Creatures
Enhanced Giant Anaconda
Alternate Titles
Anaconda 4
Country
USA
Romania
Director
Don E. FauntLeRoy
Writers
David C. Olsen
Story
“With the only surviving baby Anaconda in his possession, Murdoch looks like he will finally get the life-saving sure he desperately needs; however when the snake escapes and reveals that it has unparalleled healing capabilities, it’s up to Dr Amanda Hayes to eradicate the Anaconda once and for all.”
Cast
- Crystal Allen – Dr Amanda Hayes
- John Rhys-Davies – Murdoch
- Linden Ashby – Jackson
- Danny Midwinter – Pinkus
- Calin Stanciu – Nick
- Ana Ularu – Heather
Creature Connections
- 12 Days of Terror – John Rhys-Davies
- Anaconda 3: Offspring – Don E FlauntLeRoy, David C. Olsen, Crystal Allen, John Rhys-Davies
- Dragon Storm – John Rhys-Davies
- Flu Bird Horror – Calin Stanciu
- Grizzly 2 – John Rhys-Davies
- Sabretooth – John Rhys-Davies
Gallery
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- John Rhys-Davies face when he got his Anaconda 3 & 4 pay check
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- Mud, the Syfy channel version of an invisibility cloak
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- Crystal Allen takes no prisoners
Review
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In a series of increasingly unnecessary sequels Anaconda 4 is the most unnecessary film yet, offering absolutely nothing new but managing to be far more entertaining than its predecessors.
With the only surviving baby Anaconda in his possession, Murdoch (Rhys-Davies) looks like he will finally get the life-saving sure he desperately needs; however when the snake escapes and reveals that it has unparalleled healing capabilities, it’s up to Dr Amanda Hayes (Allen) to eradicate the Anaconda once and for all.
Once again the Anaconda has undergone a re-design and this time it’s definitely for the better, the snake’s skin is a much lighter tone and the head has an awesomely cartoonish look to it with huge expressive eye ridges and much larger teeth. The Anaconda looks really cool and there’s plenty of clear shots of the snake and even a few wide-angle shots of the snake swallowing people whole. The new trick with the Anaconda this time is that it has ridiculously powerful healing capabilities that effectively make it unkillable.
Unlike Anaconda 3, this one actually has a progressing plot which follows three intertwining groups: Blondie scientist from the last film wants to destroy the Blood Orchids, Big Baddie hires a group of mercenaries hired to kill Blondie and a team of archaeologists effectively become the new main characters and go through the whole ‘Bwah! Giant Snakes?!’ routine.
The acting is on the whole a lot better with Allen doing better as an action hero, Emil Hostina adds a campy but intimidating edge to his mercenary leader and the main archaeologists (Linden Ashby, Danny Midwinter and Ana Ularu) are all convincing actors who give decent performances. However the only redeeming factor of Anaconda 3, John Rhy-Davies, gets very little screen time this time around which is a massive shame.
To its credit, Anaconda manages to wrap up a lot of the loose ends of the franchise whilst only succumbing to a few leaps in logic or plot holes, most revolving around the Blood Orchid serum that induces immortality.
Silly and campy and as far away from the theatrical, big budget gloss of Anaconda 1, the final instalment of the Anaconda series makes for a fun, enjoyable and slightly forgettable adventure.
Creature Feature Corner 
Don’t forget Syfy is doing a “Lake Placid vs. Anaconda”. The Giant Crocodiles of Black Lake, Maine will come into contact the Giant Anaconda and the Blood Orchids, somehow. Also it turns out Murdoch will have a daughter and a son. I heard Yancy Butler, Robert Englund and Crystal Allen might reprise their roles.
I have the film listed on the Snake catalogue page but since it was announced in Novemeber 2013, there have been no official updates about the project. Plenty of rumours online but I can’t find anything solid. I really want it to happen though. I would love for Robert England to come back but after what happened to his character in The Final Chapter, I would be very surprised. Having said that, they pulled this trick with Reba (Yancy Butler’s character) in LP 3 so it is still possible 🙂
I like how in “Anacondas: Trail of Blood” the snake looked like it was smiling and it was kind of creepy the way it looks at their prey. At the end, we believe the snake is dead after it blows upand then it regenerates like nothing happens. It slithers into the forest and presumably goes in to the “Lake Placid” territory we just have to wait and see.
I loved the snake design especially the creepy smile.
I did find the ending to be a tad inconclusive so I can see what you mean about it then slithering off to The Black Lake
What is your idea on how Lake Placid vs Anaconda would go?
My idea would be that the Blood Orchid infused giant Anaconda from Trail of Blood would continue to travel into various towns and villages wreaking havoc and generally being a huge man-eating problem. It’s established that Reba is pretty much one of the best hunters/ unwilling EPA Agents in the world so they would call her in to sort out the Anaconda problem. She goes in, does her business and retrieves her giant snake trophy. However, Reba being hired was a set-up so that a member of the Bickerman family could go in and steal some of the Anaconda eggs (asexual reproduction being a further mutation). Reba is promoted to a desk position which she hates. The Bickerman family raise their giant anacondas and a new batch of giant crocodiles but they inevitably lose control of their babies and both are unleashed into the wild. Lots of teenagers get killed and it becomes big EPA news. Reba wants to go but is refused so she quits her job, arms up and heads back to the Black Lake to finish things once and for all. However, when the dust settles, she discovers what the Bickerman’s plan all along was as they unleash the deadly Crococonda!
What’s your idea for Lake Placid vs Anaconda?
My idea for LPVA is that Murdoch’s daughter who becomes the new Ruthless CEO of Wexell Hall after her father was brutally killed by the enhanced Giant Anaconda. She is desperately trying to her hands on the Blood Orchid serum and the snake. Dr. Amanda Hayes, on the other hand, is intent on destroying the creature she created. She had put a tracking device on the snake after “Trails of Blood” and it leads to Black Lake, where she discovers that a Gigantic Killer Snake is the least of her problems since she has also to help the local population of Maine fight off Giant Crocodiles. She is aided by feisty ex-hunting guide/now EPA agent Reba, the sheriff and Jim Bickerman (who survived his encounter in “The Final Chapter”.)!
That sounds like a movie that I would like to see 🙂
If I could make one change to mine, I would have Murdoch’s daughter immediately find his body and cart him back to the lab for preservation. Then, they inject him with a super concentrate of the serum which results in him regrowing his head back (like the Anaconda at the end of 4). So John Rhys Davies is back, but now he’s slowly becoming more and more serpentine. Then he also sends in forces to help Reba with the secret agenda to capture a live Anaconda so they can continue their research.
And possibly either Reba or Jim Bickerman could be included Anaconda 6 (if they make it, of course!).