Eaten Alive (1977)

[spacemonkey]

Title: Eaten Alive (1977)

Director: Tobe Hooper

Cast: Neville Brand, Mell Ferrer, Marylin Burns, Robert Englund

Tagline: You check in alive....but you check out dead!

Review:

The only Tobe Hooper film that I had not seen. Eaten Alive is the film he made after having made the first Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Its no surprise that I hadnt been able to see this one since it is considered to be his "lost film" But now, thanx to the nice people at Elite entertainment I finally got to see this rare film.

The story is about Judd, a hillbilly who runs the "Starlight Hotel" which is hidden in the middle of nowheresville. He has a thing for feeding his clients to the giant crock which lives on a swamp behind the hotel. Basic plot. Simple as you can see, and thanks to this simplicity we have a lot of room left for gruesome, weird fun.

First off: cool thing about this movie is its atmosphere. The hotel is hidden deep in the woods on some time in the middle of nowhere. I mean, this place looks so surreal and creepy that I loved every second of it. The fog, the swamp, the dead trees the dirty run down hotel...great stuff.

Second thing: Judd, the crazy guy who feeds his clients to the crock is AMAZING. I mean he just mumbles and half of the things that he says are not understandable. But that makes him all the more crazier. I mean the guy suddenly just start to howl....out of nowhere. I dont know theres something really damn crazy about this guy. And then theres that cool weapon that he wields. Shit that is one cool weapon for a villain to use, I wonder how come it hasnt been used in any other movies?

Third: The deaths were cool! Hooper refrained from showing a lot of blood on The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I mean lets face it, despite the reputation the film has, TCM has almost no gore. Now, on Eaten Alive, Hooper seemed to want to compensate for that so theres a slightly higher amount of blood on this one. Theres one particular death thats just amazing! I loved it and youll know what Im talking about when you see it. Great stuff...one for the horror books no doubt.

The movie itself had a grainy, dirty feeling to it. Nothing neat and polished about this one. The Hotel itself is like this dirty shit whole you would never want to stay in. I did like a lot of shots that Tobe Hooper used, he really wanted to set in that weird "in the middle of nowhere" feel to the whole movie and it shows in many scenes. Theres this really cool scene where the sky turns into sort of like an orange yellow color and the dead trees are silhouted in the sun....cool stuff. Hooper dude, this is why you are one of my favorite directors.

Ok, this movie aint a masterpiece Ill give you that. Its got an overtly simplistic story and some shaddy lighting, but I think that the lighting actually helped the grainy feel of the movie. But heck, this movie was fun. And insane, once you step into Judds Starlight Hotel you feel like if you are in some freaking alternate dimension, its just got this vibe to it. That plus the guests who come in to the hotel end up being almost as insane as the main villain himself. Very few characters in this film are what you would call normal.

Which reminds me of Robert Englunds character. "Buck" is one of many freaky hillbilly type characters that makes the whole flick even weirder. It seems that Buck supplies Judd with cocaine (to which he is addicted too) so Englunds "Buck" is a drug dealer of sorts. But hes also this crazed sex maniac who enjoys screwing the ladies in a very uncomfortable place if you know what I mean. Cool to see him in one of his earliest roles, actually I think this was his first film.

We also get Madelyn Burns (whom we also saw in TCM) here she spends most of her time gagged to a bed, and nearing the end she does her scream queen bit, screeming and running from a demented Judd.

Add to that a slew of weird characters (including this really strange lady who runs the local whore house), a truly insane soundtrack which include some really outlandish hillbilly songs (yes banjos and everything) and some crazy guests that arrive to the hotel and you got yourself one absolutely freaky flick.

Im glad I finally got to see this flick, dont pass it up if you are interested in seeing a truly bizarre flick with some cool death, one of Tobe Hoopers rarest films, and in my humble opinion a movie that deserves to be watched by more people out there in horror world.

Rating: 31/2 out of 5

[RogueSpear]

I've had Eaten Alive it my Netflix queue for the last month or so, but never could decide if I really wanted to see it or not seeing as I'm not a real big fan of Hooper's work. However, you may have just provided the inspiration that I need, spacemonkey. I'll probably be getting this is the near future now. Hopefully it won't be as disappointing as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

[spacemonkey]

Originally posted by RogueSpear
However, you may have just provided the inspiration that I need, spacemonkey. I'll probably be getting this is the near future now. Hopefully it won't be as disappointing as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

Just remember, its sleazy, gory, atmospheric and just plain flat out weird. Its one of those movies in which even the "good guys" are weird so be on the look out for that sort of vibe. But I thought it was a decent flick, with a really outhere villain.

[countchocula]

I'm glad you enjoyed it, dude. I wasn't in the mood for David Lynch-esque eccentricities going into Eaten Alive, which is most likely why it left an unfavorable impression on me. The dowdy, venal atmosphere is there and I quite liked Hooper's garish lighting, but the narrative refuses to budge. It's 90 minutes of leisurely exposition. I lost interest by the time the third act rolled around.

Rogue, if you didn't care for TCM, I don't see how you'd warm up to Eaten Alive. But as they say, different strokes for different...people.

[spacemonkey]

Originally posted by countchocula
I'm glad you enjoyed it, dude. I wasn't in the mood for David Lynch-esque eccentricities going into Eaten Alive, which is most likely why it left an unfavorable impression on me. The dowdy, venal atmosphere is there and I quite liked Hooper's garish lighting, but the narrative refuses to budge. It's 90 minutes of leisurely exposition. I lost interest by the time the third act rolled around.

Rogue, if you didn't care for TCM, I don't see how you'd warm up to Eaten Alive. But as they say, different strokes for different...people.

Yeah, I thought it was preatty decent, though it doesnt stop the flick from being sleazy pulp fiction. I felt like Id just read a sleazy magazine or hung out with truly mundane people after watching this.

Though I will point out also that the movie does have a sort of cartoony feel to it also, its not as serious as TCM. Its just sort of like this cartoony fun horror flick. Yeah thats it, you feel like youve just read one of those old EC comics that were really violent and sleazy, thats it!

[countchocula]

Afterwards, I felt like I had fucked an elderly woman in a secluded rest home, only to find out later that she was dead the whole time.

[spacemonkey]

Originally posted by countchocula
Afterwards, I felt like I had fucked an elderly woman in a secluded rest home, only to find out later that she was dead the whole time.

LOL!

Hey count, as for the killer Crock, I think it was handled preatty well you know?

Hooper went with sort of what Gordon did in Dagon which is, if you know your monster doesnt look all that great you dont show him much.

We dont even see the Crocodile that much, only his head in certain scenes, but I think it was well achieved. Id rather see just a little bit of him then have a really horribly cheap monster mess up the film, which by the way didnt happen here. At least not in my opinion.

[Lizarrd]

I gotta watch this movie again....

[xlr8r]

Seems like a lot of people think "eaten Alive" is pretty good.
Well.......I thought it was the biggest piece of crap ever. Just awful.

[!MorganOnyx!]

XLR8R -

I'm SO with you on this one dude. I was expecting to enjoy this! UNCUT it said on the dvd cover?!! UNCUT??! WHAT EXACTLY?!! Pansy ass shite. One of the worst horror films I've seen in a long time! Crap storyline, crap acting (apart from ROBERT ENGLUND who was actually quite amusing - he almost saved me from hating this film), the WORST SET EVER!!! It was like some poxy little sound stage. The budget must have been $2!! I've performed on stage in high school with better props! And yes, we DO like atmosphere, but not so fucking dark you can't actually see what is happening!! How is that supposed to be scary?!! I was bored to death watching this movie, and the alligator or crocodile or whatever it was SUCKED ASS!! It was a fucking rubber toy!! Shit dialogue too, apart from BUCK. The film slowly jerked from act to act, you can tell they added a whole bunch of pointless shit just to bump up the running time. What a strain it was to watch!

Anyway, I'm done. Sorry.

[Grega77]

I have to agree with spacemonkey on this movie.
I really liked the atmosphere and the wacky characters in this movie.
This movie gets a 8/10 rating from me and i own it on DVD.

[spacemonkey]

Yeah its fun times, though I can see why some people might not like it much, it is after all , low brow entertainment.

Still I liked the decent kills, (one in particular blew me away) and that scene where the crock chases the little girl through the labyrinthian bottom of the hotel, that was well achieved as well.

As I was watching this flick I couldnt help but think about House of a Thousand Corpses and how much it was influenced by this flick. Right down to the weirdo hillbilly music. They are a lot alike actually, both have to do with a house in the middle of nowhere and the villains welcome the guests in only to find strange and interesting ways to kill them.

Eaten Alive has that 70s dirty gritty feel that a lot of movies of today (Wrong Turn , Cabin Fever) are trying to imitate and thats what I liked the most about it. Only this one isnt purposely trying to copy that look or feel, it was born with it.

[!MorganOnyx!]

No way dude! I fucking LOVED WRONG TURN, and the way it had that 70's vibe ala TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE! But now I'm not too sure about THE HOUSE OF 1000 CORPSES if it reminds you of EATEN ALIVE!!!! I was looking forward to it as well!! Never mind, I'll still give it a shot!

[spacemonkey]

Originally posted by !MorganOnyx!
No way dude! I fucking LOVED WRONG TURN, and the way it had that 70's vibe ala TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE! But now I'm not too sure about THE HOUSE OF 1000 CORPSES if it reminds you of EATEN ALIVE!!!! I was looking forward to it as well!! Never mind, I'll still give it a shot!

Hey Morgan, House of a thousand corpses and Wrong Turn were both cool flicks in my book. Im just saying they were going for the same vibe that Eaten Alive has. Freaky wacked out characters in the middle of nowhere killing people, and no one can get them cause they are soooo in the middle of nowhere.

[!MorganOnyx!]

SPACEMONKEY -

Oh that's cool dude, because HOUSE OF 100 CORPSES appears to be the sort of film I'd really dig (I love all that crazy shit that you just can't get to grips with - It took me ages to get my mates into PHANTASM because they didn't 'get it', but now they love it!) And I know this ROB ZOMBIE dude is a bit of a character so I'm quite looking forward to it!

[spacemonkey]

Originally posted by !MorganOnyx!
SPACEMONKEY -

Oh that's cool dude, because HOUSE OF 100 CORPSES appears to be the sort of film I'd really dig (I love all that crazy shit that you just can't get to grips with - It took me ages to get my mates into PHANTASM because they didn't 'get it', but now they love it!) And I know this ROB ZOMBIE dude is a bit of a character so I'm quite looking forward to it!

Yeah, House of a thousand Corpses is cool, just remember its Rob Zombies first flick so you can expect a few bumps along the way. It aint perfect, or the end all be all of horror as some expected, but it is good fun. I cant wait for the sequel!

It has many elements seen in Tobe Hoopers flicks like TCM parts one and two and Eaten Alive so be on the look out for that sort of vibe mixed with some of Rob Zombies visual music video style flare.

[teenkiller]

Just bought this film so I decided to do a search for it. Never seen it before so I did some research on it and found out that it was based on a true story. You guys hear about this before? From Wikipedia:

This article is about the serial killer. For the English footballer see Joe Ball (footballer). For the article about a Minnesota senator, see Joseph Hurst Ball.
Joseph D. (Joe) Ball (January 7, 1896 - September 23, 1938) was an American serial killer, sometimes referred to as The Alligator Man, the Butcher of Elmendorf and the Bluebeard of South Texas. He is said to have killed at least twenty women in the 1930s. His existence was long believed to be apocryphal, but he is a familiar figure in Texas folklore.

After serving on the front lines in Europe during World War I, Ball started his career as a bootlegger, providing illegal liquor to those who could pay. After the end of the Prohibition ban on alcohol, he opened a saloon called the Sociable Inn in Elmendorf, Texas. He built a pond that contained five alligators and charged people to view them, especially during feeding time; the food consisting mostly of live cats and dogs.

After a while women in the area were reported missing, including barmaids, former girlfriends and his wife. When two Texas Rangers came to question him in 1938, Ball pulled a handgun from his cash register and killed himself with a bullet through the heart (some sources report that he shot himself in the head instead).

A handyman that conspired with Ball, named Clifford Wheeler, admitted to helping Ball get rid of the bodies of two of the women he had killed. Wheeler led them to the remains of Hazel Brown and Minnie Gotthard. Wheeler told authorities that Ball murdered at least twenty other women, but the alligators had disposed of any evidence. There has never been any firm evidence that the alligators actually ate any of his victims.

There were few written sources from the era which could verify Ball's crimes. Newspaper editor Michael Hall investigated the story in depth in 2002, and wrote up his findings for Texas Monthly magazine.




This looks like it could be another solid ROBERT ENGLUND pre-FREDDY days film like Galaxy of Terror or Dead and Buried. I'll post my thoughts on it later. Well thats all for now GOoD JOURNEY my fellow schmoes.

[teenkiller]

Well I watched the film just now and wow! I wasn't expecting much because I'm not really into the whole killer animal genre but this film was pretty damn good. Nice surprise. I really liked the atmosphere of the swampy, foggy bayou. Great casting with the wacked out innkeeper. The women were beautiful. ROBERT ENLUND looked YOUNG AS HELL! He played a good character though. I actually warmed up to him at the end and was rooting for him to become the hero. Luckily the kill scenes didn't focus too much on the actual croc and I thought they turned out fantastic. Hooper used the same kind of odd, jarring sound effects that helped make the original TCM so memorable. I feel this was a very strong follow up to his classic masterpiece and as surprised as I am to say it I rated this a 10/10. Well thats all for now GOoD JOURNEY my fellow schmoes.

[spacemonkey]

Damn I cant believe this review was unearthed! Glad you liked it Teenkiller, this movie rocks. I think the time has arrived for me to re-watch this one!

Also, did you notice this is the movie where Tarantino got that line for Kill Bill "My name is buck and Im here to Fuck!"

[teenkiller]

Nah I never saw the original Kill Bill. If I ever do though (doubtful) I'll definitely look out for it. Great flick. I consider this along with TCM and The Funhouse to be Tooper's "classic" trilogy. Well thats all for now GOoD JOURNEY my fellow schmoes.

[zombievictim]

After reading all of the great things about this film from this thread I've moved this to the top place on my netflix. Hopefully I won't be disappointed.

[teenkiller]

If you can stomach the 70s atmosphere and the brooding pace you probably won't be let down. Things can sometimes take a while to build up but if you are patient you might be able to enjoy it. Well thats all for now GOoD JOURNEY my fellow schmoes.

[teenkiller]

Just watched Eaten Alive a second time and like I said before it is really slow moving but still held up quite well. Hooper used some really great sound effects in place of music much like he did in TCM and I loved it. A shame you don't hear about this one more. Well thats all for now GOoD JOURNEY my fellow schmoes.

[Cronos]

i found Eaten Alive to be quite entertaining most of the time although it moved too slowly in places which nearly made me fall asleep

6/10

[teenkiller]

Oh jeez, after checking the end credits for Eaten Alive I was surprised to see the name Janus Blythe come up on the screen. I knew that name sounded familiar and sure enough it was. That hottie that ROBERT ENGLUND ended up sleeping with near the end of the film is also Ruby from the original Hills Have Eyes. I could NOT believe it! They came out the same year but in Hills she is pretty much playing a child while in Eaten Alive she is clearly... uh... all grown up. UNbelievable! Well thats all for now GOoD JOURNEY my fellow schmoes.

[!MorganOnyx!]

Between seeing the disappointing THE FUNHOUSE, knowing that SPIELBERG directed half of the scare sequences in POLTERGEIST and hating the loathsome DEATH TRAP (EATEN ALIVE), I fear that TOBE HOOPER is a one hit wonder. LIFEFORCE is up next for me. I hope it retains some of my admiration for the dude. Even though I came home the other day to find my girlfriend and her mum had just finished watching it, which made me realise I had forgotten to watch it myself!

[Cronos]

i love Lifeforce (9/10), my third favourite Hooper flick after TCM 1 and 2...a lot of people seem to dislike it but i really dug the slow moving story, the acting is good, theres some nice gore and theres quite a few memorable scenes

[!MorganOnyx!]

It sounds cool, I'll let you know what I think of it. Hopefully I'll see it tomorrow but that depends on whether or not my playstation gets in the way.

[spacemonkey]

Originally posted by !MorganOnyx!
It sounds cool, I'll let you know what I think of it. Hopefully I'll see it tomorrow but that depends on whether or not my playstation gets in the way.

Hope you like Lifeforce, its an all out visual effects, aliens, vampires, zombie fest! This is one of Hoopers best, I also put it in third place. Right after Poltergeist and TCM. You should love it Morgan, its cheesy at times, but the vampire effects and visual effects are awesome.

[!MorganOnyx!]

Originally posted by spacemonkey
Hope you like Lifeforce, its an all out visual effects, aliens, vampires, zombie fest! This is one of Hoopers best, I also put it in third place. Right after Poltergeist and TCM. You should love it Morgan, its cheesy at times, but the vampire effects and visual effects are awesome.

Just finished watching it now. I would like to say it entertained me, but I was so bored I was on the net the whole time it was on! What the fuck was PATRICK STEWART doing in this bag of shit?!!!! I'll tell you what I did like about the film:

1. The fact it took place in the UK AND on Earth. I presumed the whole film was going to take place in Space. I don't like sci-fi so much so I was pleased that the story was set at the space centre etc.
2. The naked chick. When I'm not enjoying a film I get what ever positive I can out of it. This time, it was an awesome pair of jugs! She was ALWAYS naked! That's never a bad thing!
3. The make up effects, special effects and animatronics etc were good fun to watch. The film must've cost a fair bit and although some of the effects were cheesy and are now drastically outdated they were very enjoyable and quite creative. Plus points!

Other than those minor positive points the film was a complete mess. For a start, it felt like it went on for over 3 hours! The characters were all mostly annoying as fuck and I didn't care about any of them. The story was jumbled at best and whilst I understand that sci-fi is supposed to be "out there" and "crazy" it was so incoherent and nonsensical I lost interest fairly quickly. Biggest piss off point? The film just wasn't scary at all. How much of the film was taken up by too many characters sat around talking bollocks?! Too much! And don't get me started on the "vampire" claim! The villains were zombified at best! I didn't see any vampires!

[spacemonkey]

Originally posted by !MorganOnyx!
Just finished watching it now. I would like to say it entertained me, but I was so bored I was on the net the whole time it was on! What the fuck was PATRICK STEWART doing in this bag of shit?!!!! I'll tell you what I did like about the film:

1. The fact it took place in the UK AND on Earth. I presumed the whole film was going to take place in Space. I don't like sci-fi so much so I was pleased that the story was set at the space centre etc.
2. The naked chick. When I'm not enjoying a film I get what ever positive I can out of it. This time, it was an awesome pair of jugs! She was ALWAYS naked! That's never a bad thing!
3. The make up effects, special effects and animatronics etc were good fun to watch. The film must've cost a fair bit and although some of the effects were cheesy and are now drastically outdated they were very enjoyable and quite creative. Plus points!

Other than those minor positive points the film was a complete mess. For a start, it felt like it went on for over 3 hours! The characters were all mostly annoying as fuck and I didn't care about any of them. The story was jumbled at best and whilst I understand that sci-fi is supposed to be "out there" and "crazy" it was so incoherent and nonsensical I lost interest fairly quickly. Biggest piss off point? The film just wasn't scary at all. How much of the film was taken up by too many characters sat around talking bollocks?! Too much! And don't get me started on the "vampire" claim! The villains were zombified at best! I didn't see any vampires!

They were vampires dude, only thing they didnt suck blood. They sucked the lifeforce out of people. That scene where one of the vampire dudes sucks the life out of that doctor...that scene is fucking awesome! And hows about that giant vampire bat guy standing at the edge of the church with his wings flying open and all those dead people around him? Sweeet as fucking hell. Then he says "itll be a lot less terrafying if you just come to me!" Sweet!

I dont think they were aiming for terrafyingly scary, its more sci-fi then horror if you ask me.

Hows about the cheesy dialog MOrgan?

[!MorganOnyx!]

Originally posted by spacemonkey
They were vampires dude, only thing they didnt suck blood. They sucked the lifeforce out of people. That scene where one of the vampire dudes sucks the life out of that doctor...that scene is fucking awesome! And hows about that giant vampire bat guy standing at the edge of the church with his wings flying open and all those dead people around him? Sweeet as fucking hell. Then he says "itll be a lot less terrafying if you just come to me!" Sweet!

I dont think they were aiming for terrafyingly scary, its more sci-fi then horror if you ask me.

Hows about the cheesy dialog MOrgan?

Oh I guess they were then. I know it's not cool to use the typical stereotypes as a rule, but for me vampires have to bite your neck and suck your blood! I did enjoy that scene where the dude turns into a giant bat, but it was because I laughed at it. His voice sounds so out of place when he says "It'll be a lot less terrifying if you just come to me!"! It was funny to see the guy say "Oh I intend to!" and run up to slam that sword through his guts! Watch the good guy's acting as he falls back and looks up to see the bat "explode". It's hilarious!

I'll be honest and admit I didn't give it the best of my attention, but that was because I found it so boring to begin with. But yeah the effects scenes etc were highly enjoyable. I'll overview some of the scenes to see if I can get more out of it.

[spacemonkey]

Yeah, they even have a whole conversation about the girl being a vampire in which Dr. Fallada says

"I mean, in a sense we're all vampires. We drain energy from other life forms. The difference is one of degree. That girl was no girl. She's totally alien to this planet and our life form... and totally dangerous."

Fallada even goes into a conversation about these space vampires being the origin of the vampire legend. In fact, the novel the movie is based on was entitled "The Space Vampires"

Hey Morgan, Im glad you found it funny cause I dont think its meant to be taken too seriously anyways, the movie is cheesy as hell most of the time. Specially with some of the dialog.

"Gentleman, that last remark is not for publication. This is a D notice situation!"

I always laugh when that guys says that.

[MidnightAngel]

Eaten Alive is one of Tobe Hooper's horror classics that i haven't see. They told me it's even better than that other killer croc movie that came early this year.

[XCoRyX]

Only watched this once, and it didn't blow me away initially, but over time I've grown to realize I enjoyed it a lot more than I initially thought I did...I now plan on buying the DVD to add to my collection to rewatch. Truly just a vintage grindhouse-esque classic product. Neville Brand is just phenomenal too and truly creepy/insane in this and delivers big time - if he wasn't in it I'm sure it'd be 100x worse and nothing like what it is. The real life backstory it is based on is pretty insane as well.