Anaconda review

ANACONDA: 

JACK BLACK AND PAUL RUDD REBOOT OF 90s CREATURE FEATURE IS CHEESY FUN! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** out of 4

COLUMBIA PICTURES

Paul Rudd and Jack Black in Anaconda (2025)

 

            Jack Black (Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny, Tropic Thunder, Jumanji franchise) and Paul Rudd (Anchorman 1 and 2, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Friendship) join forces to reboot Anaconda in…well, Anaconda, a meta reboot of the 1997 cult action horror film of the same name. The original Anaconda which starred Jennifer Lopez, Ice Cube, and Jon Voight is a fun guilty pleasure monster movie with ridiculous effects, silly dialogue, and the cast taking the entire thing seriously ultimately making it sillier in the process, Voight’s hilariously bad accent was the biggest standout that even outshines the titular snake. 

            Apparently, a lot of people found enjoyment in it because the film was successful enough to spawn a franchise consisting of the 2004 theatrical sequel, Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid and three direct-to-DVD sequels from 2009-2015 including a crossover film with Lake Placid. Which brings us to this meta reboot starring Black and Rudd with Tom Gormican (The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent) behind the camera. 

            I was initially against the idea of a remake or reboot of Anaconda because let’s be real, the 1997 Anaconda isn’t that good a film to begin with and as much as I love Jack Black and Paul Rudd, I was worried it was going to be too comedic. But then, I was won over by the trailer which made it clear the film was about Black and Rudd’s characters trying to reboot the 1997 Anaconda only to find themselves actually living the Anaconda movie once a giant snake starts attacking them and their film crew. 

            The best way I can describe it is like a mix of Be Kind Rewind, Tropic Thunder, and the recent Jumanji movies and while I can’t say this film is nearly as clever as Tropic Thunder or Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, I had fun with this version of Anaconda. I don’t think it’s a great film or anything, it’s just a dumb, silly creature feature with a lot more (intentional) comedy this time around and a creative enough premise to harness the franchise’s formula. 

            The film follows childhood best friends Doug (Black) and Griff (Rudd) who dreamed about remaking their all-time favorite film, Anaconda (1997) since they were in their 20s. When a midlife crisis pushes them to finally go for it, they head deep into the Amazon to start filming only to discover an actual giant anaconda has gotten loose and is wreaking havoc in the jungle turning their comedically chaotic movie production into a deadly fight for survival. 

            The film also stars Steve Zahn (Out of Sight, Stuart Little 1 and 2, Mad Dogs) as Kenny Trent, Thandiwe Newton (Mission: Impossible 2, 2012, Solo: A Star Wars Story) as Claire Simons, Daniela Melchior (The Suicide Squad(2021), Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 3, Fast X) as Ana Almeida, and Selton Mello (Four Days in September, The Clown, I’m Still Here) as snake handler Carlos Santiago Braga. 

            Overall, Anaconda (2025) knows exactly what it is and gives what it promises, a goofy, meta reboot of a 1997 guilty pleasure creature feature with Jack Black and Paul Rudd’s charisma and comedic talents leading the charge. The film reminded me a lot of the new Naked Gun movie that came out earlier this year where it’s a 90-minute comedy released in theaters that’s focused more on the jokes over telling a cohesive story and both are reboots/legacy sequels of nostalgic franchises from decades ago. 

            The film doesn’t lie about what it is and if you’ve seen the trailer, you can probably determine whether or not you’re going to like it. It’s an incredibly stupid movie with jokes of all shapes and sizes (Some clever, some ridiculous, some idiotic, etc.) and Jack Black and Paul Rudd running from a giant snake, it embraces the silliness and wants to give audiences a good time. 

            Like I said, this is a film that’s main focus is to make people laugh and I’m happy to report that I laughed quite a bit during it. You’re talking to someone who watched a lot of shows and movies with incredibly stupid humor when he was younger and I love me a dumb comedy when it’s done well and made me laugh consistently, this film did that for me. 

            It really helps that I’m a humongous fan of both Jack Black and Paul Rudd (especially the former) and the two of them work incredibly well together. Rudd does his oblivious but endearing leading man shtick while Black brings his signature loud, goofy humor to the film, watching them together was a blast. 

            Steve Zahn is a standout as Black and Rudd’s dim-witted childhood friend and this being his long overdue return to comedy, he really brings the laughs here whether the gag is smart, stupid, or a bit of both. Even during the absolute dumbest of scenes involving him, his timing somehow made it work and got a laugh. 

            The movie actually does work pretty well as a horror movie with jump scares, suspenseful sequences, and a CGI snake that looks significantly better than the one rendered in 1997. Yes, this is a Jack Black and Paul Rudd comedy, but it’s also still a movie about a giant f*cking snake eating people! 

            I’m not sure what the general public is going to think of this film and I’m aware the critical reactions are mixed which I guess doesn’t surprise me too much, but this update of Anaconda worked pretty well for me and gave me plenty of laughs. I doubt I’ll rewatch it nearly as much as other Jack Black-focused comedies like Tropic Thunder, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, or even Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny, but for a horror-comedy about Jables from Tenacious D and Ant-Man battling a giant snake monster, it does the job and I’m glad I saw it in theaters with an audience.