Plot: What’s it about?
As he watches a high level prize fight, Broddick (Adam Kendrick) has no idea that another project of his has gone haywire. He is a wealthy man with eccentric tastes, especially in the field of big game hunting. He loves to stalk dangerous creatures, then choose his moment and take down his prey. His passion is so intense, he sometimes imports wild animals, the most lethal ones he can find, just to stage his own hunts. The latest acquisition is a massive python, one much larger and stronger than even the biggest ones seen by most folks. This reptile could crush its prey with ease, then digest it slowly over time. But Broddick plans to hunt down the snake and eliminate it, or at least die trying to do so. The hunt does happen, but only after the python escapes from its handlers and kills a number of people. At the same time, a huge boa constrictor has been created in a high end lab, with the plan to use technology to track the creature. If the boa is let loose with a special tracking device, the authorities can watch its movements. And the hope is that the two massive reptiles will seek each other out, in a showdown of sorts. As the boa is released, Broddick and his men continue the hunt for the python, unaware of the boa’s presence. When the two snakes cross paths, which one will survive the bitter battle?
The shelves at movie stores have been flooded with killer snake movies, Boa, King Cobra, Anaconda, Rattlers, Venom, and Python, plus numerous others. Some are better than others, but you know about what to expect. These films have low rent visual effects, over the top performances, and pretty poor production values. But that doesn’t mean they can’t be fun to watch or in the case of Anaconda, be virtual camp classics. In an effort to cash in on the snake craze, Columbia has issued a battle of the titans between reptiles. Boa vs. Python comes from UFO, a studio known for low rent, but sometimes passable genre pictures. All I wanted out of this movie was a little camp, with some decent death scenes tossed in. I didn’t expect that much and as it turns out that was good, as this movie doesn’t have much to offer. The snakes don’t have much screen time, which is a let down, as that is the main attraction here. But the lack of budget prevented the frequent snake visuals, not to mention the lame kill sequences. There is violence and blood, but not much and in truth, this could have been a television production. A highlight is some welcome female flesh, but even this isn’t enough to save Boa vs. Python. The flick is worth a rental to fans of giant snakes, but even genre buffs will be let down here.
Video: How does it look?
Boa vs. Python is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. This might be a direct to video release of a low budget monster movie, but Columbia’s work on the transfer is excellent, so the movie looks awesome. The image is very clean and shows no real flaws, even the print is totally devoid of grain or other debris. The dark scenes have stark contrast and superb detail level, while daytime sequences are bright and just as impressive. I suppose we should have expected a clean presentation, since the movie moved right to home video, but I had some doubts about how good Boa vs. Python would look here. But Columbia has proven those doubts to be wrong, as this movie looks terrific in this release.
Audio: How does it sound?
The main track here is a Dolby Digital 5.1 option, but it isn’t the kind of knockout soundtrack some might expect. The killer reptile factor allows some rustles, roars, and assortment beast sound effects, which are well implemented, but this is mostly a basic, unremarkable soundtrack. A few scenes spark up the speakers, with some decent “in the tunnels” atmosphere, though not enough to warrant any special mentions. The track is solid and covers all the bases, it simply doesn’t move much beyond the expected basics. I found dialogue to be well handled also, as vocals are clear and never muffled in the least. This disc also includes a Thai soundtrack, as well as subtitles in English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Korean, Chinese, Thai, and Japanese, so almost everyone should be covered here.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes the film’s theatrical trailer.
