There’s a true argument to be made thatQuentin Tarantino’s best movie is his 2019 hangout comedy,Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood. However, when asked about his favorite movie of that year,Tarantino’s answer humbly differedfrom his masterpiece. Instead, his tastes leaned towardsCrawl, the hit alligator-centric horror thrill ride. This might come as a surprise to those who only think of Tarantino as an acclaimed filmmaker. If you’ve only done the slightest bit of reading into his works and interests,you’ll know that he’s probably a bigger fan of genre movies than he is of prestige films. Tarantino’s own movies might be beloved by audiences and critics alike and showered with all kinds of accolades, but his works are deeply rooted in the camps of action, exploitation, horror, kung-fu, comedy, and Western. So, Tarantino falling fora killer-animal movieshould come with little to no surprise.
This natural disaster horror moviewas directed byAlexander Ajaand starsKaya ScodelarioandBarry Pepperas Haley and Dave Keller, a daughter, and father who are trapped in the crawl space of their old Florida home while being preyed on by alligators during a Category 5 hurricane. Talk about a situation that absolutely no one would want to be in. That’s what makes horror films so fun though, andCrawl, for the most part, is no different. This has a tight, 87-minute runtime, and continuously one-ups itself with more alligators and tense set pieces than you could ever imagine. That being said,Crawlsurprisingly carves out a lot of its story to center on some family drama between the Kellers and explores a good bit of their long, troubled relationship when it isn’t focusing on people being torn to shreds. These days,Scodelario is gearing up to starin Netflix’s new series,The Gentlemen, based on theGuy Ritchiefilm of the same name. If you’re looking to catch up and celebrate her underrated body of work,then there’s no better place to start than this 2010s horror classic.
A young woman, while attempting to save her father during a category 5 hurricane, finds herself trapped in a flooding house and must fight for her life against alligators.
What Does Quentin Tarantino Love About ‘Crawl’?
Tarantino’s love forCrawlwas reported byawards columnistPete Hammondto Deadline back in November 2019. At the time, theDjango Unchainedfilmmaker was attending the Governors Awards, where he had a conversation with Hammond about that year’s movies. Their conversation was initially about a new cut of his latest film, but eventually moved to other films released that year. As Hammond explained, “His film aside, Tarantino told me that, as incredible as he says it might sound, he thinks his favorite film so far this year just might be — wait for it —Crawl.That’s right, the alligators-in-a-hurricane movie directed by Alexandre Aja that Paramount released a couple of weeks before QT’s movie came out in July. Tarantino says it impressed him in every way, in terms of pure filmmaking.” While he has alsogone on to speak highly of movieslikeTodd Phillips’Joker, as far as we know,Crawlstill sits as Tarantino’s top 2019 pick.
Is ‘Crawl’ as Good as Quentin Tarantino Says?
How isCrawlreally? Is it a truly great movie, or is this just thePulp Fictiondirector teasing us? In short, yes, Tarantino picked an incredibly solid creature feature for his number-one movie of the year. For a movie about alligators in a hurricane,Crawlis surprisingly goodand more complex than you might think. On one hand, it does provide a visceral thrill ride that’s sure to give you a memorable viewing experience if you watch it in a room full of other horror fans. The alligator kills in this movie are brutal and, when they do come around, they’re bound to meet your likely high expectations. The animals themselves are CGI, and it does look pretty great nine times out of ten. There’s the occasional moment where they look a bit artificial, but for a moviethat only cost $13,500,000, these effects are pretty impressive.
Quentin Tarantino Called This Kids' Cartoon “The Greatest British Import of This Decade”
Nothing is going to prepare you for the answer.
Not only that,the cast performs convincingly against the threats and attacks of the alligators, as does their ever-changing and suffocating environment around them. The alligators actually look like they are interacting with and destroying the house that they are in. Factor in the fact that the house isn’t just being destroyed by the alligators, but mostly by the nightmarish framing device of a Category 5 hurricane, and you have a movie where the tensionshouldnever falter (but more on that momentarily). It’s an extremely well-made natural horror film, and in comparison to other 2010s movies in its subgenre like47 Meters DownandThe Shallows,Crawlfeels the most authentic and has the most riveting, brutal scares of them all.
Like Many Horror Movies, ‘Crawl’ Is Rooted in Trauma
That being said,Crawlalso acts as a fascinating piece of 2010s horror for another reason. A large chunk of this angry alligator movie’s runtime is taken up by a family drama subplot that isrooted in childhood trauma. Yes, like many other movies from this decade, horror is being used as a means for our protagonists to figure out and, eventually,work through their trauma. By the time we meet them, Haley’s relationship with her father, David, has been troubled for years now. He’s the estranged father archetype who hardly has anything to do with his daughter and hasn’t for a long time.
This would be an interesting way to frame their dynamic initially, butthe movie repeatedly comes to a screeching halt, cutting off fun alligator action, just to have Haley and David talk about their history of shared problems. The dialogue is strong and performed excellently by Scodelario and Pepper, so it’s not like you’re having to battle through cringeworthy attempts at creating real drama for our characters. However, when you’rehaving a good bit of goofy funwatching alligators wreck shop on some people, it’s asking a lot to stop everything so that we can take a few minutes and talk about how David Keller could have been a better dad. Imagine that you’re playing basketball, the clock is about to run out, and the game is super close. Then, one of the players takes out a knife, pops the ball, and starts telling you about how their cat died and it’s been hard on them. You get it, you want to help this guy out, but you’re also wrapped up in the fun of the game, and the clock is still running out. Can’t we just get back to the action?
Still, despite its very 2010s-isms,Crawlis an effective andreally well-made horror moviethat throws audiences back toa time when natural horror movieswere much more of the norm. Even though they can get pretty outlandish, natural horror movies are also some of the most relatable in the entire genre. Everyone has had a close call with an animal at some point, so when you’re watchingCrawland some random people get eaten by alligators at a gas station, a very unique and somewhat relatable fear is intentionally being drummed up inside of you by the filmmakers. Mix that with two great performances from Scodelario and Pepper, great direction from Aja, and a short runtime, and you’ve got a solid horror movie on your hands. Not a bad choice for your favorite movie of 2019, Tarantino. Not bad at all!
Crawlis available to rent on Prime Video in the U.S.
Watch on Amazon Prime
