The Anacondas (2025) Review: A Cheap Creature Feature With Fangs

This The Anacondas review starts with a warning: this is a low-budget creature feature from The Asylum, and it plays like one. Director Marcel Walz delivers a quick, 90-minute action adventure about a monster snake in the Mexican jungle. If you like your B-movies silly and fast, there is some fun to be had.

The Anacondas Review: The Story So Far (No Spoilers)

The Anacondas plot is simple. A team of explorers and archaeologists finds the ruins of an ancient civilization in Mexico, one that worshipped snakes. They celebrate the find, but the mood sours when they awaken a huge anaconda that has not been fed human sacrifices for centuries.

From there the movie becomes a survival story. The group has to work together against a hungry, ever-growing predator. The tagline, "You're hisstory!", tells you how seriously the film takes itself.

The script comes from Ryan Ebert and Marc Gottlieb. It borrows the familiar giant-snake formula and adds a little cult mythology to give the monster a reason to exist. One reviewer found that backstory an intriguing extra layer.

What Works in The Anacondas

The pace is the biggest strength. At around 90 minutes, the film does not hang about, and the ruins setting gives the action a clear, contained playground.

• Short and snappy: There is little time to get bored.

• Cult mythology: The snake-worship angle adds a bit of flavor to a well-worn premise.

• Visual effects: Weekend Notes called the effects one of the film's most positive surprises, and went as far as calling it one of The Asylum's better films. You can read that take in the Weekend Notes review of The Anacondas.

The film also knows what it is. It leans into B-movie tone rather than pretending to be prestige horror, which makes the silliest moments easier to forgive.

The Anacondas Cast and Performances

The cast is led by Hannah Hueston as Amy Briars, with Jordan Iverach as Irving Jones and Philipp Karner as Steve Bell. Dominic Keating plays Dr. Agustin Stiglitz, while Maureen Kedes and Bix Krieger appear as Bella Jacobs and Jess Mansfield.

This is not an acting showcase, and the characters are mostly there to run, scream and get chased. The performers commit to the material, which is about all a film like this can ask. Expect broad types rather than deep characters.

Fans of low-budget monster movies will find the ensemble good enough to carry the mayhem. Just do not expect anyone to be remembered when the credits roll.

Where The Anacondas Stumbles

The response to this film is split, and the criticism is easy to understand. The Letterboxd average sits at 2.36 out of 5, and IMDb users give it 4.5 out of 10. The TMDB audience score is lower still, at 3.6 out of 10, though from a small number of votes.

The main complaints concern the creature and the tone. One critic mocked the trailer as a generic, cringey spin on the giant snake thriller, and another suggested the snake looked artificial. When a monster movie leans on computer effects, rough moments stand out.

The story is also very familiar. If you have seen any giant-snake film, you can guess the beats, and the film rarely tries to surprise you. It is an action and adventure romp, not a game-changer.

Is The Anacondas Worth Watching?

The Anacondas is worth watching only if you enjoy cheap, knowing creature features. It is short, silly and occasionally entertaining, but it will not win over viewers who want polish or scares.

Think of it as a movie-night snack. Watch it with friends, lower your expectations and enjoy the groan-worthy puns. It is a better pick than its low scores suggest for fans of the genre, but a poor one for everyone else.

Do not confuse it with Sony's 2025 comedy Anaconda, which is a different film. If you want more in this vein, browse our adventure movie reviews or try something with more bite, like Agent Zero.

Who Will Enjoy The Anacondas

• Fans of The Asylum and other so-bad-it's-good creature features.

• Viewers who want a short, simple monster movie for a casual night in.

• Friends looking for something to laugh at together.