This film is pretty much what you would expect, which is a shame as the limited plot definitely had potential. While teeming with some great jump scares and moments of white-knuckle inducing intensity, it sadly falls victim to unnecessary and cliched maudlin drama; the story revolves around an estranged daughter and her overbearing father. The film would have fared better had it just focused on the alligators and their human prey without all the sappy trappings. To top it all off we are additionally treated to a completely saccharine ending. What’s worse, is that there were several fleeting moments--the looters, the gator eggs, the family dog-- that easily could been turned into something more substantial, ultimately fleshing out the film a bit. The potential for some nasty twists was there, too. Unfortunately, these moments just ended up being wasted opportunities that went nowhere.
What stands out the most in this endeavor are the CG alligators, which actually look pretty damn real. Mind you, I’ve never been in close proximity to a real gator, but these ones looked scary and mean. Kudos to the FX team for that. And kudos to both Kaya Scoderlario and Barry Pepper for enduring what was probably a grueling shoot consisting of weeks in the water and muck; that’s no small feat.
Sadly, cool gators and amphibious actors do not a great movie make. So, despite a lot of untapped potential, Crawl kind of flounders.
Rating: 2/5
RIYL: 47 Meters Down; Piranha 3-D; The Shallows
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