Review: Anaconda (2025) Is a Nostalgia-Fueled Creature Feature That Knows the Joke

A meta jungle romp where nostalgia, fandom, and a very big snake collide.

HMU REVIEW: ANACONDA (2025)

Rating: 2.5 / 5

There’s something oddly sincere about Anaconda (2025)—not because it reinvents the creature feature, but because it wears its affection for the original film and for moviemaking itself right on its sleeve. This isn’t just a reboot, sequel, or remake. It’s a movie about people who love Anaconda, love movies in general, and are trying—perhaps desperately—to reconnect with the parts of themselves that once made that love feel vital.

At its core, this new take plays like a midlife crisis wrapped in a jungle adventure. A group of once-close friends, now scattered by adulthood, careers, compromises, and disappointments, reunite around the idea of revisiting something that once defined them. That spark turns into chaos, and before long, nostalgia gives way to survival as the situation becomes far more dangerous than anticipated.

The cast is stacked with familiar, comfortable faces, and almost everyone is doing exactly what you expect them to do. That’s not necessarily a knock—it’s part of the appeal. The performances lean into persona rather than transformation, which makes the film feel like a hangout movie that slowly mutates into a monster flick. The chemistry is solid, the banter lands often enough, and the self-awareness is baked directly into the script.

Tonally, Anaconda lives in an interesting space. It’s marketed like a jungle action-comedy, but functionally it’s a creature feature through and through. There may not be excessive gore, but the bones of a monster movie are firmly in place: isolation, escalation, and a very large predator with no interest in mercy. The film clearly understands the tradition it comes from, even if it doesn’t always push that tradition forward.

Where the movie shines most is in its meta-commentary. There’s a clever, almost mischievous streak in how it addresses franchise filmmaking, nostalgia IPs, and how quickly movies are made—and sometimes rushed—within modern Hollywood. In that sense, Anaconda ends up functioning as a mirror, reflecting the industry’s current obsession with reboots and familiarity while poking fun at itself for participating in the cycle.

Where it stumbles is momentum and depth. Once the premise is established, the film doesn’t evolve much beyond what’s already on the table. The jokes, the action beats, and the creature chaos are entertaining, but rarely surprising. It’s fun in the moment, yet not particularly sticky once the credits roll. You don’t leave the theater desperate for another chapter—you leave satisfied, mildly amused, and ready to talk about a few standout moments rather than the whole experience.

Ultimately, Anaconda (2025) works best as a communal watch. It’s the kind of movie that plays just as well—if not better—on a couch with friends than on the big screen. There’s value in its heart, in its nostalgia, and in its playful critique of Hollywood itself. But as a standalone film, it never quite tightens its grip.

A fun ride. A clever reflection. A big snake.

Just don’t expect it to bite harder than that.

HMU REVIEW: ANACONDA (2025)

Rating: 2.5 / 5