“Anacondas: The Hunt For the Blood Orchid” (Screen Gems)
Seven years ago a movie called “Anaconda” slithered on to the screen and won the hearts and minds of a lot of fans. No one expected it to make any money but it did, thanks to a huge snake and the performances of Jon Voight, Ice Cube and Jennifer Lopez. Now the big snake is back and he has brought along some friends. The new adventure is titled “Anacondas: The Hunt For the Blood Orchid.”
The plot concerns a group of people who go to Borneo looking for a rare flower known as the “blood orchid.” This flower supposedly has ingredients that could be transformed into an anti-aging medication. The problem is it only blooms for a short time every seven years and the ‘team” only has about two weeks to find it.
The leader of the team is Jack Byron (Matthew Marsden). Other members of his group are Sam (Kadee Strickland), Ben (Nicholas Gonzalez), Cole (Eugene Byrd), Gail (Salli Richardson-Whitfield) and Gordon (Morris Chestnut). When this group arrives in Borneo they hire a boat captain named Bill Johnson (Johnny Messner) and his assistant Tran (Karl Yune).
As soon as this group gets on the river you know there is going to be trouble. It is the rainy season and the only reason Bill is taking them up river is because of the money they throw at him. In just a day or so they start having problems and the snake shows up. Quicker than you can say Anaconda one of their party has been gulped down the snake’s gizzard.
Now the fun begins. It seems it is mating season for the Anacondas and they are having a love -fest. There are snakes everywhere you turn and the humans are having boat troubles and problems within the group. Before the survivors make it home the snakes will have had a few more tasty meals.
The movie is rated PG-13 for violence and profanity. This rating seems to be the new norm for horror flicks of this type. “Alien vs Predator” also got a PG-13 rating, which allows all the kids to come see it. That pesky R rating has been tightly enforced by some theater chains so it is now the undesired rating.
This movie is just pure fun for audiences who like this type of flick. Just like the original, the movie deals with the diverse personalities of the group and the horror of the snake. It isn’t extremely gory and there is some humor in the film. You can have some fun being scared without being scared to death.
“Anacondas: The Hunt For the Blood Orchid” won’t win any awards but it should win some cash at the box office. It is what it is and makes no apologies. You can have two hours of fun and thrills watching it and then go on with your safe and snake free life.
I scored “Anacondas: The Hunt For the Blood Orchid” a scaly 6 out of 10.
