christine.
After vomiting soil, Christine soon pulls a small black snake out of her mouth. Typically, in Thailand, snakes are seen as sacred manifestations of gods and goddesses, and they can bring luck and wealth. But, the depiction of a small black snake in Thai traditions is a very ill-fated omen and bad luck is slithering its way towards the unfortunate victim.
The Craft (1996), dir. Andrew Fleming
No list about snakes in horror is complete without the inclusion of the ultimate teen witch horror The Craft. Rachel True, Neve Campbell, Robin Tunney, and the electric Fairuza Balk star in the film as a coven of high school witches, who attempt to balance typical teenage troubles with a new power given to them by the divine patron of witchcraft, Manon. After using their powers for personal gain, they begin to experience negative repercussions.
As Nancy (Balk) becomes drunk with power, the coven turns on Sarah (Tunney) to bind the psychotic Nancy. Snake imagery abounds throughout The Craft. Sarah is harassed by a homeless man holding a snake. Then the coven attacks Sarah in her home, they surround her with snakes. Snakes in The Craft are representative of omens of danger for Sarah as she falls into the welcoming arms of the coven of outcasts.
We Need To Do Something (2021), dir. Sean King O’Grady
We Need To Do Something is a psychological horror chamber piece filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Set almost entirely in a bathroom, Melissa (Sierra McCormick) and her family are sheltering from a tornado. As the hours wear on, they realize they’re trapped and their house has fallen down around them. Oh, and there’s someone or something outside of a malevolent nature. As the familial unit begins to crumble, much like their home around them, they soon discover a poisonous snake has found its way into the room. Much like its symbolism in The Craft, the snake in We Need To Do Something represents the possible occultist root cause of this apocalyptic disaster.
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