Anaconda (2025)
I will be the first to admit that I had little to no expectations coming into this film, if anything I thought this would have been a Sony release that was to just make a quick buck and move on completely. However, as much as I don’t think this is a great film, I am pleasantly surprised and believe that this is a totally fine and funny flick that people should go and see if they have some time to kill or if they want to just laugh at silly humour. The original Anaconda was never a great movie and I think that gives this film little platform to stand on, but does this exceed the original film, in my opinion yes.
The main standout for me in this film other than the hilarious comedic acting from the leading roles, is the premise and story. This film follows a group of friends who have reconnected over a long period of time and begin to reminisce of their childhood of making films and having a blast, which inspires them to follow their dreams and make another movie which turns out to be the remake of Anaconda. I do find it hilarious that out of all films they chose, it was anaconda but it has charm and does work like a treat for this film, instead of it being boring adaptation or remake of an already poor film.
The positives come from the leading roles of course, as if they started to take themselves seriously in this film, it would have been a major misfire, but they ultimately have the time of their lives in this film and clearly in the process of making it, which shines through the screen to create one of the funniest cinema experiences of the year. Jack Black and Paul Rudd are hilarious as ever and have great screen chemistry together, however the main standout is Steve Zahn who is mind bogglingly funny in this. He is an actor who can really lose himself in his comedic roles and become a different person, he is genuinely one of the funniest actors in the business, and this film shows it.
Tom Gormican who is the co-writer and Director of this film has plenty of positives and negatives for his contributions to this film. The positives are the writing is really funny and decently written with the emotional weight and even the plot twists that were a decent shock especially in my screening for the film. Of course, there are plenty of lines and moments in this film that include clique moments of dialogue however, which you do come to expect in films like this these days. I also believe that the directing was nothing to write home about either, it was absolutely an fine display of camera work but doesn’t include anything inspiring, however this is kind of to be expected for a film like this.
One of my main negatives with this film sadly is its pacing and how by the end I kind of wanted it to be over. This was due to the final fight with the snake kind of being the most uninteresting and predictable moments of the film. I don’t want to sound pretentious but I found the character work and relationships to be the best part of the film, yet the final fight was something I lost interest in and everything that unfolded I could have told you before going into the film. also I found the CGI to be really good in parts but super janky and inconsistent in others.
is Anaconda a fantastic film, not by any means, but is it absolutely fine, serviceable and uniquely funny, yes most definitely. If you want to see Jack Black and Paul Rudd have plenty of fun and mess around for a while with a big snake, this is for you!
FINAL REVIEW: 2.5/5