Let me start this review by saying that I am an absolute fan of survival horror, and I love movies where animals attack for some bonkers reason. So naturally, I was pretty excited to watch this. However, the ratings for this movie suggested it wouldn't be great, so I lowered my expectations before my viewing.
The story follows a group of people who crash in a small plane in the wetlands of Florida, only to find themselves under attack from drugged-out alligators. The premise sounds hilarious and immediately reminded me of Cocaine Bear. However, this movie takes itself way too seriously, which harms the overall enjoyment, especially since it's not very competently made. The plane crash itself looked cheap and unconvincing, and the characters behave irrationally and stupidly. At times, it felt like a competition to see who could be the most unlikable, though one character was clearly way ahead of the others.
The acting ranged from decent to a little poor, but I wasn't expecting much in that department. While the basic premise is fun, the movie doesn't do much with the idea. It had the potential to be much better, but weak characters, poor writing, and some subpar effects held it back. It definitely borrows elements from other films like Rogue, The Grey, the already mentioned Cocaine Bear, and even Jurassic Park III. Those are all movies I love, but this one fails to entertain in the same way.
That being said, it's still a decent popcorn horror flick. If you don't overthink the logic or get too annoyed by the awful characters, you might have some fun with it. I overall enjoyed parts of it, and while the effects weren't great, they weren't Syfy-level bad either. The biggest downside is how unbearably stupid and annoying the characters are, making it really hard to root for most of them.
If you're looking for a genuinely good horror movie featuring alligators or crocodiles, I'd recommend Rogue, which has a similar premise but executes it far better. However, if you're just in the mood for a fun action-horror flick with killer alligators, this might do the trick. [5,1/10]
