With only a few days left in 2025, Jack Black and Paul Rudd teamed up to deliver one of the most surprising and funniest movies of 2025 – Anaconda.

Anaconda is a spin-off of the 1997 cult classic…Anaconda: For those too young to remember, the movie is about a film crew being unwillingly taken on adventure to capture the world’s largest and deadliest snake. The film delivered classic lines like, “Is it just me or does the jungle make you really really horny”, and “Last time I was in water like this, I was up all-night picking leeches off my scrotum”. Ice Cube’s first line in the film was something like “Today is a good day” a reference to his 1992 hit song Today Was A Good Day.

In the new film, Ronald (Paul Rudd) is a background actor who is known for his 3-episode arc on the television show S.W.A.T. His best friend Doug (Jack Black) is a wedding videographer in Buffalo. The two friends love Anaconda and decided to travel to the Amazon to remake the 1997 classic. It’s a win-win! Ronald gets to star in a film and Doug gets to write and direct a major motion picture. Claire (Thandiwe Newton) joins to co-star alongside Ronald as the film’s love interest and Kenny (Steve Zahn) is their cameraman.

The group also gets some help from their snake handler Santiago (Selton Mello) and Ana (Daniela Melchior) the captain of the ship they’re using to travel through the Amazon.

This is a silly buddy comedy that’s over-the-top in every way. The film knows exactly what it is and leans into how goofy the premise is. It’s also has very sincere moments of friendship and purpose. The film is very intentional with the kind of story it’s telling and how it’s being told.

Jack Black and Paul Rudd are accomplished comedic actors and deliver good performances. The breakout star of the film is Selton Mello as Santiago. He’s responsible for some of the film’s biggest laughs. One of the funniest scenes involves a close shot they want to get with Ronald and the snake. The scene is so funny and unhinged. Selton sells the scene at the very end to make it work.

Writer/Director Tom Gormican created the short lived show Ghosted starring Adam Scott and Craig Robinson. The show is basically a ridiculous comedy about an X-Files style team that investigates unexplained paranormal events. If that kind of humor is what makes you smile, you’ll enjoy what Anaconda has to offer.

A feel-good silly comedy about a 1997 movie shouldn’t work. It shouldn’t, but Anaconda really works. From the opening frame, the film is begging audiences not to take it seriously. The humor in this film may not be for everyone, but for those who take their thinking caps off and want to enjoy something light and fun; this may be the holiday film for you. It has some great callbacks to the original, some cool cameos, and lots of laughs. Anaconda may be the biggest surprise of 2025 and one of the best comedies.

Grade: B