Two creature features that I vividly remember from my teenager years are Deep Blue Sea and Lake Placid. I loved them because they had crazy animals running amok and killing humans that usually deserved to die because they acted really stupidly. But those kinda films also frightened me a wee bit. But that is part of what makes them so darn good right? Crawl took me back to my teenage years with all the gnashing of crazed animal teeth, adrenaline pumping action, edge of your seat creature feature action.

 

When a massive hurricane hits her Florida town, young Haley ignores the evacuation orders to search for her missing father, Dave. After finding him gravely injured in their family home, the two of them become trapped by the rapidly encroaching floodwaters. With the storm strengthening, Haley and Dave discover an even greater threat than the rising water level - a relentless attack from a pack of gigantic alligators.

 

Lets be honest. Theres a few plot holes scattered here and there and Hayley and her Dad Dave don't always make the best decisions. But as so often in creature features the crazy animals are absolutely gigantic or genetically mutated. But these alligators are completely normal and are behaving according to their nature. This is a far from absurd premise. 

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The pace of the film will leave you breathless too. At a run time of just under an hour and a half theres no flab to this film. Its helter skelter, adrenaline pumping stuff. 

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But Crawl will have you gasping, pulling away, hiding behind your hands, yelling 'WHY DID YOU DO THAT DAVE!' at the screen all while you're sat on the edge of your seat biting your nails. Its really scary stuff with some obvious jump scares but some not at all obvious carnage that the 'gators inflict on their victims that you don't see coming. 

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Scodelario and Pepper are not only the films protagonists but, apart from their dog, are the characters we see on screen the most. They deliver superb performances completely convincing us that real life, gnashing, nasty 'gators are after them.

 

Crawl is everything you want from a summer creature feature; heart pounding, edge of your seat perching, adrenaline pumping, nail biting from beginning to end. One of those rare films that demands to be watched in a packed out cinema.