If you’re in the mood for a supernatural horror flick where a poor girl with the power to control snakes gets bullied by rich snobs at a fancy boarding school—and then unleashes her venomous wrath—Jennifer might just be your cup of poison. Directed by Brice Mack, this 1978 oddity offers about as much subtlety as a snake bite and about as much charm as a rattlesnake at a tea party.
Plot: Poor Girl vs. Rich Bullies vs. Snakes—Guess Who Wins?
Jennifer Baylor, hailing from humble West Virginia beginnings, has one heck of a family legacy: as a kid, some snakes she was handling killed the preacher’s son. Yeah, that’s the kind of childhood trauma that sets you up to be the heroine of this snake-infested cautionary tale. Fast forward to the present, Jennifer’s now a scholarship student at an ultra-posh school, where the privileged kids treat her like a misplaced Amazonian snake charmer—because she basically is.
Predictably, the wealthy bullies, led by the insufferable Sandra, decide that Jennifer’s life isn’t miserable enough and start tormenting her with the finesse of a blind man wielding a butter knife. Meanwhile, Jennifer’s dad, Luke, the Bible-obsessed pet store owner who can’t cook a meal without setting it on fire, serves as a reminder that family dysfunction comes in many reptilian shapes.
After a series of cruel pranks—including stealing Jennifer’s clothes and a disturbingly tasteless kitten murder—the snake powers awaken, and Jennifer unleashes literal serpentine justice. Think Mean Girls meets Anaconda in a swampy nightmare where snakes squeeze, bite, and literally wrap up the bullies’ happy endings.
Characters: The Snake Charmer and the Snake Biters
Lisa Pelikan as Jennifer brings a kind of fragile determination to the role, but even she can’t make the patchwork script feel less like a bad afterschool special with venom. Bert Convy’s teacher character tries to be the sympathetic adult, but he’s as convincing as a python at a bunny convention. Nina Foch as the pill-popping headmistress is deliciously over-the-top, channeling every evil boarding school cliché in the book—and adding a snake drawer surprise to boot.
The bullies? They’re your standard entitled rich kids with all the subtlety of a snakebite to the face. And Dayton, Sandra’s boyfriend, doubles down on villainy with a plotline so dark it makes you want to wring the snake powers out of Jennifer’s hands just to give him a taste of poetic justice.
The Snakes: Stars of the Show and Slippery Disasters
The real “star” here is Jennifer’s supernatural control over snakes. Unfortunately, the snakes seem more confused about their role than we are about the film’s tone. Sometimes they’re CGI nightmares; other times, obviously real snakes that look more interested in sunbathing than murder. Watching them “attack” is like watching a low-budget nature documentary gone wrong—there’s more hissing and coiling than actual terror.
Direction and Pacing: A Venomous Slugfest
Brice Mack’s direction feels like he was trying to make a serious supernatural thriller but got lost somewhere in the snake pit and never found his way out. The pacing slithers along, with scenes that drag like a boa constrictor on a lazy afternoon. The movie spends way too long wallowing in teen angst and clunky dialogue, only to rush through the snake attacks like they realized they were running out of film stock.
Tone: Somewhere Between Camp and Creepy
Jennifer is the kind of film that tries so hard to be dark and brooding it ends up unintentionally campy. The blend of serious supernatural revenge fantasy with moments of jaw-dropping absurdity—like the snake-in-the-desk-drawer scene—leaves you wondering if it was meant to be scary or a snake-themed farce.
Final Thoughts: Not the Snake Queen We Deserved
In the pantheon of 70s supernatural revenge flicks, Jennifer sits somewhere between “why bother” and “what were they thinking?” It’s a movie that wants to scare you with serpents but ends up tickling your funny bone with its awkwardness, poor effects, and a plot that’s all over the place like a snake on a sugar high.
That said, if you’re fascinated by snake lore, enjoy 70s horror cheese, or just want to watch a film where snakes deliver more justice than the school’s administration ever could, Jennifer is your guilty pleasure. Just don’t expect the snakes to be your friends—unless your idea of friendship involves slithering, hissing, and wrapping up bullies in deadly embraces.
Oh, and remember: when life gives you snakes, don’t forget to bring some anti-venom—or at least a bigger ladder.
