ANACONDA
A film review by Cameron Shelley
Copyright 1997 Cameron Shelley
Anaconda (Columbia)
Review by:
Cameron Shelley -- April 30, 1997.
Cast:
Jennifer Lopez (Terri Flores), Ice Cube (Danny Rich),
Jon Voight (Paul Sarone), Eric Stoltz (Steven Cale),
Jonathan Hyde (Warren Westridge), Owen Wilson
(Garry Dixon), Kari Salin (Denise Kalber).
Screenplay:
Hans Bauer, Jim Cash, Jack Epps Jr.
Director:
Luis Llosa
Producers:
Verna Harrah, Carole Little, Beau Marks, Leonard
Rabinowitz, Susan Ruskin
Anaconda is a challenging film to review, since little of any substance appears on the screen. It is an intensely silly picture that could probably be adequately discussed during screening, without missing anything vital. I say this with some assurance, since several movie patrons appeared to be doing just that while watching. In fact, Anaconda, I think, invites exactly that reaction.
According to Variety (I think it was), the end of April is basically dead-time for the movie box-office - what with people feeling impoverished over their tax returns and such. The cruelest month is also the most financially depressing for the studios, and has, to all appearances, leveled off films like Volcano and everything else wedged into the gap before the advent of big summer blockbusters like Jurassic Park II. Anaconda, however, squeezes comfortably into the early spring time slot. This film is not for the ambitious movie-goer out to treat his (or her) eyes to a piece of cinematic brilliance. No, this film is for the recently defrosted slacker with five bucks burning a hole in his (or her) pocket!
Considered formally, the film only has two things to offer:
1.The black guy (Danny) doesn't get killed first! In fact, he survives the whole picture relatively intact. 2.The chick (Terri) doesn't twist her ankle at all!
Other than that, things are pretty much as you'd expect. A pretty stereotypical documentary crew goes out on the Amazon with a snooty, British presenter to film some mysterious natives. In a setup arranged by their captain, they pick up a Paraguayan ex-priest (Sarone) who's really in it for the big snakes. He incapacitates the film crew's leader (Steven) and leads the gang down the wrong tributary - with horrendous results! That's pretty much it. Why the setup? Who knows!
The centerpiece of this movie is not, in fact, the 40 foot snake, but rather Jon Voight and his B movie acting. He sneers, smirks, slimes, and slouches across the screen, delivering his silly lines with real gusto, and all in that stupid accent! No matter how bad, no scene or bit of dialogue receives anything less than all the over-acting it deserves. Opposite him, Jennifer Lopez does a creditable job of maintaining an air of solemnity (without panic) and keeping a straight face. To Llosa's credit, I suppose, the movie focuses on the interaction between these two characters, leaving the snake on the sidelines for most of the time. (Except for one or two sequences, the anaconda itself seems like little more than an "innertube with an attitude." <-- Note obligatory reviewer's wisecrack!) To speak truthfully, their interplay is reminiscent of that between Brody and Quint in Jaws, although, of course, the outcome is never in doubt. Still, these two performances do carry this admittedly lightweight film to its wisely not-long-in-coming conclusion. There is something admirable in keeping your head when all about you are having theirs barfed up by a giant computer graphic.
Insofar as there is one, I suppose the moral is that if you have five bucks and a taste for the ridiculous, then Anaconda may well be for you. If you are also one of those people who is repulsed by snakes, so much the better - you might actually get a kick out of the reptilian sideshow. But remember, the real reptile is that Sarone guy! Frankly, I don't think I'd trust him at all, even out for a little gopher hunt. He probably knows where there are some "real" gophers.... -----
cpshelle@watarts.uwaterloo.ca - Phone: (519) 888-1211 x2555
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