Movie Review - Lake Placid

Lake Placid

(1999)

Fox 2000 Pictures / Phoenix Pictures / Rocking Chair Productions : Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation / 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment

8 / 10

Now, this is a monster movie for the twenty-first century.  A good romp through the bizarreness of science fiction.  In the fifties, it was the fear of radiation; now, it's mother nature.

There's no explanation of the killer croc being where it is, though all the experts say it shouldn't be there.  Be we don't need to know why it's in the lake, all we are worried about is the gory fun that will ensue because it is.

The strange thing about the film is that it's not really about the two lead roles.  I think this is down to the writers developing better roles in the Hecter Cyr played flamboyantly by Oliver Platt and Sheriff Hank Keough spiritedly portrayed by Brenden Gleeson and the repartee they have between them.  Then when Betty White come on the scene as Mrs Delores Bickerman, the croc's mother, she steals the show.  Which is a shame for Bill Pullman and Bridget Fonda as they look adrift next to the minor roles.

The director, Steve Minor does an expert job of building up the pace and keeping the excitement and humour rolling along at an increasing pace.

For the most part, the special effects are superb some of the hardest things to do are to create fur on animals and get their movements correct the digital artists did really good work here, and it was 1999.  Stan Winston and his studios looked after the hard effects and the puppet crocodile, which is amazing in its lifelike quality.

If you're looking for good fun that you don't need to think about just enjoy then I'd recommend this movie to you.  There are laughs, there's action, there are man-eating crocodiles... what more could you ask for... Oh Yeah, there's Betty White... nuff said!