Anaconda

When "Anaconda" was released in 1954, assuredly no one would ever assume it would be remade in 1997, which was a straight-on gripping drama. Now we have been offered  another installment also titled "Anaconda" which now has been transformed into a satirical comedy as a parody of the franchise.  

Four childhood friends, Doug McCallister (Jack Black), Ronald 'Griff' Griffin (Paul Rudd), Kenny Trent (Steve Zahn) and Claire Simons (Thandiwe Newton) are going through a midlife crisis, so they decide to remake their favorite horror movie from the 1990s in the Amazon Forest. So, between them and some others to help with the production including a snake handler Santiago Braga (Selton Mello) having his anaconda in place, the snake accidentally dies, so a new snake would have to be found. Ultimately when a real giant anaconda shows up, they get more than what they bargain for and their comically chaotic movie turns into a life-or-death situation. The movie that they're dying to remake might just kill them, literally. 

Others to round out the cast are Daniela Melchior as Ana Almeida, Ice Cube as himself, Ione Skye as Malie, Rui Ricardo Diaz as Joao, John Billingsley as Jerry, Sebastian Sero as Charlie, Diego Arnary as Paulo and Dan Silveira as Timo.

The film was satirically directed by Tom Gormican ("That Awkward Moment" '14, "The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent" '22). Considering Gormican directed 'Unbearable Weight', it should be no surprise that he be the one to helm this film, since that film was a spoof on parodying Nicolas Cage as this film was parodying "Anaconda". Ice Cube played himself since he was one of those that starred in the 1997 version, so this added the satirical flair that added much more. It was cleverly written by Tom Gormican ("That Awkward Moment" '14, "The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent" '22, "Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F" '24) and Kevin Etten ("Canned" (TV movie) '09, "The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent" '22, "Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F" '24) plus TV, based on "Anaconda" written by Hans Bauer, Jim Cash and Jack Epps, Jr. If I haven't mentioned it before, I definitely have an appreciation of satire or parodies and this being that made it more entertaining, however it wasn't without flaws. For not being an overly long film, the beginning was a bit slow in getting started, but once it did 'find the film', it became the movie I was definitely looking for. If this film was written as another horror drama, I probably wouldn't have gone to see it, but the fact they presented it as a parody--a satire, I felt that would be the route to go, and it certainly helped. 

If you're an Anaconda fan, you will definitely like this rendition. A humorous approach, great cast, effective directing and seamless visuals made this film captivating and once the film found itself, kept its audience glued. All these aspects made for an overall entertaining movie to have fun with. Enjoy!

Out of 4 Stars: 3                                        Rated: PG-13                                       109mins.