It is the 20th anniversary of the phenomenon that Snakes on a Plane inspired. The film was released in August but that was a fun year getting hyped up for it and I miss director David R. Ellis. You certainly cannot accuse the film of false advertising. There are snakes and they are on the plane.
I was not disappointed. The film explored this outrageous premise with all the different ways snakes could bite you on a plane. My only complaint was that Terry Chen plays a kickboxer and never kicks a snake. How could they miss that opportunity?
4K really brings out the dark compartments the snakes slither through, under the seats and all. It also becomes evocative when Smauiel L. Jackson goes under the plane to fix the electronics.
Surround sound is a strong factor as the plane flies from rear to front every time they cut to an exterior. Sparks from chewed cables spray around and the storm fills the room.
A new feature on the novelization is interesting in its own right as novelizations were a significant art form in the heyday of ‘80s and ’90s tie-ins, but date back to even the ‘30s. Snakes is a good example of both the author embellishing and working with an early draft of the script so that the story ends up significantly different.
New Line covered the film well on the original DVD. That 10 minute feature on the online phenomenon is now a historical record and cautionary tale.
But in a new commentary for Arrow, Max Evry and Bryan Reesman read cast and filmmaker interviews and dug up 2006 press kit and a 2016 10th anniversary piece. So they are telling the story of the making of the film and aftermath. Even though I interviewed Jackson and Ellis in 2016, I ended up listening to the whole thing. I also never noticed the microwave has a snake button, so thank you for pointing that out, Bryan.