Anaconda (film)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Anaconda
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Luis Llosa
Produced by	Verna Harrah Carole Little Leonard Rabinowitz
Written by	Hans Bauer Jim Cash Jack Epps Jr.
Starring	Jennifer Lopez Ice Cube Jon Voight
Music by	Ice Cube Randy Edelman
Cinematography	Bill Butler
Editing by	Michael R. Miller
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release date(s)	April 11, 1997 (1997-04-11)
Running time	89 minutes
Country	United States Brazil
Language	English
Budget	$45,000,000
Gross revenue	$136,885,767
Followed by	Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid

Anaconda is a 1997 horror film, directed by Luis Llosa, starring Jennifer Lopez, Ice Cube, and Jon Voight. It centers around a film crew for National Geographic who are kidnapped by a hunter who is going after the world's largest giant anaconda, which is discovered in the remote jungle. Though a box office hit, the film was critically panned. It was followed by the sequel Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid.

Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Reception 4 Sequels 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Plot

Shooting a documentary about a long-lost Indian tribe on the Amazon River, director Terri Flores (Jennifer Lopez) and members of her crew, including cameraman Danny Rich (Ice Cube), production manager Denise Xalberg (Kari Wuhrer), soundman Gary Dixon (Owen Wilson), visionary Warren Westridge (Jonathan Hyde) and anthropologist Professor Steven Cale (Eric Stoltz), come across stranded Paraguay snake hunter Paul Sarone (Jon Voight) and help him, believing he knows how to find the tribe they're searching for, but Sarone acts strangely and the crew suspect something. While trying to free the boat's propeller from a rope, Cale is stung in the throat by a wasp which somehow got in his scuba gear (this leaves him unconscious for nearly the rest of the film). With that, Sarone takes command of the boat... and the crew. They are then forced to help him achieve his true objective; hunting down and capturing a record-breaking Green Anaconda he had been tracking. During the process, several members of the crew are killed before the snake itself is shot dead and Sarone incapacitated by the newly awakened Cale. Later on, Terri and Danny, two of the surviving members of the crew, are captured when Sarone catches up to them. He dumps a bucket of monkey blood on them and then uses them as bait in an attempt to capture a second, larger Anaconda. The anaconda wraps around Terri and Danny and begins to squeeze the life out of Terri. The snake still squeezing Terri and Danny are caught in a net by Sarone, but escape when the snake breaks free. Terri and Danny cut their bonds and break free as Sarone himself is killed by his quarry. The snake becomes trapped in the smoke stack, which Danny ignites and it seems to have died. As Terri and Danny recuperate on a nearby dock, the snake appears one final time. Danny beats the anaconda with an axe until it is finally slain. Afterwards, the survivors of the expedition reunite on the ship, and as they float down the river, accidentally locate the natives they were originally searching for. They realize Sarone was right and begin filming their documentary as the movie ends.

[edit] Cast

• Jennifer Lopez as Terri Flores
• Jon Voight as Paul Sarone
• Ice Cube as Danny Rich
• Eric Stoltz as Dr. Steven Cale
• Jonathan Hyde as Warren Westridge
• Owen Wilson as Gary Dixon
• Kari Wührer as Denise Kalberg
• Vincent Castellanos as Mateo
• Danny Trejo as Poacher

[edit] Reception

The film received negative reviews from critics. The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that the film received 24% positive reviews, based on 29 reviews.^[1] Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 37 out of 100, based on 20 reviews.^[2] Although not being well received, the film had an average box office performance.

One of the few positive reviews was by Roger Ebert, who gave it three and a half out of four stars, calling it "a slick, scary, funny Creature Feature, beautifully photographed and splendidly acted in high adventure style."^[3]

[edit] Sequels

The film was followed by three sequels, Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid in 2004, two made-for-television movies, Anaconda 3: Offspring and Anacondas: Trail of Blood, both produced in 2008. Even though no characters from the first film appear in the sequels, they are referenced by a character in Hunt for the Blood Orchid. However, it is quickly dismissed as an urban legend.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Anaconda at the Internet Movie Database
• Anaconda at Allmovie
• Anaconda at Rotten Tomatoes
• Anaconda at Metacritic
• Anaconda at Box Office Mojo