LIKES:
Fast-Paced
Fun Jokes
Simple Entertainment
Cameos Are Fun
The Music Is Enjoyable
It's Just Funny
Summary:
Anaconda is not here to tell a complex story, and therefore, the pace is not working to be this balanced, story masterpiece. It's a brisk pace for the fleeting attention span with loads of flash in the pan elements to give this adventure film that adventurous pace. The simplistic story is supported heavily with comedy and seems to be a jungle of jokes that take the form of many styles. Meta humor is a big card they played, making fun of Hollywood tactics by mirroring those tactics and poking fun at them. Slapstick humor is prominent, often leading to more banter as the cast of middle-aged movie makers pursues various interests in their impromptu trip to the most dangerous jungle in the world. One-liners, clever puns, and nods to nostalgia are all ready and waiting for you in this film, alongside some cameos that may be short-lived, but add their own charm and humor, which I enjoyed the most. Musically, I'm a sucker for a killer track list, and Anaconda is ready to hit you with a lot of styles that are matched with the scenes to levels that again synergize to enhance each other. What's the verdict of the likes... the movie is stupid fun, and in a movie... that works sometimes for just escaping the cruelties in the world. Anaconda is that escape, and with the cast bringing their acting strengths of silliness to full swing, I think you'll have a blast so long as you come in with the expectation of dumb fun and laughs.
DISLIKES:
The Plot Is Meh
The CGI Needs Work
Character Development Needs Work
It's Not Scary
Lacks A Lot Of Snake Time/Terror
Too Silly?
Summary:
Just because you might expect a silly film, doesn't mean it doesn't come with limitations for a movie overall. Anaconda's plot is very limited. It's trying to put this new approach to the film, which sort of works, but then tries to integrate a few more serious plot points in the movie that are a distraction, extra, and feel somewhat hastily developed. Character development feels too caught up in the meta humor, and so many of the lines are drenched in the exaggerated presentation and sitcom-level enunciation that it feels even less necessary. It leads to characters that are somewhat one-dimensional, boring, and not so much worthy of investing in outside of the laughs. The CGI needs work, too. Don't get me wrong, they are crafting something I couldn't begin to make, but it also has that cheesy SyFy channel look in animation, textures, and comical anthropomorphic elements. I didn't hate it, and there is a good chance this was the goal, but in this day of technical prowess, not the direction I would go. If you are hoping that you were going to get that horror, adventure, and creature film, then lower the expectations now. This Anaconda tries to bring that hunted element, but it's minimal, drowned out by the comedic delivery element as we get bombarded with joke after joke. Not having that scare/danger element makes this movie boring, and the terror I wanted in some parts felt very minimal. The snake doesn't even get that much time, and the kill count is surprisingly low for a movie of this caliber. Those elements were very much needed, but given the trailers promising such a silly film, I can't say I'm surprised this big snake is more of a comedic guest star to the live-action cast. Thus, was the film too silly that it hurt the movie? I have to say yes.
The VERDICT:
Anaconda is a film that promises an escape, and you are getting that escape. It's simple fun, unapologetic in the jokes it unleashes in this barrage of humorous vaudeville of movie-making in the Amazon Rainforest. The songs are fun, the humor is just mind candy, and it moves at a pace that should be very rewarding to a lot of people who don't want to think too hard for a movie. And despite the fun I had, the movie did need to rein in the comedy a bit and try to develop a little more depth to its plots and characters. Anaconda's remake has too many odd attempts at plots, and lacking that hunter element took the excitement out of this series that SyFy had mastered for so many years. Without that thrilling element, so many of the new directions got either stale or felt out of place, leading to a film that feels chaotic, contrived, and diluted to be a holiday release. Would I recommend a theater visit? No, I can't say it is, sadly, unless you just need that escapism. My scores for this film are:
Action/Adventure/Comedy: 6.5-7.0
Movie Overall: 5.5-6.0.
