Movie Reviews
My friends and I have joked about how awkward it must have been to pitch �Snakes on a Plane� to a movie studio. It would have been interesting to be at the meeting where the concept was drawn out, and to see who funded it.
I say this because �Snakes on a Plane� sounds like the sure-fire idiot-fest of the year. And in a way, I guess it is. But at the same time, I don�t want to deny any sane moviegoer the chance to be entertained. So for those of you who are waiting for me to totally gut �Snakes on a Plane,� hold on to your hats.
There is a plane from Hawaii en route to Los Angeles with a witness to the prosecution on board. He must make it to LA alive, or a notorious Asian criminal named Kim will be out on the streets yet again. In order to ensure the death of the witness, Kim stores a crate of highly venomous snakes in the baggage compartment of the plane. Half way across the Pacific, the crate opens, and hundreds of angry snakes flood the cabin and the cockpit.
This is sounds like something Michael Bay should be directing, but even then, the film would sink. Bay wouldn�t capitalize on the film�s glorified wit or its silly sense of humor.
Yes, �Snakes on a Plane� has a sense of humor, and that is probably the only reason why it works. Most of the movie, the filmmakers are winking at us. It�s not so much that the movie is stupid. It�s more like director David R. Ellis knows it�s stupid, and uses that stupidity to make the film uproariously funny. In fact, this is probably the second funniest movie all year (the funniest obviously being �Clerks 2�).
And while the comedy is a wonderful appetizer, the action and thrills are almost first rate. There are some genuinely scary sequences here via awesome horror-style effects work. This is the kind of stuff you see in a Romero movie.
Then, of course, there is Samuel L. Jackson. Jackson, according to legend, said �yes� to the movie after only hearing the title. There�s probably no one else in the world that could�ve possibly pulled off the performance. Jackson plays a federal agent, and through the course of the movie he legitimizes scenes where his character must tell people what to do (he takes over first class), must be funny (much of his dialog is tongue-in-cheek), must be sympathetic (an almost poetic moment of regret), and must be Samuel L. Jackson in general (�I�ve had it with these motherf****** snakes on this motherf****** plane!�) He does it all. And he makes the movie.
There are a lot of great moments with Keenen Thompson and an androgynous steward, who pack the laughs right on top of the scares. Some moments are even simultaneously scary and funny.
I�m not saying that �Snakes on a Plane� is a good movie. Far from it. It probably represents everything that is wrong with major Hollywood studios. (New Line Cinema, who funded the picture, gives filmmakers like Peter Jackson a lot of grief for not following �procedure�.) It shows us what happens when screenwriters get bored. It marks a new low for creative premise.
All that aside, though, �Snakes on a Plane� is hardcore. Oh, and entertaining. ***