I saw Crawl...

"Crawl" (not to be confused with the 2011 thriller of the same name) is the latest in a long line of alligator/crocodile-attacks ("Jaws" inspired) flicks, which includes "Alligator"; "Alligator II: the Mutation"; "The Great Alligator"; "Alligator Alley"; "Supergator"; "Eaten Alive"; "Crocodile"; "Croc"; "Dinocroc"; "Primeval"; "Black Water"; "Rogue"; "Xtinction: Predator X"; and the ever touching "Lake Placid". "Crawl" tugs at 'em all, which makes it redundant, but it matters little, since the movie entertains.

The set-up revolves around crackerjack swimmer, Haley Keller (Kaya "Pirates of the Caribbean V" Scodelario) and her estranged dad, Dave (Barry "Battlefield Earth" Pepper) who are trapped in their home (along with the family dog) during a Florida (Category 5) hurricane. Dave has gained a pip of an injury, which hinders his ability to help as wind, water and ultra-large alligators rush in. It's then a matter of survival and bonding as the leads mend old rifts and fend off the mighty monsters.  

I realize that the politically correct will bitch about my having called the alligators "monsters", but that's what they are in the context of this story, and in real life, I'd doubt they'd be cuddly and sweet under the same chewy circumstances. 

The story's successful simplicity springs from Michael and Shawn Rassumussen's script and Alexandre "Piranha 3D" Aja's swift direction. Sam "Evil Dead" Raimi co-produced it, which might be another reason why it snaps so well.

Part of that "snap" is how limber Keller conjures the courage to battle the beasts. She's not an Ellen Ripley clone, mind you, but certainly cut from the same intrepid cloth, which I suppose makes "Crawl" a kind of "Alien" on Earth, as much as it grabs from those aforementioned titles. 

"Crawl" wasn't made to win an Oscar. It's not that type of monster movie, nor does it desire to be. Look upon it as a SyFy, rampaging-animal picture, only sleeker and without all those damn, commercial interruptions. That's good enough for me to sing its praises. Do yourself a favor. Check it out.