A "National Geographic" film crew is taken hostage by an insane hunter, who forces them along on his quest to capture the world's largest - and deadliest - snake.A "National Geographic" film crew is taken hostage by an insane hunter, who forces them along on his quest to capture the world's largest - and deadliest - snake.A "National Geographic" film crew is taken hostage by an insane hunter, who forces them along on his quest to capture the world's largest - and deadliest - snake.
- Awards
- 6 wins & 11 nominations total
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Summary
Reviewers say 'Anaconda' is often criticized for its clichéd plot, weak special effects, and inconsistent acting, with many finding its reliance on familiar monster movie tropes tiresome. Jon Voight's over-the-top performance is both a redeeming feature and a source of ridicule. While the film's atmosphere and tension are occasionally praised, these moments are overshadowed by its numerous flaws. Some appreciate it as a guilty pleasure or a fun, campy watch, while others find it disappointing and forgettable. Despite its commercial success, it receives generally negative critical reception.
Featured reviews
Anaconda (1997)
It's a stupid B-Movie with enough quality to fly by, and enough camp charm to get away with such cinematic crimes. The cast play it straight, apart from Voight. I'm pretty sure he was drunk during the shooting, coming out with an inexplicable accent and a look reminiscent of Hannibal Lecter. It's ridiculous fun, with hokey CGI and animatronics. The animatronics are great and make me miss the 90s. It's a big snake shaped tube and goes from slow robotic motions, to super fast CGI. Cube and Hyde manage some, at times, adorable dialogue. Voight's presence also unites the rest of the cast, and each character gets their own heroic captain moment. Fun filled and just plain bad. I loved it.
Little consistency
This is not as bad as some people say it is. Generally, it's pretty formulaic, but there are a few alterations on the monster movie format.
A crew making a documentary set sail down a tropical river, on their way losing their fuel and, you guessed it, bumping into a big snake. There are all the usual characters here: beautiful girl, villain, posh English bloke (there's always one!), working-class hero, etc. They gradually get picked off one-by-one - although guessing the next "victim" is so easy, it takes the fun out of it all.
There are a few oddities in the consistency of the plot. Most of the killing happen in the second half of the film with the first half devoted to boring sub-plots. Curiously, the customary "introduction shock" is not a snake death, but a suicide. We never really find out why this has happened - after all, there is still a lot of Jennifer Lopez to be shown - and this, I think, is one of the main problems with the film. Story lines are attempted but never completed and so the audience will never gain true satisfaction from the film.
Another interesting factor is Terri's boyfriend and his contribution to the story line. During a dive, he gets bitten and the crew manage to recover him. They save his life but he is still unconscious and remains so throughout most of the movie.
However, the weakest character of all is the snake. Sure, it's pretty ugly, but it will never be truly terrifying as the director doesn't play on our sense of fear. We may be surprised when the snake attacks but never truly shocked.
As I said before, this isn't too bad a movie (I've seen worse) - there are some moments of tension, the actors do their jobs and the special effects are far from laughable. You might want to watch this if it's shown of TV, but I wouldn't pay money to see it.
A crew making a documentary set sail down a tropical river, on their way losing their fuel and, you guessed it, bumping into a big snake. There are all the usual characters here: beautiful girl, villain, posh English bloke (there's always one!), working-class hero, etc. They gradually get picked off one-by-one - although guessing the next "victim" is so easy, it takes the fun out of it all.
There are a few oddities in the consistency of the plot. Most of the killing happen in the second half of the film with the first half devoted to boring sub-plots. Curiously, the customary "introduction shock" is not a snake death, but a suicide. We never really find out why this has happened - after all, there is still a lot of Jennifer Lopez to be shown - and this, I think, is one of the main problems with the film. Story lines are attempted but never completed and so the audience will never gain true satisfaction from the film.
Another interesting factor is Terri's boyfriend and his contribution to the story line. During a dive, he gets bitten and the crew manage to recover him. They save his life but he is still unconscious and remains so throughout most of the movie.
However, the weakest character of all is the snake. Sure, it's pretty ugly, but it will never be truly terrifying as the director doesn't play on our sense of fear. We may be surprised when the snake attacks but never truly shocked.
As I said before, this isn't too bad a movie (I've seen worse) - there are some moments of tension, the actors do their jobs and the special effects are far from laughable. You might want to watch this if it's shown of TV, but I wouldn't pay money to see it.
Overly entertaining cinematic trash
Anaconda is often looked at as cinematic trash. And it is but it's also wonderfully entertaining. Jennifer Lopez, Ice Cube, Eric Stoltz, Kari Wuhrer, Owen Wilson and Jon Voight star. Jennifer Lopez is really fierce as the lead and Jon Voight is so bonkers and over the top it's just comically absurd and wonderful. The effects leave something to be desired. The digital doesn't hold up but the practical is still pretty cool. The movie is creepy and funny and it's opening kill features a somewhat young I think Danny Trejo. Sometimes you just need to trash it up.
1990s classic. (With a dash of anti-feminism..?)
If you want to watch a movie on a blazing, hot evening and have no options (and missed this one back in the day), then this is going to entertain you. Action? Yes. Fun? Yes. Acting? Oh hell yes! Just pay attention to Jon Voight and his over-the-top performance and prepare to be amazed. On top of that, one thing to consider: the writing for J-Lo's character, her lines, are totally out there making her sound useless and fragile, helpless side-hero for at least 45 minutes. Luckily this will change slightly towards the 2nd half, but...really,
Mr Writer? Good thing that the anaconda steals the show. Finally, the overall rating here is unfair. This should be around 6.5 and is a much better monster-munch film than many others in the 00's and 10's...8/10, pure fun.
What did you Expect
I read a lot of the review on this 23 year old flick. It's not as bad as people are saying. It is a well made finely acted unbelievable adventure flick. Anyone that expected this to be an Oscar award winning movie are delusional. I mean really, it's Jay Lo, Ice Cube
, Voight, and Owen. It's mindless entertainment and nothing else. Enjoy.
Jennifer Lopez Through the Years
Jennifer Lopez Through the Years
Whether she's making our hearts swell in films like Selena or wowing us in Kiss of the Spider Woman, Jennifer Lopez never stops slaying the screen.
Did you know
- TriviaDuring the filming of one scene, the controls for the animatronic anaconda shorted out, causing it to completely lose control. Some of the footage is included in the movie.
- GoofsIt's stated in the movie that anacondas have heat pits. They don't.
- Quotes
Paul Serone: Never look in the eyes, of those you kill. They will haunt you forever. I know.
- Alternate versionsThe version shown on the Sci-fi channel has several scenes added, including Westrige complaining about his room, Cale musing that the monkeys are acting like they sense a predator nearby, and a dinner scene where Westrige expresses reservations about Sarone.
- ConnectionsEdited into Gale Force (2002)
- SoundtracksTipsy Dazy
Written by Stephen Marley
Performed by Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers
Courtesy of Elektra Entertaiment Group
- How long is Anaconda?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Trăn Khổng Lồ
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $45,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $65,885,767
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $16,620,887
- Apr 13, 1997
- Gross worldwide
- $136,885,767
- Runtime
- 1h 29m(89 min)
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1
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