El ataque del cocadrilo

Another day, another Asylum movie, this time their rip-off of COCAINE BEAR. This one sees an alligator consuming a shipment of drugs and going on the rampage, but otherwise it's business as usual and no different from any other of these cheesy B-movies made in the last couple of decades. For an Asylum flick, the CGI isn't quite the worst you'll see; it's not impressive but it's not diabolical either. The worst thing about this is the cast, full of no-names giving shady performances. At least in the glory days of The Asylum they used to bring in some former Hollywood greats in cameos to liven things up, but that's fallen by the wayside these days.

SOMEBODY has to stand up for this wonderful studio, and I'm delighted to accept the assignment. Does no one watch a movie to be ENTERTAINED, with a big goofy grin on their face? If being The Ripoff Kings Of The Cinema is a crime, why was Roger Corman (the former King) handed a career Oscar?? This 89m of trashy dee-light may be a naked ripoff of Cocaine Bear, but that film left me needing MORE of a delicious new "drugged beasties" genre that The Asylum was primed and ready to deliver! You folks who are locked & loaded to give any Asylum film an automatic 2-star rating (without even seeing it, I suspect) have no place in my life. Let the trash cinema congregation say AMEN!!

"Wanted Man" with Dolph Lumpen and Kelsey Jammer. At least x3 better. The gator is more believable than the entire cast of the aforementioned stinker. And like another user reviewer stated, it deserves a sequel and I dare say even a prequel should be considers as these low-budget extravaganzas seem to have no problem getting financial backing.

And another telling point is that the plot is quite believable. So much meth in circulation these days, you know it's just a matter of time before some gator enclaves get in on the trend. More meth-loaded gator stories, puhleez.

Starz might consider a series as well. "Bayou Vice".

But with a massive alligator. The dialogue is almost unintelligible from two of the characters, but it's filmed well and if you like Asylum movies you will enjoy it.

As an aside, the Jaws storyline, regarding not putting off the tourists, is pretty moving.

The false ending worked to keep the excitement going, but I stopped understanding what was happening. You may need to watch this one more than once to get all of the subtle elements. I really hope they make a follow up to this one, as there is definitely a lot more that can be done with this storyline.

One note - see if you can spot the actors from Game of Thrones.

Hamlet it is not. Don't look for deep character studies or powerful storylines here. If you like great special effects, such as Terminator 2, Matrix, this is not it. The special effects are of a lumbering alligator that can swim nearly as fast as a speed boat, jump car lengths, and resist bullets to fit the storyline as needed while at other times is hurt by them. There is no consistency to the creature's abilities, strengths or weaknesses. "If it gets more meth, it will become unkillable" The writers did not consult with scientists or toxicologists.

That said, while the actors aren't Hollywood's best, they are engaging and likable. The Mayor (Patrick Labyorteaux) fits his image well, and does a good job as a gentrified Louisianian. LaRonn Marzett as the scientist does as well as can be expected given the thin writing of the thinner script. Ray Acevedo is underused, he is the skilled and experienced trapper/hunter. Unintendedly Barny Fife-like Sheriff Williams ( Bruce Peoples ) likewise has poorly written lines.

The film suffers from anemic directing, third-rate writing, and dismal special effects. Meaning the only thing that can gel it together are the actors who given this mess manage to be an enjoyable bunch albeit all too often becoming gator-food in bad special effects scenes.

So If you want some background mindless entertainment while you're doing something else and not focusing on the film -this can work for you.