This Movie Freaked Me Out - Alligator (1980) Discussion

[–] 17 years ago

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[–] mecahill 17 years ago

I agree. The pool scene really bothered me. As I said earlier, I saw this ages ago, only once and I'm still talking about it.

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[–] Doggysoft 17 years ago

I came on this site, just to see if anyone mentioned the pool scene. Scary stuff. I saw it when I was young too and I remember about four scenes:

The flushing
The man feeding the alligator down the sewer and getting eaten
The pool scene
The bit where the boy gets the knife out of the drawer after the alligator burts up through the road and crushes that man with his tail

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[–] askmonroville 10 years ago

Don't forget when Robert Forster's partner gets eaten. The idea that there wasn't enough room for the other guy and getting pulled out by the legs... yeesh.

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[–] Alligator_80 17 years ago

My all time favourite movie!

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[–] jeffscsr 17 years ago

yeah the pool scene was no joke

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[–] ladythunder79 17 years ago

I loved watching this movie with my brother when we were kids. Im 28 years old now and i still wont get in the pool at night with out the light on. It just freaks me out.

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[–] MetalGeek 17 years ago

I'm glad I'm not the only one who is still freaked out by the pool scene! I first saw this movie on TV when I was about 12 and I had nightmares for weeks afterward!

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[–] MrBond007 17 years ago

That pool scene was messed up. I watched it tonight, and I remember seeing the movie on TV when I was 6. I'm so glad I didn't catch (or remember) that scene.

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[–] Megavader 17 years ago

Well if this bothers you then don't watch Jaws (if you haven't already) as I found that kids death far more disturbing ,and that movie is only PG!!You hear him screaming above and underwater as he's being eaten alive.

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[–] sjcal75 16 years ago

Yes, it is a little disturbing when a little kid
has to die. However, don't forget about Jaws which
is both a fan and critic favorite where young boy
gets killed of by the shark. At least the boy met
his demise by wild animal instead of at the hands
of a human being like in other movie genres. You
even see kids get killed on some TV shows, so it
might not be as disturbing today than it was when
Alligator was first released! I think it's more
upsetting when cute animals such as dog has to die
in a movie.

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[–] YankeeDood 15 years ago

Yes, it is a little disturbing when a little kid
has to die. However, don't forget about Jaws which
is both a fan and critic favorite where young boy
gets killed of by the shark. At least the boy met
his demise by wild animal instead of at the hands
of a human being like in other movie genres. You
even see kids get killed on some TV shows, so it
might not be as disturbing today than it was when
Alligator was first released! I think it's more
upsetting when cute animals such as dog has to die
in a movie.
----
Well, that's why they're called horror movies and you have a choice to not watch them if they still give you nightmares.
I think it's appropriate for these movies to have such disturbing scenes in them because it's realistic and again, horror is supposed to be shocking, not cute.
I oppose censorship 100%, but that such movies are only for adults who can handle watching those scenes. I have no problem watching them because I know they are purely fictional. Watching the Torture of innocent creatures in real life is when I get upset.
Like the saying goes - if you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen and that applies to watching any horror movie.

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[–] OldFriendOfTheChristys 10 years ago

Well if this bothers you then don't watch Jaws (if you haven't already) as I found that kids death far more disturbing ,and that movie is only PG!!You hear him screaming above and underwater as he's being eaten alive.

The kid’s death in Jaws is indeed disturbing, but what makes the pool scene in Alligator more disturbing (for me anyway) is the fact one would never expect come across an alligator in a pool. When you go swimming in an ocean, you know there’s a risk, be it slight or major, depending on where you are.

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[–] PatriotsRchamps 17 years ago

"That pool scene was messed up."

I agree with you, MrBond007 ! It definitely was messed up!

Wasn't it the little brother who was forced into the pool and gets eaten?

I agree with the other posters that it was definitely a disturbing scene. Not because of the violence, but because the victim was so innocent. Except for the opening scene, virtually every character in the movie that dies is an unsympathetic character. So the viewer really doesn't care very much about all the deaths. But that pool scene was inconsistent with this general theme and therefore, didn't fit well in the movie.

I wonder if one of the writers had an annoying little brother in real life and he wrote that scene as an inside joke?

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[–] YankeeDood 15 years ago

I loved watching this movie with my brother when we were kids. Im 28 years old now and i still wont get in the pool at night with out the light on. It just freaks me out.
----
Well let your mommie tuck you in at night and everything will be ok. You're 28 and still scared of this fictional movie? Maybe you should stick to watching Hanna Montana and leave horror movies to those of us who are not afraid of the bogeyman.

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[–] robambrose 11 years ago

Then you get crazy people like me. I watched Jaws, it got me into sharks. I watched Alligator, it got me into crocodilians. I watched Sssssss, it got me into snakes (especially King Cobras). I even went so far as to scuba dive with sharks, I had a beautiful 10 foot alligator living in the pool of my very large fenced off garden, and had a couple of dozen venomous reptiles that I milked for anti-venom manufacture.
I know, I know, it does sound kind of crazy.

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[–] Astanax Knight 17 years ago

I don't remember the pool scene, but I remember the alligator, and I think he knocked a clothesline down going after some people. This freaked me out as a kid, because for one thing, I live in Florida, and when I was little, and still now, we have a clothesline in the back yard. I also live right next to a swamp.

I would just like to see this movie again and relive the part that I remembered that freaked me out, and laugh about it. Let's see, this movie was in 1980, and I was born in 1984...I think I was around 4-5 when I saw this movie. Alligators in Chicago? Please....=) I thought it was an alligator going after Floridians like myself!

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[–] holt-lover 17 years ago

That was one big alligator! Loved the special effects.

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[–] 17 years ago

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[–] silvaskione 16 years ago

was there a bit where a guy gets pulled out of a river onto a boat and both his legs have been bitten off??.... havnt seen this film in over a decade easily (21 now)... but still have strong memories.... cant believe it was forster lol!

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[–] bnkholen 16 years ago

Yes, I watched the movie last night and there is the double leg bite off scene which I'm sure was edited out of the TV version which many of us saw in the 80's on ABC. The movie still is as cool as ever with pretty good special effects especially for a B-movie, witty script and great atmosphere. The pool scene is a definite shocker especially if you saw this movie as a kid. When swimming in lakes, I still wonder, what if someone slipped an alligator in here?

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[–] Havgar 16 years ago

I came here to see if anyone else remembered the same things, and what do you know.

I remember the pool scene distinctly as my first theater-going movie experience, and it freaks me out to this day. I've only seen it once about 15 years ago but those images will never leave me! Jaws didn't scare me at all.

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[–] gjung01 11 years ago

I remember feeling bad for some of the victims like the kid, the people working at the fancy party (they were only trying to make a living) and the poodle that was tied up and did not stand a chance.

I suppose with "JAWS," there is the implication that there are many dangers in the open ocean not just limited to sharks but to be eaten in a swimming pool or at a fancy garden party is totally out of nowhere.

Count me in as one those who is disturbed with deaths of children and animals in movies. Not that I don't care about the adults but they usually have the sense and means to avoid/escape a situation unless they consciously make bad choices or are clueless, I suppose.

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[–] SamSays 16 years ago

the pool messed me up pretty bad wen it came on tv ages ago, and then recently too. ha

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[–] MaxZorin 16 years ago

What the *beep* was that limo driver thinking? Hey pal, stop gawking and get the *beep* out of there.

I would have been miles away by the time the alligator made it over to the driveway.

Always felt sorry for the old dude getting crushed in the limo.

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[–] vladrac1978 16 years ago

This was one of those movies I really enjoyed in my youth. Some of the scenes stuck with me over the years. How about the professional that went to kill it and gets eaten in the alley. To get off this subject a little, did anybody see the cave movie, in the 80's, were a group of people explore this cave, and get trapped, then eventually get attacked by a civilzation of white bodied humans? I thought it was called "The Cave" also, but I guess I was wrong. They used to air it on FOX in 80's just like "Alligator" as one of the horror Friday 8:00PM specials. One scene in particular was an eel like creature grabbing a hold a guy's arm after he stuck in a cubby hole. If anyone knows the name of that movie, I would be greatly appreciative. Any takers....

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[–] Cristopher_Jeorge 15 years ago

vladrac...i totally remember that scene as well and definately remember it being something shown on ABC. as for the name of that movie, no friggin' clue but i'd be curious as to it's title also. other ABC shown movies i remember from that era were The Intruder Within and Bermuda Depths.

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[–] phelpssue 16 years ago

I agree with everyone that's freaked out by the kid being eaten when
he's pushed into the swimming pool. It's rare that little kids die in horror
pictures so it scared me but the alligator crashing the wedding is what
still scares me.

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[–] Doc110894 16 years ago

I actually like this movie better now than as a kid. I liked the Alligator action, but thought the cop storyline was dull.

Now, I think the cop storyline is the best part of the movie.

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[–] danbell06 15 years ago

I've just finished watching Alligator, and even by today's standards, this film is tremendous!!
Really enjoyed it!

This was the first time i'd seen it and i was more than impressed by the effects..
9/10 from me :)

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[–] chrisdaco2 15 years ago

It's frustrating to know there are some things that I just cannot face.
I f someone offered me 100.00$.... hell even 500.00$ to stand at the edge of a diving board over a darkened swimming pool and look straight down and then jump in ..nah even writing about it is too much!

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[–] sillyspaghetti 15 years ago

I'm scared of this AND Jaws! I've got a real phobia of gators, crocs and sharks. Can't even look at 'em without feeling sick.

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[–] speedolitec 14 years ago

That pool scene freaked me out the first time I saw it, mainly because I really wasn't expecting that at all.

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[–] stones78 9 years ago

Kids get killed in Salem's Lot(1979), a much better film, imo.

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