{"id":32776,"date":"2026-01-16T10:32:19","date_gmt":"2026-01-16T18:32:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=32776"},"modified":"2026-01-16T10:32:19","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T18:32:19","slug":"blasts-from-the-past-4k-ultra-hd-review-snakes-on-a-plane-2006","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=32776","title":{"rendered":"Blasts from the Past! 4K Ultra HD Review: SNAKES ON A PLANE (2006)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This \u201cLimited Edition\u201d 4K Ultra HD release will be\navailable from Arrow Video on January 20th<\/sup>. A \u201cLimited Edition\u201d\nBlu-ray version is also available.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Twenty-plus years ago, social media and the internet didn\u2019t\nhave as big a hold on our daily lives as it does today. Cell phone usage and\nmodern technology was in the midst of being integrated into daily life, but it\ncertainly didn\u2019t have the same hold or influence on us. But in 2005, the film\nworld got a taste of that pull from voices on movie sites during the filming of\nthe New Line Cinema project, Snakes on a Plane<\/em>. News of the production\nwas noted by movie enthusiasts and the title ended up turning into a media\ncircus. So much so that the studio began noting online reactions to updates,\ntailoring and changing elements to appeal to fans on the web.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It seemed like one of the first movies that generated an\nonline media frenzy, garnering a mass of unexpected attention and publicity. It\nwas remarkable for a picture intended as a comical riff on exaggerated\nnature-on-the-rampage films and air-disaster titles. Alas, after all the hype, attention,\nand reshoots designed to please online audiences, the movie underperformed at\nthe box office. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet to this day, this unassuming and diverting film has its followers. Because of its lasting popularity, Arrow Video is now delivering a \u201cLimited Edition\u201d 4K Ultra HD version of it (a \u201cLimited Edition\u201d Blu-ray is also available). First of all, the picture looks sharp and detailed (certainly more so than previous editions). Additionally, this edition carries over plenty of entertaining bonuses from earlier versions, as well as a couple of fun new extras.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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If you missed the movie during its original run, the story\nfollows Sean Jones (Nathan Phillips), a surfer\/dirtbike in Hawaii who witnesses\na mob killing. After agreeing to testify in Los Angeles against crime boss\nEddie Kim (Byron Lawson), he and FBI agents Neville Flynn (Samuel L. Jackson)\nand John Sanders (Mark Houghton) board a transpacific flight to the mainland.\nOther personalities on the voyage include flight attendants Claire Miller\n(Julianna Margulies), Tiffany Engelhard (Sunny Mabrey), Grace (Liz Shaye) and\nKen (Bruce James), co-pilot Rick Archibald (David Koechner), and passengers\nlike dog-loving socialite Mercedes Harbont (Rachel Blanchard), new mom Maria\n(Elsa Pataky) traveling with her infant, germophobic rapper Clarence Dewey\n(Flex Alexander) and his entourage (Kenan Thompson and Keith Dalllas).\nAdditionally, there is pro kickboxer Chen Leong (Terry Chen), aspiring\n\u201cmile-high\u201d club couple (Taylor Kitsch and Samantha McLeod), and several more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Halfway through the flight, chaos occurs as the group\nrealizes that Kim has ordered hundreds of poisonous snakes placed in the cargo\nreleased into the main cabin and cockpit. This is all in the hopes of crashing\nthe aircraft. The terrified crew and passengers must deal with, as Flynn puts\nit, \u201c\u2026These motherf^cking snakes on this motherf*cking plane,\u201d Special agent\nHenry Harris (Bobby Cannavale) and snake expert Dr. Steven Price (Todd Louiso)\nattempt to find a way to identify the reptiles and find antivenom for those who\nhave been stung.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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One issue is that early sections play like an average action\nmovie\/disaster picture being played a little too straight. The fact that, after\nspending time introducing Kim, he doesn\u2019t become part of the story again\n(besides a quick reference to him being presumably locked up) is strange. One\nwishes Kim had flown out for the trial and at least could have been waiting at\nLAX for a final showdown when his target arrives alive. And with a cast so big,\nthere are a ton of subplots, several of which aren\u2019t given enough time to make\nan impression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, enough exaggerated elements do earn chuckles and\nthrills to make the end result amusing, if not a cult classic. Jackson is, as\nexpected, fantastic as the increasingly frustrated agent trying to protect his\nstar witness. Keenan Thompson stands out as the most likable figure among the\nrapper\u2019s pals; he tries to calm the celebrity when the star is pushed over the\nedge by the situation. He is also a gamer with hundreds of hours of \u201csimulated\u201d\nflying experience, which pays off very well when he is forced to help out in\nthe cockpit late in the story. And Margulies makes a relatable leading lady,\nfirst having to deal with annoyed and oddball passengers and staff, and then\npanicked ones. She also has some good interplay with Jackson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Several of the attack scenes are entertaining as well. While\nrepetitive, a couple of attacks in the bathrooms are memorable. A few of the\nmost exaggerated moments with the snakes terrorizing passengers in the main\ncabin are fun, and there are some exciting bits with one deadly snake that\nswallows an entire victim (it later is sucked out of the plane with a large\nlump in its belly during the climax). The action is all well-shot, and while\nnot all the digital effects hold up, is still generally entertaining to watch.\nThere are a lot of familiar faces in the story all having a good time with the\nconcept. Overall, this is an entertaining B-movie and it\u2019s easy to understand\nwhy it has a fanbase (even if it still might not be as big as the studio had\nhoped for).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The 4K image quality on display is excellent. Admittedly, it\nseems the source elements are in 2K, but the Dolby Vision color grading is very\npleasing and does offer a decent upgrade. In fact, it is consistently\nimpressive to behold. Obviously, the clarity on display does mean that the\ndigital effects are perhaps more noticeable than before, but there are some\nexcellent practical effect details and camerawork involving real snakes that\nlook remarkably vibrant with the improved color and high-end resolution. Although\nI don\u2019t have a copy of the previous Blu-ray and the image also looks quite\ngood, I was pleasantly surprised by how strong this release looked overall and\nwould heartily recommend it (especially if you don\u2019t own a Blu-ray of it).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Another plus are the extras. First there are two commentary\ntracks. One is an archival track that includes star Jackson and late director\nDavid R. Ellis, as well as producer Craig Berenson, associate producer Tawny\nEllis, VFX supervisor Eric Henry, and second unit director Freddie Hice. It\u2019s a\nfun track offering a lot of insight into the production, from receiving the\nscript right through the reshoot discussions and scheduling. They do note that\nshooting with real snakes wasn\u2019t as easy as initially planned for, with most\nbeing timid and merely sliding into the seats and hiding. This resulted in more\nmoney being spent on digital effects work. The speakers also mention arguing\nwith the studio, with Jackson stating that he wanted the picture to be R-rated,\nbut that the executives insisted on a PG-13. When publicity about the movie\nincreased, they allowed all to return the following year to shoot extra bits\ninvolving more graphic kills and four-letter words (including Jackson\u2019s famous\nline) that were inserted into the picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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There is a new commentary with critics Max Evry and Bryan\nReesman that gives tons of fascinating background information on the picture,\nits crew and its stars. They note that the screenplay had been in development\nfor some time by a first-time Hollywood writer, who slowly changed and adapted\nelements after rewrites. The script went into turnaround at its first studio,\nbefore finding its way to New Line. Director Ronny Yu (The Bride with White\nHair, Bride of Chucky, Freddy vs. Jason<\/em>) read it and signed on to direct.\nWhen Samuel L. Jackson heard the title alone, he wanted to sign up for it\nimmediately and called Yu (whom he had worked with on The 51st<\/sup>\nState<\/em>). It took a long time for the studio (as well as costars) to sign up\nbecause many didn\u2019t believe the Oscar-nominee was really interested. But\nJackson loved the concept, stating it was something he would have gone to see\nat the movies when he was a kid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alas, Yu\u2019s vision for the movie was different from the\nstudio\u2019s plan. Yu wanted to set up the head FBI agent as the hero, then kill\nhim midway through and focus on the inexperienced passengers having to save\nthemselves and the flight. New Line refused and David Ellis stepped in to take\nover the film. Coincidentally, Jackson and the low-key Ellis had also worked\ntogether with Jackson on several projects (Ellis was second unit director on Sphere,\nDeep Blue Sea<\/em> and Patriot Games<\/em>). The two got on well and so the\nproject moved forward quickly. Apparently, it was an enjoyable shoot, with\neveryone getting on famously and having a good time. The experts also note that\nNew Line briefly changed the title of the film to Pacific Air Fight 121<\/em>,\nbut online film fans voiced outrage. The studio eventually relented and kept\nthe Snakes on a Plane<\/em> moniker. The historians speak about the film\u2019s\nplusses and minuses, noting that while imperfect, it is a pleasing little movie\nwith some entertaining moments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Other extras include a new featurette on novel adaptations\nof movies. Apparently, the novelization of Snake on a Plane<\/em> was popular\nand won awards. This bonus includes a discussion with the book\u2019s writer and\nothers about film-to-book translations. In this case, like in many\ninstances, the writer received an early draft of the script. To extend the\nstory, they created deeper histories for the characters, making the flight\naction feel more exciting and the threat scarier. She states that Jackson’s\ncharacter was completely different in the script she received, resulting in\nsome notable differences between her interpretation and the final product. It\u2019s\na fine discussion that brings attention to this little movie tie-in sideline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A ton of archival interviews are included with cast and\ncrew, which show how good of a time everyone had making this wild picture.\nAdditionally, there is a program about the snake wrangler, explaining how he\ngot into his unusual career as well as his specific work on this project. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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You\u2019ll also find out about the visual effects and how they\nwere created. One of the interesting facts that comes out during the commentary\nfeaturing crew member Eric Henry involves an instrument panel in a wide shot\nthat one of the snakes jumps out of. This was an entirely digital creation\nadded into the space because it otherwise looked like the snake was being\nlaunched out. So, even with the improved picture, not all the digital effects\nin the film are easy to identify. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is also an archival featurette on the movie\u2019s\nprerelease hype, a making-of for the odd music video from band Cobra\nStarship<\/em> that was shot and inserted into the closing credits. The track\ndidn\u2019t break onto the charts, but the group did end up landing hit singles in\nthe following years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The gag reel and deleted and extended scenes are fun to\nwatch as well, as is the promo gallery containing trailers, TV spots and an\nimage gallery for the film. It\u2019s interesting to watch the internet hype really\nplay into the advertising.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This \u201cLimited Edition\u201d also arrives with a reversible sleeve\nfeaturing two original pieces for the film, a safety instruction card from the\nairline, and a booklet with extra writing on the movie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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As mentioned, this picture didn\u2019t end up lighting the box\noffice on fire. It cost, with reshoots, somewhere around $36 million dollars\n(not including the massive marketing campaign that accompanied the release) and\ngrossed $62 million worldwide. But it made another $24 million in disc sales,\nwhich ultimately helped the film earn a modest profit for New Line Cinema. The\neccentric title also became a notable part of the public consciousness for a\nperiod of time in 2006 and really showed the impact that social media could\nhave on our lives. Thankfully, Snakes on a Plane<\/em> was from a more\ninnocent time when online chatter could be enthusiastic and well-intentioned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \u201cLimited Edition\u201d 4K Ultra HD edition of Snakes on a\nPlane<\/em> offers audiences a fun popcorn flick, and contains an excellent\npicture, informative new bonuses and fascinating archival material. If you\nenjoy B-movies, monster flicks, disaster films or anything a little off the\nbeaten cinematic road, it\u2019s well worth a ride.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This \u201cLimited Edition\u201d 4K Ultra HD release will be available from Arrow Video on January 20th. A \u201cLimited Edition\u201d Blu-ray version is also available. Twenty-plus years ago, social media and the internet didn\u2019t have as big a hold on our daily lives as it does today. Cell phone usage and modern technology was in the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":32777,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[19,155,300,697,1836,2933,2936,3236,4660,5313,5905,6875,7660,8948,9319,9874,11587,12429,12626,14606,14718,16163,16561,17600,18577,18579,18580,18581,18582,18583,19331,19622,22977],"class_list":["post-32776","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dvdblu-ray-reviews","tag-julianna-margulies","tag-155","tag-4k-ultra-hd","tag-action","tag-arrow-video","tag-blasts-from-the-past-2","tag-blasts-from-the-past-4k-ultra-hd-review","tag-bobby-cannavale","tag-comedy","tag-david-koechner","tag-disaster-film","tag-elsa-pataky","tag-flex-alexander","tag-hawaii","tag-horror","tag-internet","tag-kenan-thompson","tag-lin-shaye","tag-los-angeles","tag-nathan-phillips","tag-new-line-cinema","tag-plane","tag-rachel-blanchard","tag-samuel-l-jackson-2","tag-snakes","tag-snakes-on-a-plane-4k-ultra-hd","tag-snakes-on-a-plane-4k-ultra-hd-review","tag-snakes-on-a-plane-disc-review","tag-snakes-on-a-plane-review","tag-snakes-on-the-plane","tag-sunny-mabrey","tag-taylor-kitsch","tag-todd-louiso"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32776","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=32776"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32776\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=32776"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=32776"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=32776"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}