Alligator (1980)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Jeff "

  
  I love nature gone wild horror flicks. There's a certain appeal to killer animal films that just makes that genre of horror so memorable. Director Lewis Teague has made one of the classic gator flicks, years before films like Rogue and Lake Placid took to the screens. Alligator… More
  I love nature gone wild horror flicks. There's a certain appeal to killer animal films that just makes that genre of horror so memorable. Director Lewis Teague has made one of the classic gator flicks, years before films like Rogue and Lake Placid took to the screens. Alligator is fun monster horror flick about a killer alligator that terrorizes a town. This is a very good film that is pretty underrated. If you enjoy good old' fashioned cheesy monster films, then this is the perfect film to watch. As far as killer creature films are concerned, this is the most entertaining since 1976's Grizzly. There's plenty of good gruesome moments in this film to appeal to horror fans. If you love creature features, then check this one out. The cast do a good job and there's plenty of effective suspenseful moments to thrill you. This is a terrific B movie. it's a very enjoying film from start to finish. It's a well written, well directed from Lewis Teague, who also directed Cujo. It's very entertaining, and is a film that should get more exposure. Alligator is underrated and is a must see for fans who enjoy a good killer creature flick. Although nothing original, Alligator is nonetheless a solid entertaining film that delivers a thrilling viewing experience. The film is very tongue in cheek, and I think that's what makes this film so good, add to that an ample body count, and you have a horror film worth watching.

• Tim S

  
  When it comes to these creature features, they're pretty much a dime a dozen. I found Alligator to be quite special for a couple of reasons. First of all, it was made by competent filmmakers who put their own spin on things without losing sight of the main narrative. Second,… More
  When it comes to these creature features, they're pretty much a dime a dozen. I found Alligator to be quite special for a couple of reasons. First of all, it was made by competent filmmakers who put their own spin on things without losing sight of the main narrative. Second, Robert Forster, Perry Lang and Henry Silva are in it. The lovely Robin Riker is also in it, and one must experience Michael Vincente Gazzo's performance which is amazingly bad! Third, not only does it reference The Third Man in a very nice way, it's also been referenced and lifted from for everything from movies to video games. There are supposed to be some extended and deleted scenes from a TV version of the movie out there that I would like to have seen included on the side of the disc I watched, but the movie itself is quite entertaining. It's constantly giving us new information without becoming boring, and I like that a lot. It's also nice to see a leading guy who's not all that great. Not that Robert Forster isn't great, but the way he portrays his character makes him seem like a douche bag. It's great that he isn't the usual heroic type, yet still manages to come through in the end.

• AJ V

  
  This movie reminds me of Humanoids from the Deep, in the way that it takes sci-fi/horror conventions of the 50s, in this case the giant insect/animal sub-genre, and updates it to 80s standards. But this movie has a lot less gore than Humanoids did. Overall it's an okay movie,… More
  This movie reminds me of Humanoids from the Deep, in the way that it takes sci-fi/horror conventions of the 50s, in this case the giant insect/animal sub-genre, and updates it to 80s standards. But this movie has a lot less gore than Humanoids did. Overall it's an okay movie, but it could be a lot scarier.

• Ken S

  
  Robert Foster is AWESOME! The third best Alligator film after Lake Placid and Black Water.

• Keiko A

  
  What a rip-off with a giant crocodile and well, are movies I Kina Hiroshi jaw Despite this I liked the movie. This is actually a land jaw, using the same characters, and plot lines. Ramonwani the toilet is flushed like a baby, that one could wish to Dearimasen also possible for… More
  What a rip-off with a giant crocodile and well, are movies I Kina Hiroshi jaw Despite this I liked the movie. This is actually a land jaw, using the same characters, and plot lines. Ramonwani the toilet is flushed like a baby, that one could wish to Dearimasen also possible for this one as all the ecological, social connotations to provide a shady By eating dead animals have received experimental hormone, to grow into giant monsters' Left, Right, people usually go for a movie about alligator big eat the heart and T - in the outside world , is the inevitable tragic consequences of the decision, but Ramon relatively more interesting than the sewers .... I also told you in the land to the chin, and people got the same letter. However, despite its flaws, the film is only very slightly lame, boring is not good yet. 70 percent for the story: The epic of the jaw as anything ever, it is still Suropuru Special effects 75%: better than any crocodile, I think it looks cool 60% performance: Nothing surprising is that you have some good performance 50% Character: All other 60%: OK I tell you if its worth the watch would be good this way, please refer to that is not the second!

• Phil H

  
  A delightfully cheesey 'monster' flick of sorts with a mixture of typical crappy effects and actually some nice well worked effects with real alligators and models. Its hard not to compare this to 'Jaws' of course, some of the attack sequences and even some musical… More
  A delightfully cheesey 'monster' flick of sorts with a mixture of typical crappy effects and actually some nice well worked effects with real alligators and models. Its hard not to compare this to 'Jaws' of course, some of the attack sequences and even some musical moments are similar hehe. But its a fun horror with nice limb ripping, creepy dark sewers and over the top moments of sillyness like the alligator bursting up through the pavement lol and the whole ending 'rampage' sequence is really dumb haha meh...its old, Forster was young so what do you expect? I was waiting for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to arrive :)

• Brian D

  
  Forget Rogue this is the Jaws of the Croc/Alligotor genre. Much funny and bloodier and it's just a great thill ride even after 28 years it still holds up.Only other movie to come close is Lake Placid, check em both out and you decide you want by sorry !

• Lady D

  
  Obviously dated in the style of effects and of course not scary in this day and age as it seemed to back when I was a kid, but I enjoyed Robert Forster's performance and it was at least watchable.

• Tsubaki S

  
  Holy shit, i remember this one. Fuzzy memories that is, but i recall enjoying it. I can already see a remake coming out any day. Also, Robert Foster should be in more movies.

• Mister C

  
  After the huge success of what "Jaws" did to turned people away from the water and turn beaches red and Universal's coffers green,Hollywood unleashed a wave of films dealing with the concept of man-vs.-beast knockoffs: 1976's Grizzly(or the slogan..just when you… More
  After the huge success of what "Jaws" did to turned people away from the water and turn beaches red and Universal's coffers green,Hollywood unleashed a wave of films dealing with the concept of man-vs.-beast knockoffs: 1976's Grizzly(or the slogan..just when you thought if was safe to go in the woods),which dealt with a rampaging grizzly bear;1977's The Swarm,which dealt with killer bees terrorizing a small town(which was produced by Irwin Allen of "The Poseidon Adventure" and "Towering Inferno" fame),and 1978's "Piranha" not to mention a slew of these movies that exploded in the mid to late 1970's that also included "Rattlers","Tentacles","Man's Deadliest Friend"(killer dogs-wolves!!!). It wasn't until 1980,when this B-grade classic came out called "Alligator" which was a cult gem written by a young John Sayles and produced by the king of cult B cimema--Roger Corman. Cleverly suspenseful,outrageously funny,and explicitly bloody,"Alligator" stars Robert Forster as a gruff Chicago cop jokingly bitching about his hair plugs,pitching woo to a sexy herpetologist(Robin Riker) while on the hunt for a ravenous killer reptile that is as big as a Cadillac,weighing over 2,000 lbs. stalking the sewers of the Windy City looking for its next victim. And it has to be stopped before its too late. Great Cult Classic from the early 1980's. Can you believe this was drive-in material?

• Dr Blood  

  
  More or less Jaws on land. "Alligator" is nicely paced and well acted and even has some quite exciting scenes here and there.

• Matthew Y

  
  Alligator is a classic among low-budget creature features that provides several actually frightening moment and lots of camp-quality. The story is perfect, a boy buys a pet baby Alligator and brings it back home to New York City where his mother promptly flushes it down the toilet.… More
  Alligator is a classic among low-budget creature features that provides several actually frightening moment and lots of camp-quality. The story is perfect, a boy buys a pet baby Alligator and brings it back home to New York City where his mother promptly flushes it down the toilet. I always knew there were Alligators in the sewers! It lives there for years until to grows too big and begins venturing out into the streets. Best scene is when it's hiding in a pool and some kids having a sleepover party play pirates and make one of the boys walk the plank! This is the best Gator/Croc movie ever made, screw Lake Placid!

• RJ M

  
  I love cheesy monster movies. Love 'em. When they're done right, they can be a real blast to watch. (Piranha 3D is a prime example). This low budget Jaws rip off makes a play on the old urban legend of alligators in the sewers. A girl's pet alligator is flushed down the… More
  I love cheesy monster movies. Love 'em. When they're done right, they can be a real blast to watch. (Piranha 3D is a prime example). This low budget Jaws rip off makes a play on the old urban legend of alligators in the sewers. A girl's pet alligator is flushed down the toilet, grows to immense size in the sewers, and proceeds to dine on hapless city dwellers. There's your plot. But what you get is a smart script, tight direction, and a movie that never forgets that it's supposed to have it's tongue firmly planted in it it's cheek. Robert Forster plays a discraced cop who encounters the beast in the sewers, but his warnings, of course, fall on deaf ears. Aided by zoologist, played by Robin Riker, they attempt to track the alligator before it kills again. Veteran movie psycho Henry Silva shows up as a big game hunter who may have finally met his match. Director Lewis Teague keeps things moving nicely, and gives us more than a few genuine surprises, and a good amount of gore. It's filled with plot holes big enough for the monster alligator to walk through (the movie is set in Chicago, but check out the California license plates on the cars), but this is the type of movie never meant to be high art. It's a movie about a giant, sewer dwelling alligator. If you can't have fun with that concept, then this is definately not the movie for you.

• Leo L

  
  Now, this is definitely a movie I remember from way back and one that I was always intrigued by. Kinda cool!

Read all 14 featured audience ratings