Anaconda (2025) [Movie Review] — Ambition, Laughs and a Slithery Identity Crisis

Tom Gormican’s Anaconda (2025) launches with a clever meta-concept: two lifelong pals decide to remake the 1997 cult schlock classic Anaconda, and along the way, they actually stumble into a real, giant snake. It’s a premise that promises sharp satire and self-aware comedy — a clear nod to the filmmakers’ earlier work in meta-humor — but the film struggles to maintain the playful spark that carries its first act. What starts as a nimble deconstruction of B-movie bravado drifts into generic action-horror territory, leaving its best ideas half-baked.

Quick Facts: What to Know About Anaconda (2025)

• Director: Tom Gormican

• Writers: Tom Gormican, Kevin Etten, and Hans Bauer

• Stars: Jack Black, Paul Rudd, Steve Zahn, Thandiwe Newton, Daniela Melchior, Selton Mello, Ice Cube, and more.

• Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ (3/5)

Plot & Pacing: From Scrappy Indie Re-Make to Glossy Creature Feature

Paul Rudd’s Griff and Jack Black’s Doug are well-drawn as dreamers with wildly different lives: one chasing small-screen stardom, the other making elaborate home videos in Buffalo. Their friendship is the emotional engine, and the initial sequences — where they plan a shoestring remake — are the film’s most disciplined. But once the anaconda shows up and the plot pivots to chase sequences, explosions, and an obligatory gold-mining subplot, the movie swaps satire for spectacle. The tonal flip is jarring; the shift from absurdist commentary to earnest blockbuster beats robs the film of narrative coherence and weakens its comedic rhythm.

Direction & Effects: Style Without Consistent Substance

Gormican stages several inventive set pieces and trusts his cast to carry the meta-jokes, but his direction can't fully reconcile the film’s two identities. The special effects are a notable upgrade over the quaint trickery of the 1997 original — the snake looks convincingly menacing when it needs to — yet the spectacle often feels divorced from the characters’ emotional stakes. Stylistically, the movie gleams when it embraces its parody roots; it grows indistinct and generic when it opts for high-octane mainstream action.

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Performances: A Strong Ensemble That’s Undercut by Screenplay Choices

The cast works hard. Rudd and Black share an easy, believable chemistry that sells the friendship at the heart of the movie; their scenes provide the most consistent laughs and the few genuine emotional beats. Steve Zahn offers expectedly goofy support, while Thandiwe Newton is underused — her character is sketched too thinly to register beyond a familiar archetype. Daniela Melchior and Selton Mello do what they can with limited arcs. Cameos and surprise appearances provide neat winks for attentive viewers, but some landed gags feel stale or overplayed in execution.

Humor & Tone: Too Self-Referential for Some, Too Earnest for Others

The film’s smartest moments are when it skewers the film industry and the nostalgia that fuels remakes. That said, a flood of in-jokes and inside baseball may alienate casual viewers who don’t share that frame of reference. Worse, the movie leans into sincerity in its latter half — attempting emotional uplift that the preceding satire didn’t properly build toward — and the result is an unresolved tonal tug-of-war.

What Works / What Doesn’t

Works: Rudd–Black chemistry; some genuinely funny meta-jokes; improved creature effects; moments of audacious satire.

Doesn’t Work: Uneven tone; underwritten supporting roles (particularly Newton’s); reliance on familiar action-horror beats that dilute the film’s initial promise.

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Final Verdict: A Fun Idea That Needs Sharper Teeth

Anaconda (2025) is entertaining in bursts — enough to be worth a weekend watch for fans of meta-comedy and creature features — but it’s also a reminder that a smart premise needs equally sharp follow-through. The movie earns its laughs early and its tension sometimes, but it fritters away narrative focus in favor of spectacle. If you like your horror with a wink and don’t mind a few jagged tonal shifts, you’ll find enjoyment here. For viewers wanting a sustained satire or a taut action film, this reimagining will likely leave you wanting more.