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Anaconda

Fred Hawson

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1768196169906Anaconda_1.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Jack Black and Paul Rudd join forces in ‘Anaconda.’ Columbia Pictures"/>Jack Black and Paul Rudd join forces in ‘Anaconda.’ Columbia Pictures</div>Doug (Jack Black), Griff (Paul Rudd), Kenny (Steve Zahn), and Claire (Thandiwe Newton) had been close friends since their childhood making amateur films. When they got together at Doug&#x27;s latest birthday, Griff told them that he owned the film rights to the 1997 action-horror film &quot;Anaconda&quot;. As they were all unhappy with their jobs now, they impulsively decided to all go to the Amazon to film a low-budget indie version of their all-time favorite movie.The gang planned out their script and their shoot carefully, even hiring a snake handler named Santiago (Selton Mello) who had a tame pet anaconda which was perfect for their purposes. They were able to rent a great-looking houseboat to travel on the Amazon River. This was steered by a girl named Ana (Daniela Melchior), whose impressive skills in shooting firearms made Doug include her in their film, much to Griff&#x27;s annoyance. This new &quot;Anaconda&quot; film, co-written and directed by Tom Gormican, is a spoof (not a sequel) of Luis Llosa&#x27;s &quot;Anaconda&quot; (1997). This is the third film written and directed by Gormican after &quot;That Awkward Moment&quot; (2014) with Zac Efron, Miles Teller and Michael B. Jordan, and &quot;The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent&quot; (2022) with Nicolas Cage and Pedro Pascal. All his three films explore the theme of male friendships tested under stressful situations. The humor of this movie was of the silly, slapstick style, mostly care of Black and Zahn. Black&#x27;s most hilarious scene for me was that crazy macabre one where a boar was strapped on to Doug&#x27;s back while a squirrel was stuffed into his mouth. Zahn&#x27;s zaniest scene was that one when Doug&#x27;s leg was paralyzed by a bite of a poisonous spider, and Kenny had to pee on the wound as an antidote. Kenny&#x27;s anxieties made this scene way funnier than expected.Black, Rudd, Zahn and Newton all had a relaxed chemistry between them, making their onscreen friendship fun to watch. The CGI giant snakes did not really look very realistic, but nevertheless what they did to Santiago&#x27;s rather cute pet anaconda was not funny at all. Admittedly, the comedy was hit and miss, the horror was not really scary, and the action stuff about gold smugglers was a dud. However, the cameos of 1997 actors were a big hit. <div> </div>This review was originally published in the author&#x27;s blog, “<a href="https://said-fred.blogspot.com/2026/01/review-of-anaconda-2025-serpentine-spoof.html">Fred Said</a>.”

‘Anaconda’ reimagines the 1997 cult favorite as a self-aware spoof about longtime friends chasing one last creative high in the Amazon.

‘Anaconda’ reimagines the 1997 cult favorite as a self-aware spoof about longtime friends chasing one last creative high in the Amazon.

‘Anaconda’ review: Meta spoof bites off more than it can chew

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‘Anaconda’ review: Meta spoof bites off more than it can chew

Fred Hawson

Published Jan 12, 2026 01:39 PM PHT

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movie review

Anaconda

Jack Black

Paul Rudd

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