Movie Review: Alligator (1980)

I had been hearing great things about Alligator for quite some time, but for whatever reason, it took me a long time to see it. When I covered Grizzly in my podcast, my guest host was very positive on Alligator as a Jaws ripoff, and I can finally see why. It’s fucking awesome.

Alligator is like the perfect B-grade horror movie. It’s wildly entertaining, and has a perfect mix of stuff that’s funny because it’s kind of bad, and genuinely good and creative. It’s a Jaws ripoff, sure, but it’s far from a carbon copy.

It’s also a true professional film, with some very talented people involved (and no, I don’t just mean Bryan Cranston, who worked behind the scenes on alligator guts for the climax). With a screenplay by independent film pioneer John Sayles and starring Robert Forster (Jackie Brown) and Michael V. Gazzo (The Godfather, Part II), it’s well made, well acted, and has some great shocks.

There’s a nice mix of real alligator and some charming miniatures, and fake alligator (played apparently by horror legend Kane Hodder). Again, it’s just so entertaining.

I really have nothing bad to say about this movie. It’s the best Jaws ripoff out there, and there have been plenty of them.

Rating: 8/10