While some horror fans aren’t thrilled with the news of more remakes, news of Anaconda getting the remake treatment has been intriguing, as it poses a unique opportunity to continue the trend of quality creature features that began in recent years with The Shallows and Crawl.
Anaconda, which was first released in 1997 from director Luis Llosa, established itself as a fun, easily-digestible horror movie with a strong cast that included Jon Voight, Jennifer Lopez, Owen Wilson, and Ice Cube. Further, it sparked a trend of creature feature movies, such as Lake Placid, that continued into the early 2000s and sparked a franchise before the sub-genre took a turn toward completely ridiculous with SyFy issuing viral hits like Sharknado and future movies in both franchises. One particular highlight was a crossover film, simply titled Lake Placid vs. Anaconda, which is just about as ridiculous as it sounds. Even so, if the slasher genre can re-invent itself with Halloween, any sub-genre that has taken some wild, twisting roads can do the same.
Fortunately for fans of creature features, Jaume Collet-Serra and Alexandre Aja re-established sharks and alligators as the truly terrifying predators they are with sharp, serious flicks The Shallows (2016) and Crawl (2019), leaving the mark from Sharknado far behind. With news of Anaconda being up for resurrection from Sony and screenwriter Evan Daugherty (Snow White and the Huntsman), there’s a chance that creature feature horror could see a major comeback.
Anaconda’s Remake Can Help Revive Creature Features (For Good)
Rehabilitating a reputation can be difficult, and especially so for horror movies. The Child’s Play franchise suffered from taking a massive lean on dark comedy roots, which paid off for some fans, but not so much for others. The A Nightmare on Elm Street remake in 2010 gave Freddy Krueger a personality transplant that had him more of a serious killer than a deadly jokester. Halloween devolved in the middle with the Cult of Thorn storyline and even a crazy Internet plot in Halloween: Resurrection. The Friday the 13th franchise has been all over the place - including space - and even turned its villain into a zombie. Horror is known for losing momentum as two or three installments becomes eight, ten, and beyond.
Sometimes, it’s better to start over. The first Anaconda movie worked on a number of levels, but mostly because it delivered a good story, didn’t stray too far from realism, and pushed boundaries with sequences like when the snake completely regurgitates Jon Voight’s character after swallowing him whole. The cinematography was well-done and immersive, the script was witty and traditional for ensemble horror movies, and it had the right amount of camp that have been the backbone of creature features in the past before that was pushed entirely too far. Samuel L. Jackson made it work in Snakes on a Plane, but getting back to basics could be a very good thing, and it’s been proven to be possible.
Jaume Collet-Serra’s The Shallows took a battle of woman vs. shark and made it a nail-biting thriller that was inspired by movies like 127 Hours and took what worked from classics like Jaws into consideration, crafting a tale that felt real and personal. Alexandre Aja was inspired by home invasion thrillers for Crawl, which coupled elements of a disaster movie with truly terrifying CGI alligators that didn’t skimp on the brutality. Both movies were mean and intense, showing the gritty aspects of nature that needs to happen with any tale of man vs. beast. The framework is there, so all the Anaconda remake needs to do to be successful is strike.
Next: Why The Shallows Wasn’t More Bloody & Gory
