Alligator 4K/UHD Review (Scream Factory)
Alligator is a 1980 horror film directed by Lewis Teague (Cujo, Cat’s Eye, The Jewel of the Nile, and The Lady in Red). It was written by John Sayles (Piranha, The Howling, The Challenge, and Eight Men Out). It was followed up by a sequel under the title Alligator II: The Mutation in 1991. A family returning from Florida decides their pet baby alligator is too much to handle and flushes him down the toilet. Meanwhile, Slade Laboratories is conducting secret experiments with animals and disposing of them in the sewer. The alligator, fending for itself, begins to feed on the dead animals, and grows. Now, twelve years later, after several mysterious murders, David Madison (played by: Robert Forster from Jackie Brown, Twin Peaks, Breaking Bad, and Vigilante) is on the case to find out who … or what … is killing people!!!!
Alligator has been a hard one to find or see until now thanks to the awesome people at Scream Factory. Lots of people haven’t seen this one until now because it’s kinda was forgotten and stored away for a long time. There’s not enough Alligator or Crocodile features out there and this one is definitely one of the high quality features produced when it comes to that small sub-genre. I like how this one plays out as a thriller at first and it gets much darker as time goes on here. Lots of talent involved when it comes to the behind the scenes work for Alligator. Robert Forster is fantastic as the lead in this one. He generally made everything better with his presence and this one was no different. It has a solid supporting cast that includes Robin Riker, Michael V. Gazzo, Sydney Lassick, Dean Jagger, Jack Carter, and Henry Silva steals the show as the hunter in this. The special fx were pretty damn good for being in the early 80’s. The final act for Alligator is amazing and it always makes it worth revisiting. It’s refreshing to see some of these older horror features get some 4K love and resurrection thanks to this somewhat newer format when it comes to home video. I love this one, I think this deserves a chance if you are into this type of genre flick. It’s better than you would expect and it deliverers. RECOMMENDED!!!!
Let’s talk about the high definition presentation and special features from Scream Factory! This brand new 2160p (1.85:1) transfer with Dolby Vision and HDR10 blows away every past home video release when it comes to this animal horror feature. Get rid of those older DVDs and VHS tapes because this is the best that the original Alligator has ever looked anywhere. This title has been requested for awhile and it’s crazy that it took this long to get a proper release but Scream Factory definitely delivered on that with this 4K collector’s edition. The English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track is a huge improvement compared to all the older releases out there. All of the dialogue is crystal clear, the horror has a nice boost to it, and the music is elevated here. It has English SDH subtitles. “Audio Commentary” with director Lewis Teague and actor Robert Forster is the only extra on the UHD.
The rest of the special features are located on the blu ray disc. “Wild in the Streets” is a 24 minute interview with director Lewis Teague. “Gator Guts, The Great River, and Bob” is a 22 minute interview with actor Bryan Cranston. “Alligator Author” is an almost 18 minute 2007 interview with screenwriter John Sayles. “It Walks Among Us” is a 9 minute 2022 video conference interview with screenwriter John Sayles. “Luck of the Gator” is a 12 minute interview with special makeup effects artist Robert Short. “Everybody in the Pool” is a 7 minute interview with actress Robin Riker. Between the commentary and all these interviews, there’s so much information and behind the scenes stories about this horror production. This 80’s horror flick definitely got the proper treatment for it’s long awaited HD debut in the states. It has a “Teaser Trailer”, a “Theatrical Trailer”, plus it has a few “Still Galleries” and “TV Spots”. It has 8 additional minutes from the “TV Cut Scenes”. “Trailers from Hell” featuring Karyn Kusama. Last but not least, the “Television Cut” gets it’s own blu ray. This is the highlight when it comes to the bonus features here. This collector’s edition is beyond loaded with all kinds of cool stuff. This is one of the best Scream Factory home video releases in awhile. This should be in everyone’s collection. It also has a slipcover and reversible artwork.It’s available everywhere right now, CHECK IT OUT!!!!
