Alligator [DVD]

Man this takes me back! I remember watching this on the Sci-fi Channel when I was a kid back when it used to air more obscure science fiction and monster movies all the time instead of all this mainstream stuff today. I was a bit confused when I saw this movie having a 2022 release date on Prime Video, since I'm pretty sure that the movie itself came out in the early 80's, but I figured it must have gotten a new re-release. It's a classic creature feature about a baby alligator getting flushed down the sewers where it feeds on dead dogs that were tested with an experimental hormone, causing to grow into a giant ravenous beast...God I miss this kind of stuff. It still holds up very well today with some decent acting and effects. Most of the effects for the alligator are a combination of using a live gator and a large prop one, with almost all close-up shots of the head being done by a pretty well made puppet. Of course they don't pull off sometimes, especially in the scene when the gator attacks a wedding party, but most of the time they do. The movie is very fast paced and you don't feel bored watching it. My only real problem with the movie is that, well, there's a lot of scenes with dead dogs in it, especially in the beginning. I'm an animal lover and usually I get turned off seeing horrible thing happen to them in these kind of movies. If they're the main antagonist in the movie like the alligator in this one then I don't mind, but when I see a cat or dog or any cute animal getting stabbed, shot, or gutted, it just makes me sad and uncomfortable even knowing it isn't real. And that leads to another problem with the movie...I don't know for certain but I think that there is actual violence against animals in this movie. At the gator wrestling attraction in the beginning we see alligators getting clubbed, and at the end when the main character is shooting at the alligator, there's this gun blast that happens next to a live gator. I watched through the end credits to see if there's a "No animals were harmed during the making of this film" notice, but no there wasn't. I'm still not sure and I know this movie is pretty low budget, but if that actually happened then that's pretty scummy. If you're an animal lover, then this might be a hard watch for you. But still this is an entertaining movie and a real blast from the past! If you're interested in shlocky monster movies and early 80's cheese, then this movie is definitely a must watch.

This movie, made in 1980, checks off all the boxes of the monster movies that were made at the time, and perhaps is a bit above average. You have a baby alligator flushed down the toilet, eating animals there were illegally disposed of into the sewers by a drug company doing experiments on making animals bigger. Going right down the line to the ending, every single box was checked off, so it was predictable, but also fun. One even had the drug company head getting the mayor to knock the detective off the case since he was getting too close to what was going on.

Funny, how when you like an actor's style, you can enjoy the movie, no matter what the genre....in this case, we have the standard " Baby Alligator flushed down the toilet grows enormous in the sewers" plot, along with the also usual "higher ups make life difficult for honest detective who is always right when they are wrong".........Oh, and then the standard "Evil Corporate head doing something illegal to make money, but has the political punch to cover it up"....I love it.....Then, of course, there is the giant Alligator, which is done splendidly with a variety of cinematic techniques including live with miniatures, and some Stop motion/CGI magic.Hey, and don't forget that the Herpetology expert just happens to be a bodacious 20 something year old, ripe for the plumbing....LOL.......Fans of the B media will also enjoy a totally over the top performance from such illuminaries as Henry Silva as the big game hunter called in by none other than Jack Carter, the long time comedian of the old Ed Sullivan shows.......Gazzo, of Godfather II fame, and good old Dean Jagger...man! what a stellar cast for such an obvious, but successful B movie!!And one more: the ubiquitous Sidney Lassister as the evil dog kidnapper, who is supplying dogs for experiments by the evil conglomerate......a total package if there ever were one!

Great movie! I didn't like it when that little boy was killed in the swimming pool, but those older kids didn't see the alligator until it was too late. And the street kid with the smart-alec remarks...classic! Watch him in a movie called The Little Dragons. Still the movie is just as I remember and I enjoyed watching the bad guys getting theirs!

A baby alligator is flushed down the toilet, but years of eating a genetics lab's leftovers turns the lovable pet into a giant man-eating beast that breaks free from its subterranean home to tear through downtown Chicago! The urban legend of alligators in the sewers comes to life in this clever creature feature from 1980. Robert Forster stars as David Madison, a streetwise detective who must team up with a lead herpetologist in order to trap the mutant gator before it attacks again. ALLIGATOR uses all of the same devices as JAWS and the other killer animal films of its time, but it does so with its tongue placed firmly in cheek thanks to another sharp script by PIRANHA's John Sayles. It features some astounding special effects and miniature work that are unusual for a film of its size. Ramon is the most convincing giant gator costume in the genre, even beating out more recent additions like ROGUE and LAKE PLACID (as a bit of trivia, Horror fav Kane Hodder played the gator in an uncredited role). Mother nature gets her revenge when Ramon sets his sights on a dinner party that is being held by his ungodly creators. More than anything, the quality of this B-movie is elevated by Lewis Teague's impressive direction, which gives the film a polished appearance. He also takes the opportunity to sneak in several apparent nods to JAWS and other pop-culture references along the way. When it comes to giant gators, ALLIGATOR is king.-Carl ManesI Like Horror Movies

Muy buena película con buena imagen y sonido muy entretenida y al pesar de los años aun se conserva muy bien los efectos especiales

Bel film consigliato per gli amanti del genere, qualità del DVD audio e video è così e così, ma visto l'anno di produzione e la qualità della pellicola non ci si può aspettare di meglio.

purtroppo questo dvd non ho potuto testarlo bene da non mi e arrivato in buone condizione e tanto non so dirvi altro,scusatemi

Jahre vor Schnappis Beutezug: Ein kleines Mädchen bekommt zum Geburtstag einen kleinen Baby-Alligator geschenkt. Der Vater hat aber für solch ein gefährliches Geschenk Null Verständnis und entsorgt das kleine putzige Tierchen im Klo. Wie durch ein Wunder überlebt das Reptil und gelangt so in die Kanalisation.Durch ein böses wissenschaftliches Institut, dass seine Versuchstiere quält, mit Hormonen verseucht und anschliessend die toten Tiere in dieser besagten Kanalisation entsorgt, kann dieses Krokodil nicht nur mehrere Jahre dort gut gedeihen und sogar eine stolze Länge von 11 Metern erreichen.Natürlich steigt der Hunger und bald werden auch die ersten Kanalarbeiter vermisst.Als auch noch der böse Tierhändler zerfleischt gefunden wird, wird dies für die Polizei von Chicago zu einem Serienkiller-Fall.Der dort ermittelnde smarte David Madison (Robert Forster) ist eine Filmfigur wie aus dem Bilderbuch der geliebten Filmklischees: Der gute Mann hat eine umrühmliche Vergangenheit, weil sein Partner bei einem Fall ums Leben kam und David seither unter dem Verdacht steht, seine Kollegen hängen zu lassen.Nur der junge Kelly (Perry Lang) geht mit ihm auf Erkundungstour durch die Kanalisation. Der Hinweis "Harry Lime lebt", den irgendein Graffitikünstler dort hinterlassen hat, sollte eigentlich Warnung genug sein. Denn Kelly, der "gut auf sich selbst aufpassen kann" landet natürlich prompt im Maul des gefrässigen Krokos.David kann entkomen, aber alle halten ihn verrückt. Auch die Alligatorexpertin Marisa (Robin Riker) nicht, die ist allerdings nicht abgeneigt - trotz strenger Mom, bei der sie immer noch lebt - ein Techtelmechtel mit David anzufangen.Derweil wird Davids Boss (Michael V. Gazzo) von dem bösen und einflussreichen Tycoon Slade (Dean Jagger) unter Druck gesetzt, der natürlich nicht wil, dass durch das Krokodil seine Tierversuchsstation in Verruf gerät. Auch der korrupte Bürgermeister (Jack Carter) spielt ein falsches Spiel. Da taucht auch noch der Großwildjäger Brock (Henry Silva) auf, der mit Ghettokids auf Großwildjagd geht. David wird, weil er zuviel weiss, einfach mal suspendiert...Lewis Teague drehte "Alligator" im Jahr 1980, gleich im Anschluß folgten weitere Tierschocker des Regisseurs, die Stephen King Verfilmungen "Cujo" und "Katzenauge"."Allgator" bietet sämtliche Klischees und erfolgserprobten Zutaten, die ein echter Tierschocker-Trashie braucht. Der Ökohorror hat eine recht vergnügliche und auch spannende Note.Das sympathische B-Picture gilt als Prototyp des Krokoschockers und hat einige gute Szenen parat. Dabei wird gelegentlich arg übertrieben, aber der Zuschauer mags natürlich trotzdem...

Alligator one of my favourite films better than Alligator 2 but both watchable.