Directed by: David R. Ellis
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Julianna Margulies, Kenan Thompson
Running Time: 1h 45min
So bad, it's good, seems to be the moniker for this film straight from the start. Terrifically bad, and knowingly so, this film plays the ludicrousness for laughs, winking the entire time. Using the Leslie Neilson approach, good actors playing it straight for comic effect, this film takes its amusing premise and runs with it.
Right from the start, the film puts us in an 80s action setting; island locale, dirt biking intro, guy stumbles upon villain with evil henchmen in tow. The music tells us it's serious, but the lines of dialogue tell us otherwise. Then the "money" shots of snake carnage occur and the audience is howling along for the ride.
Imagine an "Airplane/Airport" type of film paired with "Anaconda" and "Python"! Thrill as Samuel L. Jackson delivers lines like, "I want these motherf***ing snakes off this motherf***ing plane!" with as much conviction as hitman Jules from "Pulp Fiction"! Delight in the technological wonder of the Snake Cam! You will be entertained!
When you really think about it, combining the three common phobias of flying, snakes, and enclosed spaces, should make for a terrifying film. The genius is in how they take this preposterous scenario and play it for laughs, action, and melodrama. Director David R. Ellis, who took similar goofy material to guilty pleasure territory with "Cellular", guides this perfectly, when it could have easily gone off course. Jackson's conviction and commitment to this film (and the rest of the cast for that matter) make it an enjoyable bit of foolery. I only wish they had given the lead villain a real kick-ass martial arts scene to end the film. I can't wait for the sequel, "Snakes on a Boat"!
Grade: B
1 comment:
You have sssssaid it sssssso well, a-god. Though, i'm frightened by the phrase, "lover of snake movies" for the sheer fact that snake movies have become a genre unto themselves.
Next thing you know, there will be Christmas snake movies, Romantic comedy snake movies, and the worst possible genre blending of them all, Family snake movies. Now that would truly bite!
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