ANACONDA Reviewed by GREG KING
Director: Tom Gormican
Stars: Jack Black, Paul Rudd, Steve Zahn. Thandiwe Newton, Daniela Melchoir, Selton Mello, Ione Skye, Ice Cube.
Two friends who are obsessed with horror movies set out to make an unauthorised, low budget remake/reboot/reimagining of the 1997 adventure film Anaconda, but things quickly go pear shaped.
Ever since they were childhood friends with a shared love of horror movies Doug (Jack Black) and Griff (Paul Rudd) have dreamed of carving out a career as filmmakers living the dream in Hollywood. As high school students they made their own B-grade amateurish horror film about a creature called “the quatch.” But, as adults, they realise that reality bites and they are now caught up in a midlife malaise.
In the years since their halcyon high school days, the pair have grown apart. Griff has found work as a struggling actor in Hollywood, but he proves difficult to work with and has just been fired from his minor role in the tv series S.W.A.T. after four episodes. Doug lives in Buffalo and ekes out a living producing wedding videos which he tries to infuse with the tropes of his favourite horror movies, much to the chagrin of his clients and his bosses.
But the pair reconnect during a surprise birthday party for Doug. And that is when Griff suggests that they reboot their favourite Anaconda, the 1997 film that starred Jon Voight, Ice Cube, Eric Stoltz and Jennifer Lopez. The film franchise has been dormant for a decade, but Griff insists on calling his version a “spiritual sequel”. They recruit two other former childhood friends – the unhinged and burnt out stoner Kenny (Steve Zahn, from Lean On Pete, etc) who will be the cinematographer, and Claire (Thandiwe Newton, from the coming of age film Flirting, etc), who will be the female lead. The four head off to Brazil, but the shoot does not go smoothly. At first they meet the eccentric snake wrangler Santiago (Selton Mello) who has a live anaconda to use in the film.
But when Griff accidentally kills the snake, he and Santiago have to head off into the jungle to find another snake. Their boat is being piloted by the capable but mysterious Ana (Daniela Melchoir), who is mixed up in some illegal gold mining operation and is on the run from a couple of mean looking dudes. Doug decides to write her into the script.
But then a massive anaconda emerges from the jungle and wreaks havoc, and the turns the film shoot into a desperate struggle to survive.
Written by Kevin Etten (better known for his work on the tv series Desperate Housewives, etc) and director Tom Gormican (The Unbearable Weight Of Massive Talent, etc), this light comedy plays the original concept for laughs. The film also serves up a critique of the lack of originality in Hollywood filmmaking and its love of sequels, remakes and reboots, but it also explores the difficulties faced by maverick and independent filmmakers as they try to get their projects off the ground. This reboot of the Anaconda franchise is Gormican’s third feature, and he maintains a fairly fast pace throughout, balancing the action and the self-referential humour.
Rudd and Black share a great dynamic as they bounce off each other and their easy-going rapport feels organic, although it appears as if some of their scenes were improvised. Black delivers another of his manic, over the top performances, while Rudd brings a calming presence. Zahn gives us another take on his usual eccentric characterisation, while Newton lends gravitas to her role but is basically wasted. We get a couple of surprise celebrity cameos that are played for laughs, but fans will certainly appreciate them. The special effects that create the massive snake are not particularly effective, although its on-screen presence is often quite unsettling.
Anaconda was shot on location on the Gold Coast in Queensland, with the rainforest doubling for the Amazon jungle. Overall, it is a bit of fun and an enjoyable way to kill a couple of hours over the holiday season.
★★★
