Snakes on a Plane is a cult high concept, horror-thriller feature film starring Samuel L. Jackson. It was released by New Line Cinema on August 18, 2006 in North America. The film, directed by David R. Ellis (Final Destination 2, Cellular), was written by David Dalessandro, John Heffernan, and Sheldon Turner.
The movie gained a considerable amount of attention before its release, forming large fan bases online and becoming an Internet phenomenon, due to the film’s title and premise. In response to the Internet fan base, New Line Cinema incorporated feedback from online users into its production, and added five days of reshooting. Before and after the film was released, it was parodied and alluded to on television shows and films, fan-made videos, video games, a noise album dubbed Soundtrack for the Motion Picture Snakes on a Plane, and various forms of literature. Despite the immense Internet buzz, the film’s gross revenue did not live up to expectations.
Plot
After witnessing the murder of a prosecutor by gangster Eddie Kim (Byron Lawson) and his thugs, Sean Jones (Nathan Phillips) is escorted by FBI agents Neville Flynn (Samuel L. Jackson) and John Sanders (Mark Houghton) to testify in a case in Los Angeles. Despite increased security for the flight, Kim arranges for a time-release crate full of venomous snakes to be placed in the cargo hold of South Pacific Air Flight 121, a Boeing 747-400 on which Jones will be flying from Honolulu to LAX in Los Angeles. Leis given to passengers before they leave were secretly sprayed with pheromones to make the snakes more aggressive in an attempt to bring down the plane before it reaches its destination.
The crate opens midway through the flight, and the snakes make their way throughout the cabin. A couple having sex and smoking in a bathroom are the first killed, followed by a man urinating in another bathroom due to a poisonous bite to the penis. The plane’s captain, Sam McKeon (Tom Butler), investigates an electrical short, and after fixing the problem, is killed by the viper that caused the short. Co-pilot Rick (David Koechner) believes Sam had suffered a heart attack and continues to head to LAX.
Eventually, some snakes attack Rick, and while fending them off, Rick accidentally releases the oxygen masks throughout the plane, and snakes drop into the cabin with them. Numerous passengers, including Agent Sanders, are killed in the attack. The surviving passengers, who had made their way to the front of the plane where there were no snakes, put up a blockade of luggage.
Agent Flynn contacts FBI Special Agent Hank Harris (Bobby Cannavale) on the ground who contacts ophiologist Dr. Steven Price (Todd Louiso). Price asks Flynn to gather the dead snakes so he can determine the antivenin needed. Mercedes sends photos of the dead snakes using her smartphone. Price notices that the snakes are originally from all over the world and believes a Los Angeles snake dealer could have been the person that compiled the snakes.
Rick is attacked by the viper that had killed Sam and the plane starts to dip downwards, causing a food trolley to crash through the luggage blockade. Many passengers decide to flee to the first class cabin, where there are no snakes, while several others are killed in the chaos. As all the surviving passengers reach first class, the snakes continue to pursue them and the passengers block the cabin’s entrance with an inflatable liferaft. Agent Flynn and Claire manage to regain control of the plane after a struggle with the yokes. Flynn then goes into the cargo hold of the plane in order to restore the air conditioning/ventilation system, without which the plane would overheat and plummet into the ocean. He discovers a mechanical panel that had been intentionally left open to allow the snakes to reach the cabin while successfully fixing the ventilation system.
In Los Angeles, Harris and Price go to the snake dealer’s snake farm. After a shootout, the dealer reveals that he was the person who illegally obtained the snakes for Kim’s use. He is then taken into custody, with his stock of antivenin being commandeered for the surviving snakebite victims aboard the plane.
Flynn is contacted by Harris, who lets Flynn know that he has the antivenin and it will be ready for passengers when they reach the airport. However, Flynn discovers that the cockpit is filled with snakes and that Rick is dead. After a brief discussion, Troy (Kenan Thompson) agrees to land the plane based on prior experience. Flynn then delivers the movie’s fan-anticipated catchphrase: “Enough is enough! I have had it with these motherfucking snakes on this motherfucking plane!” After everybody gets prepared, Flynn shoots out two windows with a pistol, causing the plane to depressurize. The snakes are thus removed from the cockpit and the lower floor of the plane.
Flynn and Troy take the controls of the plane and Troy reveals that his only flight experience was from a PlayStation 2 video game flight simulator. After a nearly-unsuccessful emergency landing, Flight 121 safely lands. The surviving passengers leave the plane, and antivenin is given to those who need it. However, just as Flynn and Sean are about to get off the plane, a snake jumps out and bites Sean in the chest. Flynn draws his gun and shoots the snake, and paramedics rush to Sean, who is unharmed. Flynn rips open Sean’s shirt to reveal a bulletproof vest. The closing shots feature Sean surfing with Flynn.
Critical reaction
In mid-July 2006, New Line Cinema revealed that it would not be showing any advance screenings for critics. After the film opened, Snakes on a Plane received a 70% favorable rating among the consensus of critics tracked by Rotten Tomatoes.
Reviewers reported audiences cheering, applauding and engaging in “call and response”, noting that audience participation was an important part of the film’s appeal.
