Sssssss (1973)

A college student becomes lab assistant to a scientist who is working on a serum that can transform humans into snakes.

Director:

Bernard L. Kowalski

Writers:

Hal Dresner (screenplay), Daniel C. Striepeke (story) (as Dan Striepeke)

Stars:

Strother Martin, Dirk Benedict, Heather Menzies-Urich

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Strother Martin	...	Dr. Carl Stoner
Dirk Benedict	...	David Blake
Heather Menzies-Urich	...	Kristina Stoner (as Heather Menzies)
Richard B. Shull	...	Dr. Ken Daniels
Tim O'Connor	...	Kogen
Jack Ging	...	Sheriff Dale Hardison
Kathleen King	...	Kitty Stewart
Reb Brown	...	Steve Randall
Ted Grossman	...	Deputy Morgan Bock
Charles Seel	...	Old Man
Ray Ballard	...	Waggish Tourist
Brendan Burns	...	Jock #1
Rick Beckner	...	Jock #2
Jim Drum	...	Hawker #1 (as James Drum)
Ed McCready	...	Hawker #2

Storyline

David, a college student, is looking for a job. He is hired by Dr. Stoner as a lab assistant for his research and experiments on snakes. David also begins to fall for Stoner's young daughter, Kristina. However, the good doctor has secretly brewed up a serum that can transform any man into a King Cobra snake-and he plans to use it on David.

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Plot Keywords:

professor | college student | snake | cobra | scientist | 

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Taglines:

Right Before Your Eyes, See a Man Turned Into a Cobra!

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

The python used in the film was imported from Singapore.

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Goofs

Dr. Stone mentions housing a snake in the "storm cellar" at one point. As the film is set in Southern California rather than the Midwest or the American South it is highly unlikely that Stoner's house would have a storm cellar. California is not prone to violent storms.

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Quotes

Kogen: You are a real and a bona fide genius. First one I ever met.
Dr. Carl Stoner: It's rare to be appreciated for one's failures.

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Crazy Credits

A pre-title card opens the film declaring all the reptiles used in the film were real and states "We wish to thank the cast and crew for their courageous efforts while being exposed to extremely hazardous conditions."

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Alternate Versions

The UK video version was cut by 27 secs by the BBFC to heavily edit a scene where a snake fights a mongoose.

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Connections

Featured in The Sugarland Express (1974)

User Reviews

Cobras, Mambas, and snake boys...Hmmmmm

What we have here is a failure to....OH, wrong Strother Martin film. Well, Martin is the star of Sssssss(7 s's), and I must admit he is rather enjoyable to watch as a kindly, softspoken, insane, murderous herpetologist trying to save the human race by turning men into cobras. The story is absurd and rather difficult to follow. The special effects suck(being blunt and candid) as we see Dirk Benedict get an occasional scale on his green body. The snakes are impressive, however. Martin's over-the-top performance saves this film from being utterly mundane and makes it fun to watch.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

July 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hissssss

Box Office

Budget:

$1,300,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Zanuck/Brown Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1