Living in the South, I’ve seen a gator or two and am fully aware of exactly how dangerous they are. I also love creature features so when I saw the trailer for the gator infested action/disaster flick Crawl, I knew I had to see it. Now I have.
First let me say, I’m a fan of director Alexandre Aja’s work. He’s a fantastic director. Horns, Mirrors, The Hills Have Eyes, High Tension, all are great films. Needless to say, I had high expectations for Crawl before I even pressed play.
The movie begins with college student Haley (Kaya Scodelario) at swim practice when she receives a call from her sister who is concerned about their father (Barry Pepper) not answering his phone as a Catagory 5 hurricane nears landfall in Florida. When Haley arrives at their old house she finds her father injured in the crawl space that’s flooding, but he’s not alone, there’s a big gator looking for a meal. Soon the two are in a fight for their life against multiple beasts all while a hurricane is destroying everything around them.
Saying this movie is action-packed is putting it mildly. It’s a non-stop thrill ride. I spent most of the movie on the edge of my seat, screaming at the screen, repeating “Go!” and “Get the dog!”
Scodelario killed it! Sure, she’s been in action/thrillers before (Maze Runner, Pirates of the Caribbean), but her performance in Crawl really impressed me. I couldn’t imagine how physically challenging her role must have been.
Barry Pepper, who also starred in Maze Runner, was great in his role as an injured, terrified father.
I’m sure you are wondering about the film’s special effects, which are SO important in a movie like this, they can make or break it. When I first saw the gators, I thought to myself “Why in the hell are they using real alligators? That’s so dangerous.” After a few minutes, I realized they were CGI, the best CGI creatures I think I’ve ever seen. The wounds and the destruction are on point. The fx left me very impressed.
There are a lot of times that I get my hopes up about a movie and 90% of the time I get let down. I’m happy to say Crawl is not one of those movies. I loved it! I found it extremely entertaining and I think you will too. Crawl gets a 5/5 from me. Be sure to rent or buy your copy on Blu-ray or DVD on October 15, 2019.
