Crawl (2019) - Film Review

Starring: Kaya Scodelario & Barry Pepper

Screenplay: Michael & Shawn Rasmussen

Directed By: Alexandre Aja

Certificate: 15

Full confession time: 'Crawl' initially brought out my inner film snob. The premise of giant alligators hunting a woman and her father through a flooding house is the kind of thing I wouldn't usually give more than a second thought. It's undeniably schlocky - the kind of low budget, direct-to-TV movie you'd expect to find on the SyFy channel. However, the first trailer I saw for 'Crawl' was in a local, independent cinema near me that I really like and which tends to screen a mixture of big mega-blockbusters, as well as films which generally attract older audiences and are more likely to be considered "high art". The fact that they were screening 'Crawl' peaked my interest and made me think that I shouldn't have been so quick to judge it. And as it turns out, I really shouldn't have been so quick to write it off... 

After learning of a Category 5 hurricane approaching Florida, aspiring professional swimmer Haley Keller contacts her estranged father, concerned for his safety. Unable to find him at his condo, Haley travels to their old family home where she finds her dad unconscious in the crawl space beneath the house. As she attempts to get him out, their exit is cut off by large alligators that have entered the house via a storm drain. With a pack of alligators hunting them, and the water levels rising as the hurricane hits, the situation soon becomes a desperate struggle for survival.

Critically and financially, 'Crawl' has turned out to be something of a sleeper hit in the same vein as similar films before it like 'The Shallows'. Part of why I think it's fared pretty well with audiences is the various ways that it overcomes its goofy premise. 'Crawl' very quickly establishes a serious tone - it's not here to provide laughter in the face of absurdity, it keeps things tightly wound, grim and even brutal in places. A lot of that stems from the lead performance of Kaya Scodelario, who really commits to both the emotional and physical demands of the role. It's not a pleasant experience spending hours on a film set where you're drenched in water and mud, and being able to still turn in such a great performance is commendable. The sense of danger for Haley and her father is palpable, and while the alligators are one threat, they also have to deal with the ticking clock that is the slow rise of the flood water. It's a great naturalistic source of tension - the constantly rising water means the characters have to keep moving, but with each new level of the house they make it to, the rising water means the alligators can follow them. 

Aside from the serious tone, what I also feel works in 'Crawl's favour is that it rarely gets bogged down in delusions of grandeur. The film knows full well what it wants to be, what it's set out to achieve and commits to it. Part of this is evidenced in the runtime, with 'Crawl' clocking in at just shy of ninety minutes. Were it to be much longer and the film might start overexerting itself or trying to pad itself out, but the editors know its limits and keep things concise. The rest of the production team also deserve just as much praise. While 'Crawl' revolves mostly around this one house, it looks a whole lot more expensive than its relatively modest budget. The effects work is great from the hurricane and flood waters, to the giant alligators themselves. The alligators look great, and work surprisingly well when framed in the context of a horror film, even to the extent where they get a couple of actually good jump scares. While I'm unfamiliar with the director Alexandre Aja, it's not all that surprising to see Sam Raimi credited as a producer. 

However while 'Crawl' is impressive in these ways, there are limits to its appeal. Although the ninety minute runtime ensures it's a breeze to watch, 'Crawl' is mostly to be enjoyed in the moment. As far as staying power is concerned, the film is lacking. When I was in the cinema watching it, and again at home re-watching it for the purposes of this review, I found that it's the kind of film that you'll not really think about or look back on all that often. A few months down the line, when you encounter the name 'Crawl' again, it'll probably just inspire a "Huh, I remember that, it was alright." It's very much a film that works in the moment, with just enough characterization of the two leads to earn itself a pass. Hayley and her dad are hardly poor characters by any means, but I doubt you'll really care about them all that much by the time the credits have rolled. The father-daughter redemption arc is also hardly anything new or ground-breaking, but serves its purpose just fine. 

I'm sure it won't come as much of a surprise to say that while 'Crawl' is effective at what it does, it can also be nitpicked to death. Anyone going into a film about killer alligators that hunt two people down throughout a flooding house and expecting it to be bulletproof is approaching it in a really poor way. The last few years have seen a culture of lazy nitpicking criticism emerge online which has become exhaustingly dull, and 'Crawl' ironically provides that mob with another piece of meat. I try to avoid this trend of nitpicking films and analysing everything with a fine tooth-comb for "logical inaccuracies" and the like, because like I've said it's lazy and does more harm than good for constructive critique. That said, we all have varying degrees to which we can suspend our disbelief, and getting enjoyment out of 'Crawl' will require a lot of that suspension. For instance, Hayley at several points has her arms or legs chomped by the alligators, and despite an alligator's incredible jaw power, she does recover pretty quickly. There are also a lot of creative liberties taken with the alligators, from their movement to the way they hunt etc. You could even make a case that it's a bit convenient that Hayley is a trained swimmer. I can't condemn anyone for pointing out some of the holes in this film, and your mileage will vary - personally, some things I can overlook whereas others are more challenging. 

There's not a whole lot more I can really say about this one. On the cover art for the home media release, one reviewer is quoted as saying that 'Crawl' "does for gators what 'Jaws' did for sharks" which I feel is a bit generous and may risk setting your expectations too high. Nevertheless, while it may lack the staying power a film like 'Jaws' has, it still has a dedicated cast and creative team which make it a concise thrill in the moment. It's a straightforwardly enjoyable time - not terrible but not incredible either. I was glad that they didn't miss the obvious choice of song in the credits with 'See You Later, Alligator'. Had they used 'Alligator' by Monsta X as well, it would've been an instant 10/10. 

Crawl

6/10