Snakes on the Plane, the meme-heavy B-movie, slithers back onto 4K and Blu-ray in a new limited release via Arrow Video.
The Film
Snakes on a Plane will forever be known more for the meme than the movie. Internet culture developed around the title and star, with the writing of the most famous line from the film and a furor in online circles surrounding the flick. As a 24-year-old at release, I was part of running the joke into the ground. Sadly, the box office was as well, providing an example that “internet buzz” doesn’t always equal “box office success”. Studios still haven’t completely learned that lesson, no matter how many times people tweet It’s Morbin Time.
I’ll be honest: the first time I saw Snakes on a Plane, I was mightily let down. Perhaps it was the months of meme build-up and director David R. Ellis’ background in large stunts and directing the over-the-top Final Destination 2 (still my favorite of the series)that set my bar too high. In addition, my love of B-movies fueled an expectation. I have come around more over the intervening 20 years (really? Damn, time flies… like snakes on planes), but I still think it doesn’t completely land the plane. I really wish I liked it more. I want to. I get why it works for others, but maybe I just watch too many of the movies it’s referring back to in order to appreciate it. It’s a weird balance; they had fun making it, and it shows. There is surely a push of enjoyment in making something so blatantly on the page, but it’s also a little forced and cynical. Thus, Snakes on a Plane is a fun movie for what it is, but also feels a little too manufactured to fully work.
Samuel L. Jackson, the hard-working film icon, is perfectly game – the man gives 100% everytime, leads the film with gusto, and that goes a long way. For the excuse for the mutherfuckin’ snakes on the mutherfuckin’ plane, Jackson is tired of: Jackson is an FBI agent escorting a witness. Instead of standard methods of taking him out, it’s decided to release hundreds of snakes… on a plane. Thus, a fight for the lives of the crew (including Lin Shaye! whoo) and passengers. (one of whom has my name! Weird to hear “paging Robert Foster” in the middle of the movie. My friends reacted loudly first watch.)
Although it started as a spec script outside of the studios, it was written and rewritten, going through various folks before release. Snakes on a Plane falls into the gulf formed by studio-backed B-movies. Suits see a product out of directed cheesiness, coming from appeasing an expectation instead of the heart (in this example, New Line went back and filmed scenes to get an R). Where something may glide on title and concept alone. On a pure creature feature way, it is fun to see snakes bite people for a while, the fun back and forth of stock characters. The central big attack scene, when all hell breaks loose, is very well done. There’s a knowing wink to the whole affair, even if it’s treated ironically but many involved. It gets big, loud, funny, and is a ton of fun, even if it didn’t work as well for me. When pushing away the hype and history, the core is a little slice of running with a concept, a contained set of characters ina single location. Most of the snakes are either rubber or CG, with a mixture of real snakes. It doens’t help that the VFX snakes didn’t look that good in 2006, and look worse now.
There’s a frustration of being Almost There. But take all this with a grain of salt. Like I’ve said, I live in B-movies; I routinely watch the bottom of it all: a favorite release of Snakes on a Plane 4K releaser Arrow is “Weird Wisconsin,” a collection of Bill Rebane films. I ate that up. I can watch films like The Giant Spider Invasion easily and freely without irony (that one was also covered by Mystery Science Theater 3000, my favorite show, but it’s perfectly enjoyable unriffed). I can’t get over the push of the forced camp. So maybe I’m a little more skewed than the average viewer. That’s fine. My preference is to watch the sort of film this builds from: the crazy idea from some low-budget dude in the Midwest. It’s weird to me to speak this way about New Line, which focused on weird, tiny films at its creation; it built on distributing odd films before hitting with their in-house Nightmare on Elm Street series.
So when it comes down to it, Snakes on a Plane is a film that I wish I liked more than I did, but it will work just great for others. It has many fun moments, lots of action, and a nice level of camp. But there’s just something a little cynical and forced keeping me from pushing up. A mixed bag, sure, but a fun one.
The Package
Arrow offers Snakes on a Plane in both 4k UHD and Blu-ray (separate releases). The disc is housed in a standard case. The reversible sleeve has one side with the medical staff parody art on one side, and a Sam Jackson action shot on the reverse. The slip is the medical. It includes a booklet with essays and a “safety card” of the airline.
The Presentation
New 4k transfer looks pretty good, but standard for a movie ofits time. Nothing wowing but good enough. If anything, the higher clarity to my old DVD is the VFX stands out. The audio is 5.1, and subtitles are English only
The Features
Arrow provides a over-stuffed check bag of special features, both new and archival. Luckily the paid the overweight fee and let us have them all.
New
Commentary #1 – Critics Max Evry and Bryan Reesman
A fantastic and funny overlook over the film and the phenomenon. More of a cultural commentary than the specifics of scene-specificity. Interesting to work in tandem with the other commentary. That one was done at the time, this one 20 years later. Evrey and Reesman have the option to speak more freely about the forced camp. They do enjoy the film, but are honest in the full look of it. It’s a great discussion of everything in and around the film, the culture, mockbusters, and sometimes the film itself as it plays.
Snakes on a Page
A wonderful niche of movie novelizations, both the classic “movie tie-in” variety and the modern writing of new books for older movies. I love these books and used to read a ton of them. Additionally, one might forget that these books would be one of the few ways to revisit a movie before everything was at our fingertips. As a teacher with an English Language Arts degree and certification, I love hearing about the methods of translation of medium. I usually think of it the other way: “How does this book translate?” Nice to have the reverse. (18m)
Booklet
A nice 28-page booklet has cast/crew info and two essays: “Venemous Testimony: Snakes on a Plane and the first Meme-Movie” by Daniel Burnett and “Poisonous or Venemous? The Reality of Snakes on a Plane” by Charlie Bridgen. Burnett’s writing coalesces and further contextualizes the meme and culture in and around the making of the film. Bridgen is very informative in providing the facts and fictions of snakes, specifically how they are used in this film.
Archival
Commentary #2 – Cast and crew
A wild and free-wheeling collection of anecdotes. Jackson is wonderfully filthy. The rest of the voices have some solid insight on the creation of the idea to making it, and speak of the internet’s influenceon the film. Very funny with lots of jokes and gags. It’s clear how much fun they had fun in making the movie.
Pure Venom
Pure EPK but fun. The enthusiasm pushes past the “sell the movie,” and it has some nice behind-the-scenes looks. (18m)
Meet the Reptiles
Meet the real snakes and their handlers. I love snakes, and it’s awesome to see them, how they work with the film and the methods. (13m)
VFX
Now we meet the fake snakes! I loved seeing the digital artistry behind them, but as noted in the review, they don’t look so good on screen. Oh well. (5m)
Snakes on a Blog
Interesting to see the culture at the time, man, that brings me back. Exploring the internet phenomenon of Snakes on a Plane is a wonderful window into that specific era of internet culture. Made me feel 24 again. (9m)
Music Video &Making of the video
Cobra Starship, a supergroup of a handful os mid 20s popstars with a catchy song, and how they made the video (8m)Gag Reel
Four minutes of goofing off. Good laughs.
Deleted and extended scenes, with and without commentary by Ellis
A solid selection of nice scenes, usually just a few more jabs or jokes; one-offs. (12m)
Trailers and TV spots
4 trailers and 4 spots also lean into the internet phenomenon.
Image Gallery
Final Notes
Snakes on a Plane is a knowing B-movie for better or worse; whether you’re in for forced cult or find it too cynical. Twenty years after release, you know where you fall. I’m glad to revisit it, and I like it enough to keep giving a spin every few years. Arrow’s release is packed with two commentaries and plenty of other features; enough to slither its way into your collection, whether for upgrade or for new.