Joyce Webster (a.k.a. Jane Marvin) - Beverly Garland!
After the disappearance of her husband Paul, Joyce Webster tracks him to a remote plantation, deep
in the Louisiana bayous. It is there that she experiences the horrible trauma of seeing her
beloved husband turn into an "alligator man!" Joyce has repressed her memory of said trauma
and is now living a normal, healthy life as her alter ego, Jane.
Paul Webster - Months after surviving a plane crash, Paul received a special
serum from Doctor Mark Sinclair. Said serum allowed Paul to fully heal his wounds and live
a normal life again. However, Paul apparently didn't read the fine print and begins to slowly
mutate into a human/alligator hybrid! Can his marriage with Joyce be saved?!
Doctor Mark Sinclair - A pioneer in the medical field who almost managed
to create a surefire way to heal fatal wounds, regrow lost limbs, and and remove wrinkles forever.
However, his miracle drug begins turning all his test subjects into "Alligator People!" Will Doctor Sinclair
be able to return his patients to normal?! Will I stop asking rhetorical questions?! Keep reading
to find out!
Ms. Hawthorne - Paul's rude, distrustful, and overprotective mother. She attempts
to drive Joyce away from the plantation in order to keep her from seeing Paul. But true love conquers
all, and Ms. Hawthorne manages to make her peace with Joyce.
Manon - Lon Chaney Jr.! A drunken, hook-handed, alligator hatin', hired hand on
Ms. Hawthorne's plantation. Manon is a total scumbag and tries to have his way with Joyce and later
attempts to murder Paul. ("I'll kill you alligator man!") But have no fear, this redneck
Captain Hook wannabee gets his comeuppance at the end of the film.
The Alligators - The reptilian inhabitants of the bayou. If you pay attention
during the film, you'll notice that every single living 'gator has its mouth tied shut.
The Alligator People - This scientific nomenclature refers to any one of Doctor
Sinclair's unlucky patients. While most just end up with scaly skin, Paul manages to go the
distance and becomes a full-fledged bipedal alligator man!
During the 1950's, radioactive monsters
stormed the silver screen and thrilled audiences worldwide. While some creatures were merely awakened
by an atomic blast or some related cataclysmic event (e.g. Beast From 20,000 Fathoms),
others were the direct result of radioactive contamination (e.g. Godzilla). But
most of these atomic monsters were all gigantic and (excuse the pun) overshadowed their smaller
counterparts. That brings us to The Alligator People,
a film concerning the lower spectrum of radioactive beasties. Not only do the film's title creatures
not grow to enormous size, but they fail to actually terrorize humanity. In fact, this movie
plays more like a melodramatic soap opera than a 1950's creature feature.
The film begins with the hypnosis of Jane Marvin. Apparently her real name is Joyce Webster and
she has created a new identity while simultaneously repressing a horrible past traumatic experience.
As her tale unfolds, two psychologists listen intently to her seemingly crazy story. Joyce
was previously married to Paul Webster, whom months before marrying Joyce had somehow survived
a plane crash. Thanks to the efforts and experimental treatment of his doctor, Paul had fully
recovered and suffered absolutely no scarring, lost limbs, or anything physically detrimental.
When we first see the young couple, they are on their honeymoon and traveling by train. Things
are going great and the newlyweds couldn't be happier... until Paul receives a mysterious telegram from his doctor. After reading the
letter, Paul inexplicably ditches his new wife on the train. Afterwards, Paul disappeared without
a trace, but Joyce wasn't about to give up on her man just yet.
Joyce begins researching Paul's life and tries to track him down. Surprisingly she's not really
mad at him at all, but in fact loves him and truly misses him! (Ok, this definitely is a
science-fiction film!) Joyce's search eventually leads her to an old plantation deep down
South in the Louisiana bayous. According to some of Paul's old college records, the plantation
was once his home, and therefore is Joyce's last hope and only lead. After hitching a ride
with Manon (Lon Chaney Jr. as a drunken hillbilly pirate!), Joyce arrives at her destination,
only to find that the owner, Ms. Hawthorne, is far from being hospitable. Though Ms. Hawthorne
completely denies any knowledge of knowing Paul, Joyce has her doubts and is determined to
stick around and find out the truth. Eventually, Joyce's perseverance pays off and she discovers
that her husband has suffered some complications from the miracle drug he took.
It turns out that Doctor Mark Sinclair had developed a serum made from reptile DNA. With said
serum, Dr. Sinclair's patients have all fully healed up and regenerated lost tissue and/or
body parts. Unfortunately, the serum has one teensy side effect: It turns those who take it
into alligator people! Paul was the latest victim of the experiment and looks
pretty rough, what with his scaly wrinkly skin and all. But in spite of his grotesque appearance though,
Joyce still loves him. Paul however doesn't realize this and time and time again, he runs off into
the swampy bog to avoid her. It's not until Manon, the plantation's drunken hired hand (err... hired hook-hand),
tries to have his way with Joyce, that Paul steps out of the shadows. Paul defeats Manon easily, and rescues
carries his wife to safety, but Manon surely won't let sleeping gators lie and declares vengeance
against the man-gator that whooped him.
In the meantime, Dr. Sinclair thinks he has an almost surefire cure for Paul and the other reptilian humans
living at the plantation. Paul's reptilian features have been held in check by the use of X-Rays,
so Sinclair believes that a high dose of Gamma radiation may fully cure Paul and the others. (Or
it could turn Paul into the Incredible Hulk or a backup member of the Fantastic Four!) There is a slight
chance that the Gamma radiation could kill Paul, but he's intent on returning back to his human form
so that he can live normally with his beloved wife. Paul is strapped to a table beneath the
Gamma laser and the treatment begins. Naturally, a monkey-wrench is thrown into the works by Manon. In a drunken rage, he bursts
into Dr. Sinclair's laboratory and cranks up the Gamma ray to its highest setting. After that,
Manon charges into the next room to finish off Paul and gets the shock of his life.
Due to the massive dose of Gamma radiation, Paul has fully mutated into a bipedal alligator! (Henceforth known
as the Pauligator.) The film's small degree of believability is all but tossed out the window at this
point, as the Pauligator rises from his slab and stumbles toward Manon. With nowhere to go, Manon
raises his hook-hand to defend himself, only to get electrocuted by the short-circuiting Gamma ray above his head. (DOH!)
With Manon defeated, the Pauligator staggers outside into the bayou (and I say stagger because the actor inside
the cheap rubber alligator suit was evidently having trouble seeing where he was going). Joyce
follows after her leather-skinned hubby and watches in "horror" as he dukes it out with a real
alligator. The Pauligator claims victory after a short wrestling match and continues to lurch through the swamp with
Joyce in hot pursuit. Eventually, the mighty Pauligator stupidly wades into some quicksand and
suffers a fairly anti-climactic death.
With her story told, Joyce is brought out of her hypnosis and sent out of the office. The two
psychologists present, Dr. Eric Lorimer and Dr. Wayne MacGregor, then debate wether or not to
reboot Jane's memory. After they mull it over for a little bit, they decide to let her be. Why
trouble her with her true identity and crazy past, when she can live the rest of her life,
blissfully ignorant that she was once married to a reptile? With the final decision made
regarding Joyce's... I mean Jane's... uh... Jaynce's (?) mental health, the film ends. Seeing as
how this ending left me dissatisfied, I decided to take the liberty of giving the movie an appropriate
climax.
The Vault Master Presents - THE BITTER END
After her hypnosis session, Jane heads off to the nearby zoo with her new beau, Paul Dobson. (Gasp! Another Paul! What are the odds?!) The young
couple is having a splendid time until they stroll by the alligator pen. Upon seeing the scaly
beasts, Jane's memory is jogged. She soon begins ranting about her insane past, and tells her new
Paul that her name is really Joyce. After calming the hysterical woman down, Paul ends up having
poor "Jane" committed, and put under the care of the two psychologists that had only hours earlier,
decided that her post-traumatic stress disorder was nothing to worry about. To save their own hides,
they lock "Jane" away in an insane asylum where she eventually gets a frontal lobotomy to "cure"
her allegedly violent behavior. THE END.
Film Review:
The Alligator People is a fairly mediocre science
fiction film that definitely could've used a caffeine injection. It generally has a slow pace and
doesn't unveil an honest-to-goodness alligator person until the very end! However,
there's plenty of fun to be had while watching this movie. Though most of the cast play their
roles straight, Lon Chaney Jr. does some major scenery chewing as Manon. Lon overacts with zeal, and gives us one of the most entertaining scumbag
characters in b-film history! In contrast, Beverly Garland who plays Joyce Webster gives a
dignified performance as a confused yet determined wife in search of her missing husband. Since
the film's storyline revolves almost solely around Joyce Webster, the film makers' needed a good
actress for the part, and Beverly Garland definitely succeeds with flying colors.
The special effects in The Alligator People
are fairly sparse but well done, especially Richard (Paul Webster) Crane's makeup. However,
once he becomes the "Pauligator," we are treated to one of the worst rubber monster suits ever!
(And naturally this makes for a few good laughs, especially when the actor noticeably has
trouble finding his away across a swampy movie set.) As I said, the movie is slowly paced and
can be a bit boring at times, but it should easily entertain Lon Chaney fans and atomic monster
lovers alike. Even if you don't fall into either category, give this movie a chance. Who knows, you
just might enjoy it!
So how radioactive is this tale of atomic reptile-men and the women who love them?
Geiger Counter Reading:
- THREE 'RADS' -
WARNING: This movie is radioactive! Though boring at times, this flick is saved by
Lon Chaney Jr.'s insanely fun performance! "I'll kill you alligator man!"
DVD Review: The Alligator People is currently available
on DVD from 20th Century Fox and boasts a beautiful 2.35:1 widescreen transfer with a clear and crisp
English Mono soundtrack. The movie definitely hasn't looked or sounded this good in a very, very
long time. The only extra feature on the disc is a trailer gallery, that includes the original
theatrical trailers for:
The Alligator People,
The Fly (1958), The Fly (1986),
The Omen, and
Phantom of Paradise. Despite the lack of extras,
this bargain-priced disc is definitely worth picking up, especially if you're a Lon Chaney Jr. fan!
Manon: "I'll kill you alligator man! Just like I'd kill any four-legged 'gator!
You hear me?! I'll kill you!"
- Beginning - Louisiana is the sportsman's paradise?
- 6:00 - Al Roker's great uncle serves these newlyweds some champagne.
- 10:42 - Harsh! Paul ditches his wife on their honeymoon!
- 14:12 - Hahaha! This crate is clearly labeled as containing something radioactive and yet Joyce still sits on it!
- 18:47 - Lon Chaney Jr. in... "Grand Theft Auto: Bayou Edition!"
- 24:29 - So Lon Chaney's basically a drunken pirate?
- 27:59 - Hahahaha! Looks like one of the seven dwarves checked into rehab!
- 41:30 - Mum's secret is revealed!
- 43:15 - When faux gators attack!
- 43:57 - Wait a minute... that alligator's mouth is tied shut! How's he supposed to even try and eat Joyce?!
- 47:21 - Uh oh! Joyce is getting "Manon-handled!"
- 54:29 - Insert "Using a laser to make luggage out of alligator" joke here.
- 67:43 - Paul gets some lasic surgery.
- 68:51 - Oh no! It's a... Pauligator!
- 69:44 - "Somebody help! I can't see a thing with this alligator mask on!"
- 72:18 - "Quicksand... my only weakness... how did you know?!"
- 74:08 - The End.
Recommended Viewing:
-
Mad science has
been the cause of so many monsters, not unlike the Alligator People
.
Using a special serum, a mild-mannered doctor became a crazed psycho in Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (1931),
a tale that has been told and retold in many a horror (and comedy) film. And lest we forget the
scientifically created half-man / half-fly from 1958's The Fly and
its sequel Return of the Fly (1959). (Both of which star the
legendary Vincent Price.) If half-men / half-apes are more your speed, then definitely check out
The Ape Man (1943), which features Bela Lugosi
as the titular character.
Paul's final transformation into the "Pauligator" is caused by a massive dose of radiation. Radiation has
gotten a bad rap for decades and blamed for the creation of numerous monsters such as the
giant ants in THEM! (1954), the giant octopus
from It Came from Beneath the Sea (1955), Godzilla (1954 - 2004) and some
of his monstrous co-stars! Radiation also created lesser cinematic monsters like
The Beast of Yucca Flats (1961) (it's Tor Johnson!),
The Incredible Melting Man (1977), and The
Incredible Shrinking Man (1957), just to name a few.
Alligators (and crocodiles) have always been an integral part of nature-run-amok-themed films. After
being flushed down a toilet and exposed to growth hormones and chemicals, a pet baby gator named
Ramone grows to enormous size and hungrily devours humans in Alligator (1980). A
really bad sequel (feature Richard Lynch of all people) called Alligator II: The Mutation (1991) eventually followed.
A giant crocodile chows down on unlucky humans (and a grizzly bear) in Lake Placid (1999)! The Italian film industry got in on the action with Sergio Martino's Big Alligator River and
Fabrizio de Angelis' two Killer Crocodile films (1989 & 1990). And even Australia made a giant crocodile film
of their own called Dark Age (1987).
Useless Trivia:
- Beverly Garland quoted the following, concerning her acting
in b-movies: "You don't have to act in these pictures. All you have to do is possess a good pair of lungs.
I can scream with more variations from shrill to vibrato than any other girl in pictures." During
her work in the b-movie industry, she did a number of films with b-movie legend Roger Corman, including:
Swamp Women (1955)
, Gunslinger (1956),
It Conquered the World (1956), and Not of this Earth (1957).
Lon Chaney Jr. (a.k.a. Creighton Tull Chaney) was the son of movie legend Lon Chaney (well duh!)
and is the only person to have ever played all four of the classic universal movie monsters. He
was the original Wolf Man (1941), played Frankenstein's Monster in
Ghost of Frankenstein (1942), portrayed Kharis the Mummy in
The Mummy's Tomb (1942), and played Alucard, the son of Dracula
in the aptly titled, Son of Dracula (1943).
LEAVE YOUR OWN COMMENTS ABOUT THIS MOVIE IN...
And feel free to e-mail me at vault_master[at]bmoviefilmvault[dot]com if you have any
questions, personal recommendations, or information about the films reviewed here on the site! Don't be shy! Your
feedback helps make The Vault better!
Review posted on March 15, 2005.
(Review last updated on November 17, 2007.)
|
