New Alcatraz
| New Alcatraz | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover | |
| Directed by | Phillip Roth |
| Produced by |
Jeffery Beach Ken Olandt |
| Written by |
Terri Neish Phillip Roth |
| Starring |
Dean Cain Elizabeth Lackey Mark Sheppard |
| Music by | Richard McHugh |
| Cinematography | Todd Barron |
| Edited by |
Randy Carter David Flores |
Production company |
Cell Block Productions |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 96 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
New Alcatraz (named Boa on VHS and DVD), is a 2001 direct-to-video B-horror film. It was directed by Phillip Roth.
Plot
Paleontologist Robert Trenton (Dean Cain) is called to Northeastern Antarctica near the Indian Ocean to help the FBI build an underground maximum-security military base and prison for the world's most dangerous criminals and terrorists. The prison is dubbed "New Alcatraz" by the staff. While building the prison, the staff accidentally awaken and unleash a prehistoric Boa Constrictor from its 200 million year hibernation. The snake escapes unnoticed until the staff notice a massive hole chewed in the five-foot thick concrete walls. Soon, the staff, and prisoners begin disappearing as they are brutally hunted and eaten by the snake. The FBI agents, Trenton and the rest of the prisoners try to escape, but are hampered as they don't have many weapons. They begin to give up hope as most of the survivors die. However, Trenton manages to kill the snake by kicking it off the helicopter, which it had bitten into, and it is assumed the fall kills the snake.
Cast
- Dean Cain as Dr. Robert Trenton
- Elizabeth Lackey as Dr. Jessica Platt-Trenton
- Mark Sheppard as Yuri Breschkov
- Dean Biasucci as Maj. Larsten
- Craig Wasson as Warden Fred Riley
- Grand L. Bush as Sgt. Quinn
- Richard Tanner as Peter Yuvol
- Amandah Reyne as Patricia O'Boyle
- Greg Collins as Scott Poluso
- Gary Hershberger as Goodman
- Dana Ashbrook as Kelly Mitich
- Robert Madrid as Jose
- Chris Ufland as Jenkins
- Christopher Michael as Capt. Thomas
- Marcus Aurelius as the C-123 Pilot
Critical Reception
Boa was released to compete with Python II, a sequel to one of the most popular made-for-television snake movies of all time, Python. Boa was a critical failure, with reviews citing bad acting, and poor special effects.
Sequel
Boa vs Python was released after the success of the Python franchise, and the failure of Boa. So, they decided to make a crossover with Python and Boa, involving the two types of snakes fighting each other. Boa vs. Python was also a critical failure. It has been noted that this was inspired by Alien vs Predator.
Release
Both the DVD and VHS versions have been out of print as of 2010, but they can be found online and Netflix.
Production
The film was inspired by the reception of Python that became one of the most popular TV movies of all time (along with Crocodile).