Connect with us

News

Horror Movie Blu-ray Review: Anaconda

Published

on

Horror Movies on Tubi - Lopez in Anaconda

Horror Movie Blu-ray Review: Anaconda

The recent Blu-ray release of Lake Placid put me in the mood to revisit other killer animal creature features, so it’s kismet that 1997’s Anaconda is being re-released on Blu-ray just a few weeks later. Although the film debuted on the format in 2009 via Sony, Mill Creek Entertainment recently picked up the rights and re-issued the title.

Written by Top Gun duo Jim Cash and Jack Epps, Jr. along with Hans Bauer (Titan A.E.), Anaconda’s plot is a simple one. A documentary crew travels through the Amazon rainforest by river barge in hopes of capturing the elusive native people known as the “People of the Mist” on film for the first time. While in search of one great mystery of the expansive Amazon, the hapless group discovers another: a 40-foot, man-eating anaconda. Like that, the hunters become the hunted. Tensions (and stakes) raise even higher when it’s revealed that one crew member is in it for the snake and considers the others expendable.

The film is driven by an ensemble cast. Jennifer Lopez takes top billing as documentary director Terri Flores; this was the same year as her breakout performance in Selena and before she began her music career. Ice Cube (Friday), who plays the cameraman, was still in the transition process from hardcore rapper to family-friendly entertainer. Jon Voight (Deliverance) rocks a ponytail and his best attempt at a Paraguayan accent as snake poacher Paul Serone. Eric Stoltz (Mask) portrays Dr. Steven Cale, an anthropologist who is an expert on the indigenous tribes.

Rounding out the cast is Owen Wilson (Wedding Crashers) as the sound guy, Vincent Castellanos (The Crow: City of Angels) as the barge’s captain, Kari Wuhrer (Eight Legged Freaks) as the production manager, and Jonathan Hyde (The Mummy) as the documentary’s snooty narrator. Danny Trejo (Machete) has a small role as an ill-fated poacher in the opening scene. While none of the film’s performances are particularly memorable, the eclectic ensemble is perhaps, even more, to watch all these years later, given the different trajectories their careers have taken since ’97.

Director Luis Llosa (The Specialist) makes the mistake of showing the anaconda – in its unconvincing animatronic puppet form – attacking an animal prey before the crew is even aware of its existence. The anaconda itself isn’t particularly scary. For its more spry work, the snake was created with CGI, which is dated but remains better than the average Syfy flick. In fact, the technology was cutting edge at the time, reportedly costing $100,000 per second (which would explain the $45 million budget).

The filmmakers succumbed to studio pressure to make the movie PG-13 rather than the originally intended R rating, so there’s not much gore – which I can’t help but believe would have increased the entertainment value – and some obvious ADR was used to remove cursing. There is, however, an emergency tracheotomy that still makes me squirm. Some of the snake attacks, although bloodless, are fairly effective as well.

Like its previous Blu-ray incarnation and the DVD before that, Anaconda, unfortunately, carries no special features. The release is about as bare-bones as it gets; no trailers, no subtitles, no pop-up menu. I would love to hear what any of the cast members have to say about the production, but alas that probably won’t ever happen. Mill Creek, however, offers a budget-friendly disc; you can’t complain about a Blu-ray that retails for under 8 bucks. More importantly, the high-definition presentation looks good, bringing the lush Amazon to the comfort of your living room.

Anaconda grossed $137 million at the box office worldwide. Surprisingly, it wasn’t turned into a franchise until 2004, when Anacondas: The Hunt for Blood Orchid slithered into theaters. The third and fourth installments premiered on Syfy in 2008 and 2009, respectively. As is often the case, the original remains the best. Dated and formulaic as it may be, Anaconda is a fun creature feature.

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

News

Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

Published

on

Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading

Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

Published

on

The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading

Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

Published

on

Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading