Tales of monstrous, man-eating anacondas
have been told for centuries by Amazon tribes.
Some are said to worship giant snakes.
Anacondas are ferocious, and enormous.
They can grow up to 40 feet long.
They do not merely eat their prey.
They regurgitate it in order to kill and eat again.
Please, help! Somebody, help!
This is an emergency. Somebody, please!
Please ...
ARlAU JUNGLE HOTEL, BRAZlL DEEP lN THE AMAZON
- Miss Flores. - Professor. When did you get in?
A couple of days ago. l've been out asking about our tribe.
- Any luck? - The evidence is they're out there.
And can be found... or so l told the grant people!
My guide thinks they're here. He found one of their markers.
- That's good! - l think we have a chance.
- Get me there, and l'll shoot it. - That's why I hired you.
- l appreciate the work. - l wanted the best director.
I think we'll make a good team.
You're a mess. What happened to you?
Just a small piranha attack. l barely escaped with my life.
- Somebody's up awfully early. - Well, today's a good day.
Not every day my home girl gets to direct a documentary.
- You ready? - l think so.
- Congratulations. - Thanks.
ls this a pleasure cruise?
Come on... you know me. l don't mix business with pleasure.
Okay, what about... if we go up through here?
This way better. lf not, l cannot be responsible.
Well, it's only 55 kilometers more. Better safe than sorry.
- Mateo, you understand me? - Sure.
- l need some shots over there. - As you say, cheffe.
- For your approval. - Thanks.
- So, where's Westridge? He checked in. - Probably getting his beauty sleep.
Careful!
Careful! Bordeaux! Fragile. Expensive wine.
- Good morning. - Morning. How was your flight?
Actually, it was a bloody nightmare. Ongoing, l think.
- One zoom lens ... - You! Stow this in my room, will you.
Excuse me... l'm the production manager.
Then so do you can manage my things into my room!
One pompous ass ...
You know, in some cultures, that's a sign of friendship respect shows for asking you to carry their bags.
Respect this!
Mr Westridge Terri Flores.
Terri, this is a pleasure.
l've seen some of your films. I thought they were... promising.
- lt's hot! Are we on the equator? - Welcome aboard... l guess.
- I think he likes you! - You felt that too?
lt's Jacques Cousteau!
- Joinez-moi avec mon equipe. - Whatever the hell that means.
Its good to see you man.
Cheffe, ready for Rio Negro!
Everybody! Check your gear and pray you remembered bug spray.
Our adventure begins 1,000 miles from the mouth of the Amazon.
From here, we travel unexplored backwaters
in search of the illusive... People of the Mist, the Shirishama tribe.
One of the last great mysteries of the Rain Forest.
ls it just me, or does the jungle make you horny?
- Oh no... l think it's the jungle. - I'm serious, l've got one thing on my mind.
Can l work, please?
Help!
Save me! l'm stranded.
My boat is stranded in the ropes. Help me!
Check this out, there's a dude on a boat over there.
Hey! Pull over to his boat!
We'll bring you on board.
Thank the Lord for you! Thanks the Lord.
Are you hurt?
- Are you okay? - My propeller tore off in the roots.
We can't take you back to Manaus. We headed up river.
At the next village, l know the people. They help me fix my boat.
- l apologize for the trouble. - There's no need.
We're all at the mercy of machines. Yours broke.
Mateo, vamonos.
- Fish, river style! - Not bad!
We should get that on film next time.
- Ever work in a sushi bar, Mr...? - Sarone. Paul Sarone.
- Where are you from, Mr. Sarone? - Paraguay.
- Really? - l studied to be a priest.
But then l needed to see the real world.
So l ended up in the jungle. l seem to fit.
So, what does a failed priest do in the jungle?
Failed? Who says l failed? l didn't fail.
I'm sure you didn't. So what is your calling now?
- Snakes. - Snakes?
l catch them.
For zoos and collectors.
- Whatever they want - Poaching?
Poaching is illegal. May I ask you... What are you hunting?
We're not hunting or trapping anything.
We're making a documentary on the Shirishama lndians.
- The People of the Mist? That's right - You know of them?
- l've seen them. - Really... could you show me where?
You saved my life. l can show you exactly where l saw the Shirishama.
So slurs every river rat after five whiskies in any Manaus bar.
Five whiskies? That's breakfast on the river.
Does salad go well with fish river style?
Salad would be perfect, little baby bird.
Look at that.
Are they fireflies?
Pretty, huh? Family Lampyridae.
They use their night flashes to announce that they're ready to mate.
- Who flashes? Males or females? - Both, actually.
The females with short, dainty, feminine flashes...
- and the males with long, drawn-out, manly flashes.
l like that. No pick-up lines, no misunderstandings.
Just instinct and nature.
l've missed you.
Bloody racket!
Hey! Don't touch my radio!
l could cheerfully hire someone|to kill you.
- 15 dollars should cover it. - l could just kill you for free.
- You and whose army? - Your mama's!
So...are we getting close?
- Just around this bend. - Perfect.
A snake totem pole.
lt's the Shirishama's.
Shirishama worship giant snakes. Anacondas. As gods and protectors.
They have a legend of a journey to a sacred lake.
First you pass a waterfall but that could takes you by warrior snakes.
Once you pass the guardian Then you travel through the land of the Shirishama,
- until you come to a wall so high, it blots out the sky...
Then after five days, you reach the head of a giant anaconda.
- You know the story. - Of course, a beautiful legend...
I believe... however its a legend of the Maku.
- Also the Shirishama. - Not to my knowledge.
Their village was right here. They're down this fork.
- l know. l trap snakes, for living. - And l'm sure you're good at it.
l locate tribes for living. l'm very good at that.
The water level is high, so my calculation means that the area at this side will be flooded.
So our tribe would seek higher ground over here.
- Which way? - This way.
l want a shot of you with the totem. Gary, roll sound.
Camera rolling. Action!
Our first piece of luck: a Shirishama idol.
l know what l know. Leave me at the next village.
With pleasure.
What the hell was that all about?
- We'll go get some wild sound. - Just be careful.
See you guys.
Gary...
lt's unbelievable.
- Gary ... - What?
Oh my God!
Wait.
Do you hear that?
The silence.
- What was that? - l don't know.
Mateo, shine the light over there.
These two are fortunate to be alive.
- What happened? - You should have seen it!
He just blasted this thing coming right at us.
Wild boar. Gores with his tusks. Goes for the eyes.
- Denise, are you okay? - Yeah, thanks.
- Everybody stays on board at night. - That's a smart idea.
Mateo, let's cut him up. Food for a week.
Food?
- My turn? - lt's my turn.
Mateo, do you have control of this vessel?
Lie, if you must.
The rope's caught in the propeller.
l'll cut us loose.
Let me. This river can kill you 1,000 ways.
l can handle it. The only thing l'm afraid of is the candiru acu.
lt's a tiny little catfish. lt swims up into your urethra
- spreads its little spines and refuses to budge.
- You have to cut it out. - That's it! l'm going back to L.A.
Terri, something's wrong!
Cale?
- He's hurt. l'm going. - Hold up!
Hurry up!
ls he breathing? Faster, come on!
Hurry!
What is it?
Careful.
- Get something for his head. - He's not breathing.
There's something in his mouth.
- Oh my God! - Damn! What's that?
A wasp. Deadly. Poisonous.
He's still not breathing. What do we do?
- How did this happen? - Alcohol.
l've got whiskey in my flask.
- Quickly. - What's that for?
- He's breathing! - That's it. He'll be all right.
- He seems okay, we should go now. - The radio don't work.
- l can't fix, okay? - We can start now.
No... fog.
We must get him to hospital soon, or he'll die.
What? Terri, we got lights.
Good. Mateo, we'll just double back.
Fighting the current, lose two days.
Cut back to this tributary, save us fifty miles.
- This the route you suggested that we take yesterday. - Yesterday for a different reason.
Now, it's to get Professor Cale to hospital as fast as possible.
l hope you know what you're doing. l don't know about this dude.
What choice do l have?
What the hell is this? Terri, come here.
- This is the river you know? - No, this is new.
But no cause for panic.
l'm not panicking. l'm just looking at this wall blocking our way.
- Let's see what we can do. - Its that dynamite?
lt's always good to be prepared.
Prepared for what?
- That thing must be there for a reason - Yeah, to keep us out.
I'm talking about upsetting the ecological balance of this river.
l can blow it in ten minutes, so if you feeling sensitive, we can turn around and lose two days.
It's up to you.
Terri?
For God's sake, blow the bloody thing!
Just give me ten minutes, people. Ten minutes.
l need some help. Gary, get the little boat.
- There's something down there. - That's right.
I really mean it.
I really mean it too.
Hurry.
Damn it! Snakes!
- Babies! - How do we get them off the boat?
Come on babies, come on back to your Mama.
They're not all babies.
Calm.
- You little shit! - Sarone, help him, get it off.
Someone get this bloody thing off my hand!
- So young, and so lethal. - Get it off me!
Later, Sweetie!
- You knew there were snakes here! Didn't you Sarone.
- lt was a pleasant surprise.
- What about the fuel?
- There's only one drum left that's enough for about 100 km.
About a day's ride. That will have to do.
Back to your mother.
- How's he doing? - He's breathing normally now.
That's good.
- We'll get him home. - l just don't know what's going on, you know.
Sarone supposed to help us get back to the hospital, right?
But he acts like he owns this river.
And we run into a barrier full of snakes. Where's he taking us?
Mateo... Mateo. Stop the boat.
- Stop it. Why are we stopping now?
There'll be fuel.
- You know that boat? - There's lots of boats like that.
Hello!
l get the impression there's nobody home.
Mateo, come with me.
Hold up.
- l'll get this on film. - You don't need sound, do you?
Go aft.
Sarone!
- Kind of spooky. - You think so?
What the...
- Help me. - What's that?
Treasures.
Here.
Be careful, my camera's in here.
Mateo, that's it let's go!
Hei... l'm coming. l'm coming.
What's all this?
- And what about the fuel? - There wasn't any fuel.
- Where's Mateo? - I don't know, he was right behind us.
Mateo!
- l'm going back. - Sarone, go with him.
- Maybe some other time. - Asshole.
We stuck in the middle of nowhere, and now we've lost our driver!
Mateo!
Come on man, stop playing!
Danny?
- Yeah. - You okay?
- l'm all right. l didn't see him. - How very reassuring!
- This is it. - This is all you found?
- What the hell is this? - Anaconda skin.
- Is snake out there this big? - It's skin maybe four years old.
lt's grown by now. Something like this made a meal of our captain.
- Snakes don't eat people. - Oh... they don't?
Anacondas are perfect killing machines. They have heat sensors.
A warm body like Mateo's in the water, wasn't hard to find.
They strike, wrap around you. Hold you tighter than your true lover.
You get to hear your bones break before your veins explode.
- Mateo's probably just lost. - Oh, wake up!
lmagine capturing it alive. That's worth a lot of money, Gary.
Please people, don't make me out to be a monster. l didn't eat the Captain Mateo.
Come on, everybody... We are not sure that Mateo is dead.
- So, we'll wait here till morning. - Are you insane?
You think he went for a walk? We've got to get out of here.
- Get a grip Westridge!! - I've got a grip.
We're not leaving. lf it was you, you'd want us to stay too.
Listen! lf it was me out there, l'd be dead. Don't you see.
- Just, go into your cabin, and lock the door. - Like a bad boy.
All right. All right.
Where are my shoes?
- We'll aim some lights at the boat. - That's a good idea.
l'm not so sure he didn't eat the captain.
He sure looks satiated.
You think he's still alive?
No. Let's go to bed.
Danger...
Danger is exciting, huh, Gary?
You go on to bed, l'll just talk to him a second.
- Hurry up, l'm scared. - l'll be right there.
- So... lt's out there, isn't it? - Yeah.
- And you know how to catch this things right? - That's right.
But you can't catch anaconda by yourself, you need a partner.
Capture alive... Maybe a million dollars, Gary.
REPTlLE TRANQUlLLlZER
Still no Mateo.
Keep it steady, Westridge!
- What the fuck are you doing? - Anaconda bait.
Oh my God!
- Westridge, let's go. - Stop! Not on my boat.
You speak for everybody? Gary? Does she speak for everybody?
Gary?
With Cale sick, the movie's off. Why not salvage something?
Let's film Sarone capturing the big snake.
- Have you lost your mind? - No, l'm completely lucid.
I think it's you guys who need to open your eyes.
Are we go for taking Cale to hospital, now we're catching a snake?
You know where you're, you're in the middle of the jungle!
All you guys do is question and criticize.
But just remember, you don't know shit about all this. Neither do l.
But l know who does. This guy! Paul has been here.
lf we help him catch the snake, then he'll help us get out of here, alive.
And that is common freaking sense.
Come on, Gary, this isn't you! Honey, what did he do to you?
Stop. Think of the money.
lmagine capturing something like this on film for the first time ever.
Just to be honest, what else we suppose to do?
l know what l'm doing. l'm gonna throw you two in the river by myself!
- l don't think so. - I didn't want this to happen people.
- Let's go, Westridge. - Ok.
Gary.
Occupy yourselves. Play some cards.
Nobody move!
Gary, turn on the lights!
Westridge, stop the boat.
Buenas noches!
- Come down here, Westridge. - You'll get us killed!
That's it, go for the eyes! Blind it!
Fishing for snakes! He's crazy!
- Just let it go. - Westridge, come here! Come down here!
Where is it?
Don't move. l'll tranquillize it.
Denise, get up here! Get up here!
Gary, help me!
- Get up here! - Grab her, man!
lt's in the water.
Gary, give me your hand.
No! it's no good to me dead.
Gary!
Oh God!
May the souls of the faithful departed...
... through the mercy of God rest in peace.
- Westridge! - How dare you!
lt was you who brought that snake. You brought the devil.
There's a devil inside everyone. Horrible.
Westridge.
Take my gear up to the pilot house.
- l'm not your bloody poodle. - What?
- You presume to order me about? - Presume?
How you like l presume to throw you in the river?
- Take it upstairs. - Thank you.
Everyone else, don't move.
Get back.
Terri, let's talk.
You want something?
l just want to talk to you.
I was thinking about the myth.
I don't know, I figure all about this, this film was supposed to be my big break.
And it's turned out to be a big disaster.
So l was just thinking -
- that maybe l could film you capturing the snake.
And then it wouldn't have all been for nothing.
I don't know lt could be dangerous.
l know.
But you'd be there to protect us.
You need protection?
lt's been a long time... since l had a woman.
You think l'm stupid?
l'm not stupid!
- Shall l hit him again? To make sure... - No just throw him in the river!
Haven't we enough of that?
- l'm afraid l'd rather enjoy it. - Come on, just tie him up! Ok.
This was all one big setup, huh?
Mateo, you stranded, the shipwrecked boat...
- Your route to the hospital. - You forgot the wasp.
What you do is not so hard. l can trap a snake, too.
As smart as you are, you can survive without me.
We're gonna be home soon, okay?
l can't believe how good you're doing. Hang in there, baby.
- ls it hard to drive? - No. Like a Cadillac Fleetwood.
I tell you up... l'll give you a driving lesson.
Black knobs: Up to get forward and down here back.
Red knobs: Up to get fast and down to get slow.
Wheel: left and right. You get any trouble, turn off the ignition.
Take it for a spin. Take us back to civilisation.
- Shit, no problem! - Take us back to...
- Crisp sheets and hot showers. - The play-offs and a six-pack!
- Golf, and a gin and tonic. - L.A. traffic and mobile phones.
Don't start!
The waterfall. A beautiful sight, baby bird.
- The legend was right. - What is this place?
Oh dear. lt's absolutely beautiful.
- What the hell was that? - l think we hit the bottom.
Turn the wheel hard over left.
All right, put it in reverse.
Shut it down.
We got to winch ourselves loose.
Wait, wait what are you doing? And get in the water?
We ain't got much choice. We'll wrap a rope around that tree.
You wrap a rope around that tree. pull it tight or we're stuck here forever.
- We've got to make it quick, in and out. - l rather hoped l'd done my bit.
- That's our rope. - Just enough to go round the tree right?
Yeah.
Take this and get it around that trunk, make sure it's secure.
Roger that.
Last time l tried this, l had to pick leeches off my scrotum.
Aren't you going to pray?
Never look in the eyes of those you kill.
They will haunt you forever. l know.
l firmly resolve...
... with help and grace to confess my sins...
... and amend my life. Amen!
Sanctus... sanctus... sanctus...
... baby bird.
Hurry up.
Shit! back on the boat. Now! Come on!
Go!
Get on the boat. Go on, hurry!
Over here, you fat-ass bastard!
Westridge... get up on the rocks.
- Go! - Get up on the rocks.
lt's coming. Go!
- Go get the gun. - What are we gonna do?
Go, get it!
Hurry up!
- Westridge, keep going! - Danny, watch out!
Danny move your arm!
Danny! Danny!
- Danny. - Yeah.
Westridge! Westridge! Shit!
Come on, hurry up!
l'm caught.
Come on Danny, hurry up.
Danny, hold on!
You killed my warrior snake.
Get up.
The dart.
The tranquillizer's working. Get him!
Damn, the dart came out his back.
Come on, almost there.
Baby ..? He's lost consciousness again.
l'll try to get us out. The tree knocked us loose.
Terri, look.
- They might have some fuel. - Let's check it out.
- Need some help? - No, l'm cool.
I don't even want to know what happened here.
l hope they got some fuel.
Damn!
Those drums... Could be fuel.
A snake skin.
- Look there's plenty of fuel in here. - Welcome!
Time to wake up.
- Monkey blood. - l'm gonna kill you, Sarone!
Don't get me upset.
See this?
Human bones. That's how it comes out.
Ashes to ashes ...
Shit, Oww! shit, look!
Come on.
Go!
Gotcha!
Get loose.
Let's get the fuel. Let's out of here!
Don't worry, just go! Run! lt's coming for you.
Danny, where are you?
- lt's a nest. - l'll go up the smokestack.
- No, l've got the legs. - We can trap it there.
Go!
- Can you climb out? - l can use the rope.
Hurry, l think l can blow him up.
- l'm going to light it. - Go ahead, l'm at the top.
Danny!
- Get out, the fuse is lit. - Danny, wait!
Push on the other side hit the hinges.
- Terri jump! - l can't, it's too high.
Just jump!
l got you. Come on.
Did we get him?
We got him.
You all right?
We should get the fuel, so we can get out of here.
Come on.
Bitch.
Let's get out of here.
Miss Flores...
You're a mess.
l found another one. Let me see that.
Shirishama.
- Sarone was right. - Danny!
- Damn... l'll get the camera. - You think so?
- Aright, roll film! - Camera rolling.