Listen very carefully and close your eyes. There is no All youcan hear is the sound as of people waiting and anticipating thesequel to 1997s “Anaconda”.
“I’ve been waiting all summer to see this movie,” said KevinLewis, a freshperson. “The first ‘Anaconda’ starring Jennifer Lopezwas very enjoyable.”
According to AMC Palace Theatres, ‘Anacondas’ hit the box officewith $16.6 million during its first opening weekend on Aug. 27,2004.
Directed by Dwight Little, the movie takes place in the intensejungles of Borneo where a research team of scientists have taken onan assignment that requires them to collect a rare Orchid (BloodOrchid) that blooms for six months every seven years. Thescientists believe the Blood Orchid is the key to everlastingyouth. Entrepreneur Gordon Mitchell (Morris Chestnut) and Dr. JackByron (Matthew Marsden), his partner, are determined not to letthis opportunity pass.
Once the magical qualities of the Orchid are processed intopills, Gordon and Jack will be set for life.
Other characters include Sam Rodgers (KaDee Strickland), Jack’sbrilliant former graduate student; Cole Burris (Eugene Byrd), acomputer genius; Ben Douglas (Nicholas Gonzalez), a daring doctor;and Gail Stern (Salli Richardson-Whitfield), a scientist andrepresentative of the investors.
“They chose the perfect cast for the movie,” said Riga Watkins,a sophomore. “Each one of the characters had a uniqueness aboutthem.”
With dollar signs in their eyes, the team sets off to collectseveral samples of the orchid, as they only have a week to do sobefore they must wait another seven years for the flower to bloomagain. The only problem is that the team has arrived during therainy season and there is only one boat captain, Bill Johnson(Johnny Messner), who will try to take the team down the river for$50,000. He and his only crewman, Tran (Karl Yune), have lowexpectations for the trip, but circumstances turn out to be muchworse than they imagined.
When a wheel on the boat gets jammed due to debris and ends upon the bad side of a waterfall, the team gets stranded, and isforced to hike across the jungle to not only catch othertransportation, but to reach the Orchids in time. Little do theyknow, they have entered an area of the jungle that is filled withgiant and deadly anacondas. The team is suddenly under attack bythe large and lethal creatures that strike without warning andvanish almost as quickly as they appear.
Disagreements soon arise when most of the team votes todiscontinue the quest for the Orchid and return home safely.According to Jack, he believes that giving up to soon would becrazy and despite the risk, the reward the Orchid guarantees iswell worth the danger.
Candice Robinson, a sophomore, said “This movie is so actionpacked, ‘Anacondas’ has enough bite to keep you interested.”
