Mega Snake

Daft and delightful big animal romp. The performances are all delivered with a wink-and-a-nudge along with suspiciously bad dialogue (probably written that way). One line of dialogue is reminiscent of something from Ed Wood's films. "He's dead!?" "Extremely". The special effects aren't too shabby, and the film pulls a few surprises, such as a poorly put together couple trying to deal with their problems, people looking like they are about to escape and then snubbing it etc. There's some mumbo jumbo about Native American folklore, which is a tad silly, but makes a change from the usual genetically modified snakes. This makes it man vs. nature in its purest form, and not man's mistake. If you like big snake movies you wont be disappointed by the number of clichés and some of the deviations from the norm.

Mega Snake (2007)

** (out of 4)

Fun, if extremely silly, "Creature Feature" about a couple of brothers who go down different paths when their father is killed by a snake. One grows to love snakes while the other, Les (Michael Shanks), grows to hate them. After a magical Indian snake escapes it quickly starts to grow in size and that also means his appetite is growing. Before long the snake is eighty-feet and it's up to Les and his cop girlfriend (Siri Baruc) to try and kill it. Every once in a great while a movie like CITIZEN KANE comes along that changes the rules of cinema and makes one so impressed because they feel as if they're watching something that is going to be copied, worshiped and admired for decades to come. MEGA SNAKE isn't that type of film. If you expect something magical then you're going to be left disappointed but if you go into this low-budget "B" movie expecting low-budget "B" movie stuff they you should find yourself entertained. There are dozens of killer snake movies to pick from but this one here manages to be quite fun since it doesn't take itself too serious. We're also greeted with a pretty good snake. Yes, it's CGI and yes it's obviously fake but that really doesn't take away from anything as it at least looks better than dozens of other snake movies. The monster certainly isn't going to scare you but it at least isn't going to make you laugh either. Another good thing are the actual attacks as some of them are pretty graphic when it comes to the blood. There are several scenes of the snake swallowing people whole and we also get countless bites and people missing parts. The filmmakers at least threw horror fans some real blood effects so it's not all CGI. The film takes place in Tennessee so you can expect countless bad Southern accents but for the most part I enjoyed the characters and the actors. I thought Shanks and Baruc made for a good team and you could easily believe them as a couple. Todd Jensen is fun of the girl's current boyfriend and John T. Woods is pretty funny as the snake-loving brother. Once again, if you're wanting some big-budget, realistic drama then you're not going to find it here. This is a cheaply made thriller that will please those wanting cheap fun and nothing more.

I never have really thought much of SyFy's resume as an overall whole. Some are tolerable, but most are garbage. Fortunately Mega Snake is one of the tolerable ones. It does have a lot of noticeable and obvious flaws, first and foremost the effects of the snake, which are not the worst from SyFy but still atrocious. The characters, especially the Sheriff, are cardboard clichés on the whole, and some like the shopkeeper are annoying. There is too much overlong exposition with the family as well and hampered further by hackneyed dialogue. However, the story is mostly not too bad. It didn't feel dull, and there are actually some good scenes like the attack on the lake and the forest chase which do have some tension as well as some fun and inventive killings. There are some scenes that do get rather ridiculous though, which was kind of expected. Other than the snake effects, Mega Snake does look good, the scenery is striking and the photography is at least above slipshod level. The acting is above average as well, John T Woods is especially fun. In conclusion, I'd be lying if I said this was a good movie but there have been far worse from SyFy. 5/10 Bethany Cox

Its not like were watching a huge budget production here, but they did well with what they had. Granted, the Sheriff with a Phd was a little too convenient, a hobby in snakes would have been better. BUt this is a classic monster flick like 8 Legged Freaks or Lake Placid. It doesn't need to have an Oscar quality script, its meant to be fun. I was glad to see Michael Shanks in it though, I had missed him after Stargate was over. The acting in the movie was varied. Several of the performances were WAY over the top. I did originally watch this hoping for a superhero flick starring feedback, and was disappointed that he was just a cameo. I enjoyed the movie as a whole, found it pleasantly hokey and entertaining.

Dismal script with even worse direction that bounces between being random and clichéd. Improbable characters (the police deputy that JUST HAPPENS to "have a PhD in zoology") plus completely stereotypical plot devices (the Indian with a secret passed down from "his people", and the clichéd County Fair that no one can close because it's too important even though The Evil Monster is rampaging in the countryside) with some of the worst acting and casting seen on American Basic Cable (accents for residents of this Tenn. community are all over the place) and a good measure of sub-par special effects and poor dubbing equals this complete waste of time. And "Feedback's" appearance is barely more than a disjointed and forced cameo in the last half hour... if you're watching for that, save your time. If you are watching for some other reason, what's wrong with you? OK, there are a few so-bad it's funny moments (especially the reaction of the mother of the family at the beach as soon as she sees the, erm, "Mega Snake"... we rewound and watched that scene half a dozen times...) but still...