Quartile rating: 6/10 · 1 rating
A baby alligator is flushed down a toilet and survives by eating discarded lab animals that have been injected with growth hormones. The now gigantic animal escapes the city sewers and goes on a rampage, pursued by a cop and a big-game hunter.
Alligator is a solid creature feature that punches above its B-movie weight class with a genuinely clever premise — the discarded lab animals and growth hormones angle gives the monster an satirical edge about corporate negligence. The plot is competent and delivers its pulpy goods efficiently, with a few memorable set pieces. Acting is functional at best; Robert Forster brings charisma but the supporting cast is largely unremarkable. Cinematography is serviceable genre work — dark sewers and workmanlike creature shots, nothing striking. Novelty is modest: the film cleverly subverts the Jaws formula with urban satire and a wry self-aware tone, making it more distinctive than a typical Jaws cash-in, but it still operates firmly within the creature-on-the-loose genre. The ending is satisfying genre fare without being particularly memorable or surprising.