Crawl

Crawl doesn't set out to be an animal horror film that in any way stands out from the ranks within its genre, but that's not to say that it's bland through and through. As far as the technical workmanship goes, the film features realistically rendered scenes with alligators that hardly look artificial at all. Unlike Alexandre Aja's Piranha 3D, there are no hectolitres of blood in this case and the film also focuses on family and the relationship between the daughter and the father. They could have toned down a bit on this relationship line and added more dark, horror scenes, though there were a few good scares. All that being said, this is a thrilling piece that will surely keep the inhabitants of the alligator areas away from waterlogged places for some time, and which I would compare in quality to 2016's The Shallows. (07/14/2019)

Crawl has a nice digital setting and, in the second half, a decent build-up of suspense and unpredictable use of the limited stage. Given the seemingly transparent plot that involves a skillful swimmer and her relationship with her father that needs to be healed, it turned out to be quite a profoundly written and directed survival-horror movie. It’s a half-star more enjoyable than the similarly themed The Shallows. (08/26/2019)

Nobody wanted Aja to make Jaws with a crocodile, but… This mess, which is neither serious and suspenseful enough to be, well, "serious", nor is it stupid and over-the-top enough to work at least as guilty pleasure (such moments are, unfortunately, very rare), is nothing more than a genre dullard seen hundreds of times without any charge, idea or adrenaline. (07/10/2019)

Quentin Tarantino declared Crawl to be his favorite movie this year and I understand why. The simple story of a swimmer/daughter in a flood zone in Florida looking for her dad whom she can’t get in touch with has more to it than it seems at the beginning. Although this tense horror chase movie with a dramatic foundation comprising the dad/daughter relationship turns into a classic B-movie in the end, the heroes aren’t dumb and are played well (with Kaya Scodelario giving an unbelievable performance), and there are abundant bloody surprises. (11/05/2019)

Alexandre Aja is back on the scene after a long time with survival film featuring an alligator that, together with Rogue, is one of the best things you can find with alligators. It has a fast pace, a decent amount of suspense, believable alligators that command respect every time they're on the scene, and there's a bit of gore, even if most of it is hidden underwater. I genuinely enjoyed myself and with how miserable has been in horror, I'm not ashamed to give it 4 stars. 70% (09/03/2019)