Snakes on a Plane

By Will Connor

Hype, hype, hype. Good hype. Bad hype. Anything you can think of has been said about Samuel L. Jackson’s choice to star in David Ellis’ recent action/horror flickSnakes on a Plane. Well, I am here to tell you that all the hype is true – both the good and the bad, the combination of which makes this film a high entertainment value, especially when seen here in Honolulu on the big screen.

The gasp of the audience in reaction to the opening shot was well warranted when the auditorium full of locals and probably some tourists saw a shot of Diamond Head in a helicopter fly-by pan. We knew immediately that the film was going to be more interesting! The first thing I thought of was “Wait a minute… there are no snakes on O‘ahu!” followed by “Hey that high rise is right next to my house!” Just like watching reruns of Hawaii 5-0, the local audience gets a chance to laugh at how someone goes from Kaka‘ako to Manoa via the North Shore. I am not sure, but I think I saw a train track somewhere on the island and there were definitely some alterations to the supposed official buildings in town. Regardless, having been filmed partially here in Hawai‘i makesSnakes that much more fun for kama‘aina.

And then there is the “fear factor” generated by the snake scenes. For me, in all honesty, there was none. The snakes are so fake and obviously extensive CGI projects, that it makes all the snake attacks in the film simply fun. The most horrible of horrors generally stems from the passengers beating each other up to get away from the aforementioned computer-spawned reptiles. There are a few jumps and startles. Only a few though. The real entertainment comes from the acting and directing of the purposefully cheesy (but not campy) dialogue written by John Heffernan and Sebastian Gutierrez

The leader of the overacting-with-the-intention-of-rousting-a-chuckle-out-of-the-viewers is of course Samuel L. Jackson. His performance in the film draws from his various other bad-ass character roles in previous movies. You can definitely hear him almost ask for his wallet back from the robbers in the diner a la Pulp Fiction and you can practically see him smirk at Richard Roundtree across the plane as if this were the next Shaft story instead of “Nelville Flynn” in Snakes on a Plane. Truth be told, though, it not only doesn’t matter, that’s why most of us went to the movie in the first place. Jackson’s line delivery does not disappoint either. Several of his lines in the movie got a brief laugh and a few of the soon-to-be classics got a full cheer and even a round of applause. You not only leave the theatre with the quote “Enough is ENOUGH! I have had it with these mother f%&*ing snakes on this mother f#$@ing plane!” stuck in your head, but you can hear the roar of the movie-goers that followed it to boot!

Overall, Snakes on a Plane was a delightful barrel of fun that should be seen on the silver screen. Don’t go and expect masterpieces of any sort, nor should you think you will leave with a sense of sleeplessness or the desire to never set foot on another plane.  Do expect  to get your money’s worth of good old fashioned cinematic schlock with a healthy dose of reptilian ass-kicking!

All images © www.imdb.com