I visited and used Fandango for the first time to purchase tickets to the very first showing tonight at 10pm PST of Snakes on a Plane. Even my wife who just got out of surgery was down for watching Samuel L. Jackson kick some asp. $20.50 after convenience fee for both tickets. Snakes on a Plane wasn’t screened for critics in advance and I’m glad they weren’t around to spoil the fun. I’ll try not to do that here either.

The theater was only about 1/3rd full but it was a lively crowd. The movie starts out in Hawaii and I wondered how and where and when the plane and the snakes would slither into action. A man witnesses a brutal murder and will be needing protection. What does the bad guy he witnessed do to get to him? Load up the plane he’ll be travelling on with a bunch of venomous snakes from all over the world.

Viewers concerned about finding all their favorite snakes won’t be disappointed. King Cobras, rattlesnakes and even, yes, a Boa Constrictor is in the film. Plenty of other colorful snakes slither across luggage, chairs, and near feet. This would definitely not be an ideal film to watch on an airplane.

Snakes is not the typical horror snakes film. Sure, it has the fright moments and snake attacks aplenty (you’ll have to watch it to see who gets the fang treatment) but there isn’t a huge amount of gore overall. There isn’t a love story element either. It’s more like hey we’re trapped on this plane over water and the snakes are closing in film. In that regard it scores high marks in execution. The sounds are well placed and I don’t even remember much in the way of music.

The acting? Samuel L. Jackson got cheers for his multiple f-bomb line that you’ve probably read by now. By the time he utters that line, I agreed with the sentiment and the crowd in the theater applauded loudly. Julianna Margulies sure doesn’t look like she did in the early ER years. Yeah, I know it’s been like 10+ years ago, but she looks like she had a bizarre run-in with a plastic surgeon.

Margulies plays a heroic stewardess and she shows the moxie she had as nurse on ER. It’s a familiar role for her. Other bit part characters include the guy who played Fat Albert and on Saturday Night Live, Kenan Thompson. Kenan does a good job with the sparse lines he has. It’s unfortunate his character didn’t have more fleshing out in the first part of the film. Overall the acting was OK, not great, not bad.

There are numerous comedic moments to break up the suspense. Oh, and yes, there are unclothed boobies, which is a necessity for any good rated R flick.

Snakes didn’t creep me out like the 1973 movie with Dirk Benedict called Sssss, but it’s in my top 5 all time snake movie favorite list. I only caught one time where a snake struck a glass cage. I’m sure if/when it comes out on DVD there will be other obvious scenes where the snakes are clearly caged to protect the actors. Overall an enjoyable disruption. Snakes doesn’t live up to the insane amount of hype it received, but it’s not a bad film and was worth the 20 bones plus popcorn. Bring on the sequel.

Grade: B+

Did this post make you go hmm?

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