ANACONDA: CURSED JUNGLE (狂蟒之灾) (NETFLIX) (2024)

SYNOPSIS: Stranded in a rainforest, a group of circus performers must evade a monstrous giant snake and a single-minded poacher with a ruthless motive.

MOVIE REVIEW:

Before you catch Jack Black and Paul Rudd in the upcoming Anaconda reboot this Christmas, why not warm up with a direct-to-streaming Chinese remake of the 1997 cult hit? Aptly titled Anaconda: Cursed Jungle, this version puts its own bloody spin on the creature-feature classic.

The screenplay is credited to a writer who goes by the name foxfoxbee best known for Coffin Mountain Ancient Tomb and The Lord of the Monsters and a frequent collaborator of the Xiang brothers, who directed this remake. Don’t worry if you’ve never heard of their work—we hadn’t either.

That said, the script is mostly a backdrop for the Xiang brothers to unleash their violence and mayhem. The setup is simple: a group of circus performers are lured by their shady new boss to a remote location for their acts. To get there, they board a boat helmed by an old captain (Paul Che). Along the way, they rescue a stranded poacher named Jeff (Terence Yin), whose true motive soon emerges: he plans to capture the world’s most valuable anaconda and strike it rich. Easy, right?

Of course, subtle drama isn’t the filmmakers’ intention—this isn’t Jane Austen. They know audiences came for carnage, so the snake attacks begin almost immediately, even in the prologue. Any fleeting attempts at character development like the sleazy new boss flirting with a performer or some half-hearted banter among the troupe are quickly cut short by another round of anaconda assaults.

Terence Yin clearly inherits the role once played by Jon Voight, gleefully hamming it up as a deranged opportunist. The rest of the cast is a mix of fresh or unfamiliar faces, aside from a few recognizable names: Lok Tat-wah as a fake Taoist priest, Paul Che as the grizzled captain and Taiwanese variety show regular Jiu Kong making a cameo as the ringmaster. Taiwanese actress Nita Lei anchors the film as the plucky female lead and while her performance is only serviceable, it at least provides a steady center amid the chaos.

The biggest surprise, however, is the visual effects. Produced by Chinese VFX houses, the CGI snakes look far better than expected outclassing all of the direct-to-video Anaconda sequels and in some moments even rivaling the 1997 original. The Xiang brothers stage several tense, well-executed set pieces including a boat ambush and a handful of rainforest chases that deliver genuine thrills.

In the end, Anaconda: Cursed Jungle is the very definition of a guilty pleasure—a shameless, gleefully gory remake officially backed by Sony Pictures. We can’t believe we’re saying this but it’s actually fun.

MOVIE RATING:

Review by Linus Tee