Alligator/Alligator 2: The Mutation
(Anchor Bay Region 2)
(1980/1991)
review by Billion$Baby

Alligator

There's a long standing urban legend about alligators living in the sewers after being flushed down toilets by their one-time owners. This film took that urban legend and delivered a hugely entertaining comic-book style comedy thriller/horror. I've got to give the film full marks because not only is it one of those unique films that stays fresh and enjoyable no matter how many times I've watched it (and I've seen it many, many times!), but also because it hasn't aged and I really don't know how you could have improved on it. Surely Lewis Teague's best film and one of the very finest tongue-in-cheek genre films available with a relatively large cult following.

The film cost $1.5 million and as well as the alligator effects (small alligators in scaled sets, and a giant model head and body) looking very impressive for the age, the witty script and casting is excellent. Robert Forster (probably best known for The Black Hole and Jackie Brown) is on top form as an extremely likeable police detective trying to battle hair loss, a corrupt pharmaceutical firm with political influence and a 36 foot long alligator. But not necessarily in that order. The supporting cast are also excellent, all of whom pick up the tone and nature of this film perfectly.

It's obviously a lampoon of Jaws (the alligator's attacking music theme and some of the movie's publicity tag-lines further demonstrate this). But even though it's all played for laughs, there are a few jump moments and some great gorey scenes (namely those leg removals) to enjoy. Once you see this film, you realise just how poor Lake Placid really was. Lake Placid ("homage"?) obviously borrowed ideas from this feature but still failed to provide convincing effects or an engaging script and it offered very little in the way of suspense. Mind you, Lake Placid is still a lot better than Alligator II but more on that injust a moment...

Lewis Teague's Alligator is an absolute classic monster movie. Easily one of the very best ever made andgenre fans with healthy senses of humour should love it and hold it very dear to their hearts. Anchor Bay UK are offering an anamorphic print which is sadly rather grainy in too many scenes but the colours are pleasingly vibrant throughout. It's obviously still a massive improvement over my skanky full-screen and very worn-out ex-rental video. DTS (but nothing special), 5.1 and 2.0 audio tracks are provided together with bios, a full-screen trailer, and a very enjoyable commentary track with Robert Forster and Lewis Teague. Rather frustratingly there is an interviewer on that commentary. That interviewer isn't needed at all, Teague and Forster both have more than enough to say without any clumsy prompting but luckily it doesn't affect it too badly.

Alligator II - The Mutation

I feel sick. The only connection between this film and the last one is the producer Brandon Chase who clearly didn't understand just how vital it was to have a good script, cast or director. Or any decent effects. It fails on every level. I didn't even want to watch any more after the first 20 minutes (honestly) but sadly I felt obliged to sit through it all seeing as how I was gonna write a short spiel about it.Just in case anyone out there somehow cares, you only get a full-screen trailer as an extra.

What Brandon Chase managed to do was mutate what was once a good concept into an irritating rotter of a very repetitive sequel which completely lacks any sense of tension or enjoyment whatsoever. The only reason that this "sequel" is being offered with Alligator 1 is that AB UK know that they will never be able to sell this film on it's own merits. Apparently Chase sent a copy of this sequel script to Robert Forster who turned it down. As Forster politely understates it on the Alligator 1 commentary track, the sequel's script "really wasn't very good."

Alligator II has a slightly grainy anamorphic print,DTS (why?!), 5.1 and 2.0 sound. It also has a very boring and unoriginal script, the look and feel of a made for television movie, a horribly cheap and naff blatantly Yamaha keyboard score and quite simply awful performances from every actor involved, including Steve Railsback who plays the corrupt Mr Big. BTW Just how can a sequel film made over a decade later have such unconvincing creature effects?! It's really embarassing to watch this supposed sequel. I'd go
into more details for you but I'd have to look at it again and trust me, that's never ever going to happen...

Be under no illusions, if you're buying this two disc package, you will only enjoy the original feature.It's a shame that Alligator 1 wasn't released on it's own since AB UK's asking price would have been sl
ightly cheaper but please don't let that put you off from buying one of the greatest and funniest monster films ever made...