Le Crocodile de la mort

I always thought that Tobe Hooper got lucky with The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and never did anything great after that, with the exception of Poltergeist though, most people would argue that Spielberg was the true director of that one. This movie isn't up there with those two but it still is a great entry from Hooper. I was genuinely creeped out at times and i really enjoyed it the whole way through.

This is Robert Englund's first horror picture and he does a great job. The other actors were good with a couple exceptions. The story was good, and I really like the idea of it. The direction is also good but some of the editing seems a little iffy. All in all, I think this deserves to go down in horror history.

Check this one out if you're a horror/exploitation fan and you shouldn't be disappointed. It took me by surprise.

Toby Hooper's follow up to his classic Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) was this atmospherically bizarre horror oddity.

Deep in the swamps, a crazed hotel owner is keeping a monster crocodile in his yard and occasionally feeding offensive people to it!

As with Texas Chainsaw Hooper gives this film lots of spooky atmosphere, but he really puts it into over-drive with Eaten Alive. The story is a bit disturbing and far more gruesome than Texas Chainsaw. The characters that parade through this film range from back-woods yokels to warped weirdos! Hooper gives the whole movie a kind of garish and bleak style that adds all the more to its off-beat weirdness.

The cast is good, Neville Brand makes for an especially convincing madman. Horror fans will see lots of familiar faces in the cast - Marilyn Burns (Texas Chainsaw Massacre), William Finley (Sisters), Robert Englund (Elm Street movies), Janus Blythe (The Hills Have Eyes), and young Kyle Richards (Halloween).

While Eaten Alive doesn't reach the nightmarish heights of some of Hoopers other films, it is a good B horror picture. For those looking for a twisted horror film it will more than suffice!

*** out of ****

Yes, this is the first movie made by Tobe Hooper after The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and no it is not half as scary or well-made. Hooper was not a big shot after TCM because it wasn't a Hollywood franchise or a legendary movie yet. So he's hired with TCM writer Kim Henkel to basically make a ripoff of their own movie, since both creators got robbed selling Chainsaw. More bad luck comes to Hooper as the producers want a different style of film, closer to Carrie or Psycho. Hooper leaves the film during filming and a good 1/4th of the film is filmed by his DP (who can't direct a lick). Also factor in the shabby budget.

So "Eaten Alive" could've been something close to TCM but turns out a mess that has very little of Hooper's vision in it. Its still very interesting and creepy. There's a queasy atmosphere thanks to the surreal set, noisy sound design and freaky acting. Whats left of Henkel's script is abstract and very in touch with TCM. The film sinks thanks to some boring office and bar scenes plus lame slasher chase sequences thrown in to make the story more standard. The entire film is edited poorly. But Hooper's scenes are very good even in this choppy presentation. Unfortunately TCM2 had more of Eaten Alive in it than TCM.

Eaten Alive is a truly bizarre film with an almost nightmarish quality to it. I can't say I particularly loved it, because the lack of lighting often makes it hard to see what is happening. Yet at the same time, the lack of lighting also adds to the murky atmosphere. The motel owners performance is slightly over the top and annoyed me a bit, although he does play his part very well. There are some tense and disturbing moments such as when he's chasing the two women, which are excellently done. However the claustrophobic feel of the film got a little boring in parts and made it slightly hard to follow.

Overall, if you like your horror films creepy and bizarre, then this is for you. It has a similar grainy feel to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, so if you loved that then this will be right up your street.

Tobe Hooper's much maligned follow up to 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' isn't half as bad as it's detractors claim. While it certainly isn't as good as TCM, if viewed in the right frame of mind it's probably his second best flick. 'Death Trap' reminds me of Dario Argento's movies. Not in the subject matter, or directorial style, but in the sense that what you're seeing is a filmed nightmare, devoid of logic, but full of memorable over the top images. The sets are cheap and nasty, the acting varies from quite good to plain silly, the "plot" can basically be summed up as: people check into a seedy motel and get fed to a pet crocodile by its nutty owner, but you know what? It's still a hell of an entertaining trashy horror movie.

Neville Brand ('The Ninth Configuration') gives a gonzo, almost vintage Timothy Carey-like performance as psycho scythe wielding Judd, owner of the one place in town you really don't want to check in to. Horror legend Robert Englund appears as sodomy lovin' white trash local Buck. Also on board are scream queen Marilyn Burns ('TCM', 'Helter Skelter'), cult star Roberta Collins ('Death Race 2000'), the original Morticia (Carolyn Jones), the 'Phantom Of The Paradise' (William Finley), and veterans Mel Ferrer ('The Hands Of Orlac') and Stuart Whitman ('Crazy Mama'). All this and one of the most unconvincing looking killer crocodiles ever seen on screen!

Highly recommended.