Anaconda - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Anaconda



Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:

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Movie
Alright, never in a million years did I think we’d get a “reboot” of Anaconda, let alone a comedic meta film that just stares at the audience and grins at them the entire time. But hey, here we are nearly 29 years after Louis Llosa’s guilty pleasure film stormed box offices in 1997. Sadly (or maybe not so sadly) I’m one of those people who grew up loving the monster movie for all of the wrong reasons (which everybody else who loves this movie follows suit). It was a horrible movie that never should have been this good, but much like Snakes on a Plane, Anaconda 1997 was one of those movies that was pure guilty pleasure popcorn fun.

Originally planned as a serious reboot/sequel to the original film, director/writer Tom Gormica and his partner pitched the idea of a metal comedy reboot instead of a serious one, and somehow got the studio heads to give him the green light. Kind of in the same vein as Bowfinger or Tropic Thunder, Anaconda 2025 aims to have a good time poking fun at all the tropes that made the original so terribly good, yet somehow manages to miss the mark enough to not be considered on the same tier as the previously two mentioned films that it emulates.

Loosely (and I mean VERY loosely) mirroring the attempts of Tom Gormican and his partner to get this film greenlit, we’re tossed straight into the meta universe that is Anaconda as the audience is introduced to aspiring director (slumming it as a wedding photographer) Doug McAllister (Jack Black) after hearing that his wannabe actor buddy Griff (Paul Rudd) was gifted the rights for the 1997 Anaconda film. Attempting to recreate their childhood glory days of making home movies, the pair pulls in the help of collaborators Kenny Trent (Steve Zahn) and Claire Simmons (Thandiwe Newton) and sets out to do a “spiritual reboot” of the film.

Unsurprisingly, things don’t go as planned. Heading down to South America to film things on a shoestring budget on a boat, things go awry fast. The boat they had chartered ends up out of service, their snake handler with the live python ends up dead after a freak snake/boat accident (at least it wasn’t a freak gasoline fight accident), and guess what? There’s an ACTUAL giant anaconda chasing them for some reason. All the while pretty much BARELY not breaking the fourth wall and just chewing up scenery.

I have no idea how this movie got made, and I have no idea how it turned out to be so watchable. Lets not sugar coat and glaze thing thing , though. This is NOT a good film. In fact it’s a weirdly crummy film that tries to not take itself so seriously that it actually becomes a hindrance. The comedic stuff wears off real quick, and unlike Tropic Thunder, the performances just aren’t as over the top and clever. Jack Black plays the same character that he’s played for the last decade and a half, while Paul Rudd does the same thing with his slightly awkward and goofy loveable guy persona that he pulls off so well. Thandiwe is solid as well, but weirdly Steve Zahn isn’t given much room to let his comedy wings spread out properly. The guy was a super talented physical comedian back in the day, but he feels a bit laid back compared to his usual vibe (also, what happened to him? I don’t think I’ve seen anything of his since like 2010.). It’s got more than a few yucks, and the last act is a blast with some actual action and a few choice cameos from the first film to make it a little spicy.




Rated PG-13 for violence/action, strong language, some drug use and suggestive references.




Video:

Sony almost NEVER disappoints with their video encodes, and Anaconda is no different. This is a stellar looking 1080p encode, with a brilliantly saturated image that shines at every opportunity. Shot using all digital cameras, the image is glossy, a bit gauzy at times (usually some minor out of focus blips during scene changes in the backgrounds), and definitely running hot on the color saturation. The greens and browns of the jungle really blast off the screen, and primary shades such as a red shirt, or a black rifle do wonderfully as well. I did notice that skin tones look great a majority of the time, but sometimes when the crew are surrounded by forest green I noticed that Thandiwe Newton’s face would look a bit sickly and green. Nothing to write home about, but something that definitely stood out. Black levels are exemplary, with only a few moments where I felt the green push would make the blacks a tad milky. Otherwise this is a near perfect encode.








Audio:

As usual, Sony relegates the Blu-ray to 5.1 DTS-HD MA while keeping the Atmos track to the 4K. I haven’t seen the 4K UHD disc to compare against the Atmos mixing, but the 5.1 mix is just “good” and not “great”, like most Sony mixes. It’s not that I have anything against good 5.1 lossless, but the track feels a bit neutered and mild mannered compared to what I was expecting. Dialogue is crisp and cleanly located up front, surrounds get a good work, and bass has a few punchy moments. But for some reason, the track feels just a little lacking on all of those fronts. Surrounds may be good, but they don’t really encompass the listener as much as I remembered from my theatrical visit, nor did the bass hit as deep or as loud. Still a good mix, I might add, just not as spectacular as I had hoped.










Extras:

• Hiss-terical Outtakes & Bloopers
• Deleted & Extended Scenes
• A Ride Into Chaos with Jack & Paul
• Friends in the Wild: The Cast
• The Snake Charmer: Tom Gormican
• Reinventing the Legend: Anaconda

Final Score: ​

Well, the best way to describe my feelings on the 2025 rendition of Anaconda is “Well, that was surprisingly watchable”. It’s not going to revitalize the original IP, nor is it a great movie, but Anaconda is a weird meta comedy that somehow works better than MOST Jack Black films have the last few years. The final act saves it from being a dumb comedy and actually has a little fun with the concept of rebooting a horrible 29 year old film and winking directly at the camera with a few well placed cameos. The Blu-ray looks great, sounds good, and has a moderate amount of extras on board, so fans of the film should be pleased. Worth it is a fun watch.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Jack Black, Paul Rudd, Steve Zahn, Thandiew Newton, Daniela Melchior, Selton Mello
Directed by: Tom Gormican
Written by: Tom Gormican, Kevin Etten, Hans Bauer
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 AVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 5.1, French (Canada), Spanish DD 5.1, English DVS
Subtitles: English SDH, English, French, Spanish
Studio: Sony Pictures
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 99 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: March 17th, 2026

Recommendation: Decent Watch