(SPECIAL NOTE: Capsule version of the review is available here.)
When the phrase "controversial film" is mentioned most people usually think of titles that divide critics and audience into two camps with completely opposite views. On one side there are those who consider certain title to be fantastic masterpiece, while others view the same title as unwatchabe piece of celluloid excrement. However, there are some occasions when controversial films actually don't create such extreme differences of opinion - sometimes the only point of contention is whether the film is so bad that it is good or simply bad. Anaconda, 1997 horror adventure film by Luis Llosa is one of such examples.
The plot is set in Amazon jungle where scientific expedition led by anthropologist Dr. Steven Cale (played by Eric Stoltz) wants to find legendary Indian tribe of Mist People. The expedition, which includes documentary film crew led by director Terri Flores (played by Jennifer Lopez), rescues a Paraguayan snake catcher Paul Sarone (played by Jon Voight). That humanitarian act soon proves to be expedition's undoing, because evil Sarone has some plans of his own, which is going to some using little-known river tributary in order to catch 15-metre long anaconda. The reptile also has plans of its own, and expedition members play important part in them - they must fulfil giant snake's nutritional needs.
In his 1993 film Sniper Luis Llosa showed that he can put jungle locations to good use. Unfortunately, Brazilian locations aren't enough for good film; they needed good script, something that screenwriting committee of Hans Bauer, Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr. obviously couldn't provide. Apart from some obvious problems like plot having little do with real life or common sense (documentary film crew for some unspecified reason must bring along actor to location in order to have film narrated, instead of shooting film first and getting narration recorded in studio later), Anaconda suffers from one-dimensional characters and cliches. On the other hand, Jon Voight in delectably over the-top role of villain and couple of unintentionally funny moments show that Anaconda had potential to become "guilty pleasure". Unfortunately, uninspired acting by almost everyone else in the film, including Jennifer Lopez (who almost had her acting career torpedoed at the very beginning because of this), prevents Anaconda from reaching this level, at least for the author of this review. For me (and, I guess, for much of the audience) this film ends in the limbo reserved for films too silly to be taken as serious genre film and too serious to be taken as "trash" entertainment.
RATING: 4/10 (+)
(Note: The text in its original form was posted in Usenet newsgroup rec.arts.film.reviews on December 29th 2003)
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