Working on an isolated island, a group of tourists looking over an island supposedly being set up for a tropical prehistoric park find the island teaming with actual dinosaurs and other creatures, and when one of the group is befriended by a giant snake must get off the island alive.
There was quite a lot to like with this one. Among its better features is a spectacularly over-the-top action-packed setup that keeps things moving along at a frantic clip. Getting introduced to the characters on the trip through the island to initially focus on the security setup of the area before becoming lost and stranded in the jungle with the wild creatures provides enough here to be worthwhile at setting up everything needed here. It provides just enough to get a sense of the project being built there which requires the group to explore the area to complete it, their own struggles which get enough of a handle on their characters, and then going from there with a slew of encounters with the creatures loose in the area to offer up the thrills of the team trying to recover the missing son while dealing with the onslaught of greed between everyone giving the film a strong overall storyline. As well, there's also the fun secondary storyline about the imprinting done on the young kid by the mother snake which grows over the course of the film. Quite realistically handled with the scene that sets it up where his attempted escape from a nest-robbing creature brings him into contact with the yolk from the spilled eggs before the mother returns to notice him emerging from a hiding spot in the shell of an egg, the whole sequence is incredibly well-handled. The relationship that develops over the course of this is quite fun with the mother snake continually trying to project him from the elements on the island with the different encounters with man-eating trees, giant dinosaurs, or other threats on the island while also taking care of him in a motherly way which is all rather fun to see play out. The other fun factor with the film is the incredibly fun series of gloriously cheesy creature action. Starting with the attack on the dig site that sets everything in motion, the later attacks on the bus which strands the group on the island bringing them into contact with the giant frogs in a fantastic sequence, the scene in the underground lair with the mother snake, and a thrilling chase through the jungle trying to escape the massive dinosaurs before the mother snake arrives to help fight them offer up plenty of cheesy fun. Offering a mix of solid and cheesy effects trying to get the different species to interact with each other as the confines of the action require it to go for this exceptionally cheesy route which might be way too cheap for some to handle. That's really the main issue with this one as it doesn't have too many genuine drawbacks present.
Rated Unrated/R: Violence and Language.
