While not a shining example of how amazing the 'creature feature' can be, the crossover between two well-known creature franchises, Lake Placid and Anaconda was as absolutely crazy as it sounds, and a wild ride from start to finish.
Creatively titled Lake Placid vs. Anaconda, the film was released on SyFy in 2015 and starred Robert Englund of A Nightmare On Elm Street fame in the role of Jim Bickerman, who appeared previously in Lake Placid: The Final Chapter and survived his injuries. He now sports and eye patch and wields a hook instead of a hand, and assists with trapping the giant crocodile that the Wexel Hall Corporation plans to use to cross-breed with a giant anaconda in order to create a 'crocaconda', a hybrid species that supposedly holds the key to a Blood Orchid serum. The Blood Orchid was introduced in the second Anaconda movie, Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid (2004) and was believed to be able to provide longevity and increased lifespan for humans.
While Anaconda and Lake Placid were arguably the best installments in their respective franchises, the sequels to each were entertaining in a low-budget, B-movie kind of way. Recent news of an Anaconda reboot has been announced from Sony, likely after the relatively recent success of films like Crawl and The Shallows. While this horror-comedy was certainly less than refined, it was exactly what one would expect, and every bit as crazy as it sounds.
Lake Placid Vs. Anaconda Was As Crazy As It Sounds
First and foremost, the film is essentially a PSA for the pitfalls of genetic engineering and cross-breeding of apex predators, which is a little bit Jurassic World meets just about every SyFy original creature feature ever made. However, Lake Placid vs. Anaconda is also sort of an aquatic slasher movie. A bevy of young 20-somethings who are part of a sorority and fraternity, respectively, end up falling in the middle of the giant crocodile and the giant anaconda, who turn on them before turning on each other. The film includes bikini-clad women, sex, violence, day-drinking, and just about everything someone could expect from this kind of film. It's not precisely Sharknado, but it's out there.
At the epicenter of its highlights, however, is Robert Englund. His character continues the legacy of the Bickerman family that was started by Delores Bickerman (Betty White) in the very first Lake Placid film. In the original movie, it was discovered by local Fish & Wildlife agents that sweet, old Mrs. Bickerman has been feeding to and tending these giant crocodiles, and is likely to blame for their interest in consuming humans, as the crocodile followed her husband home and ate him years ago. She feeds them cattle, tends to them, and even nurtured an entire group of babies at the end of the first film; they were seen playfully nibbling on her toes, a sign of things to come.
It's a stretch to jump from monster anacondas in Borneo to human-eating crocodiles in Maine, but a lot of suspension of disbelief is required to enjoy these types of films, anyway. What's impressive about both franchises is their dedication to continue the stories of the original films without too many deviations from already convoluted plot lines. However, while the CGI may be excessive and the acting results in more laughter than screams, Lake Placid vs. Anaconda honors the traditions of creature features, and continues the legacy of both Anaconda and Lake Placid in such a way that proves lovers of creature features never need worry about content going completely extinct. Perhaps the reboot of the former will give killer snake movies a better reputation, as Crawl did.