By Ahead of its opening on Thurday, reviews are now out for the new metacomedy spin on “Anaconda” and the results… aren’t good.
With 57 reviews counted, the title sits at just 46% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 44/100 on Metacritic. That’s actually above the 1997 original at 39% on RT and 37/100 on MC.
Helmed by Tom Gormican, the film serves as a meta-comedy take on the “Anaconda” franchise as two best friends (Paul Rudd, Jack Black) decide to remake the original film themselves and head deep into the Amazon to start filming. But things get real when an actual giant anaconda appears, things get crazy.
Here’s a sampling of reviews:
“Delivers moments of real terror in a smart comedy that deserves to be a bigger success than the original.” – Bob Strauss, San Francisco Chronicle
“The jokes practically write themselves, which is why it’s surprising that there aren’t more of them.” – Peter DeBruge, Variety
“Anaconda is too grown-up to work for the Jumanji set but not grown-up enough to actually explore these disappointments and deferred dreams.” – Alison Wilmore, Vulture
“Gormican fails to capitalise on the surprise, ultimately succumbing to the worst tendencies of reboots rather than viciously or lovingly sending them up.” – Tim Grierson, Screen
“This self-reflexive Hollywood sendup is so slapdash and unsure of itself that it ultimately feels less like a bad in-joke than a case of a snake eating its own tail.” – David Ehrlich, IndieWire
“Anaconda can’t be accused of skimping on excitement when the characters spend half the movie racing through the jungle in cars or on foot or by boat. But the weightless and unimaginative action feels less cinematic than theme park-y.” – Angie Han, THR
“It’s kind of tragic that only way Hollywood will make a comedy these days is by awkwardly shoehorning some IP into it.” – Matt Singer, Screencrush
“This new ‘Anaconda’ is so busy talking about how silly it is to make a new ‘Anaconda’ that it never actually makes a good ‘Anaconda.’” – William Bibbiani, The Wrap
The film opens this Friday and is on track to hit $20 million between Thursday and Sunday – coming in ahead of other newcomer “Song Sung Blue” and the wide expansion of “Marty Supreme”.
The post The New “Anaconda” Reviews Are In appeared first on Dark Horizons.
