Instead of appearing in Raiders Of The Lost Ark (1981) Klaus Kinski chose to star in Venom (1981) which offered more money and, according to Kinski, a superior script. The commentary track by director Piers Haggard on the Blue Underground Blu-Ray of Venom is a treasure trove for these sorts of anecdotes. Some are hysterically funny, others are mildly disturbing, but all in all it’s well worth the listen.
For being a film with such a troubled production Venom works considerably well. For a long time I regarded this little genre picture as just another film that Tobe Hooper didn’t direct which is entirely unfair to Piers Haggard’s accomplishment bringing Alan Scholefield’s boiler plate novel to the screen. Just take a moment to consider that not only did Haggard have to contend with Klaus Kinski but Oliver Reed as well. Apparently these sinister divas hated one another on set, so it is no wonder that the friction they have on screen is so palpable.
The clashes between bad guys Reed and Kinski are very much the centerpiece of the film which deals with a botched kidnapping turned hostage situation with the added complication that the house where this is all happening has, accidentally, become the home of an angry black mamba snake. The premise sounds absurd but Haggard and his stellar cast really pull it off effectively. Sterling Hayden and Sarah Miles are excellent as the hostages while Nicol Williamson gives one of his most restrained and nuanced performances as the police officer overseeing negotiations.
There’s no real weak link to the film if one accepts at face value the premise that a center for toxicology gets their venomous snakes from the same little pet shop as an eight year old boy gets his pets. Haggard does an excellent job introducing characters and setting up a criminal plan that never gets to materialize. Venom is the rare B-movie that is totally effective and an absolute “must see”.
