Review: SNAKE OUTTA COMPTON (2017)
SNAKE OUTTA COMPTON got a fair amount of press last year just on its name and a brief trailer. And with its insane plot synopsis “A rap group on the verge of signing their first record deal is the city’s only hope in a battle with a giant mutating snake monster” who could blame sites for giving it ink? Well it’s out now, does it live up, (or down), to expectations?
Beginning with a nod to SNAKES ON A PLANE, one of the scaly critters falls from the sky and lands on the car of two cops, Denz (Joston Theney AXEMAN, AXEMAN 2: OVERKILL) and Ethan (Jon Kondelik who also produced the film) who are trapped in a running parody of TRAINING DAY. The critter is DOA but local nerd Vurkel (Donte Essien) recovers and hatches its egg.
Vurkel has also created an enlarging ray and decides to test it on the snake before putting it to its intended use, enlarging his trouser snake. Of course, it gets loose and terrorizes the city. Now it’s up to him and his housemates, turntable artist Pinball (Motown Maurice), hypeman Beez Neez (Tarkan Dospil), singer Neon (Aurelia Michael), and Cam (Ricky Flowers Jr.) who fronts the group to get the SNAKE OUTTA COMPTON. And make it to an audition for a record deal.
Five writers, including director Hank Braxtan (DRAGON SOLDIERS, DEAD ANT), worked on this and it seems like they all just threw ideas against the wall and saw what managed to stick. So many things get targeted for mockery in this film it’s hard to know where to begin. Arielle Brachfeld (CONSUMPTION, CHEMICAL PEEL) as R.E.L. their would-be manager who throws up menorah-based gang signs. There’s the obligatory Asian convenience store owner who has his own way of handling would-be robbers. A parody of SPEED. And last but not least a dream sequence involving Tupac and Biggie. All in a film about a giant snake.
With its cheesy humour and equally cheesy effects, SNAKE OUTTA COMPTON is a reasonably fun way to kill some time. It’s rarely laughing out loud funny but you will grin most of the time.