by Kam Williams

With Hustle & Flow, Craig Brewer proved how hard it’s out there for a pimp. Now, the irreverent iconoclast has returned to Memphis to craft an equally-empathetic portrait of a nymphomaniac.

Samuel L. Jackson stars as Lazarus, a weather-beaten, down-on-his-luck bluesman, whose wife, Rose (Adriane Lenox), has just done left him for another man. And like the Bible character who shares his name, Laz is in need of a spiritual resurrection.

He finds inspiration for that transformation from the bloodied and beaten young blonde (Christina Ricci) he finds lying in the road wearing nothing but panties and a midriff-baring blouse. Despite the fact that this is the South, where a black man caught with a comatose, scantily-clad white woman on his property might have some serious explaining to do, Lazarus gathers her up in his arms and carries her into his house, rather than notify the authorities. Worse, when she wants to leave, he ups the ante by chaining her to his radiator.

Wait, it’s not what you’re thinking. Lazarus is only interested in curing the seductive stranger of nymphomania, because she impulsively offered him her body. Can the Bible-thumper resist temptation or will the shameless hussy have her way with him? This is the burning issue behind Black Snake Moan, a film which wavers between modern morality play and a shameless excuse to allow Christina Ricci to writhe around in a state of undress for a couple of hours.

Ricci delivers a career performance, here, even though the underlying suggestion that a woman inclined to mate indiscriminately is automatically mentally ill smacks of a sexist double standard, especially since so many movies nowadays routinely celebrate men who exhibit the same behavior.

Proof-positive that it’s hard out here for a nympho, too.

Very good (3 stars)

Rated R for profanity, nudity, graphic sexuality, violence, drug use, and ethnic slurs.

Running time: 115 minutes

Studio: Paramount Home Entertainment

DVD Extras: Deleted scenes, director’s commentary, and “The Making of” and “Rooted in the Blues” featurettes.