“Crawl” is an unforgiving and gruesome survival horror film that drops you in a Hitchcockian trap of vengeful nature and dangerous male predators. Adapted from a novel, Ryan’s original screenplay follows the premise of an unstoppable hurricane creating chaos in a flooded Florida town, which establishes the tone of a film rife with suspense and claustrophobia, about which people are forced to fight Struggling and helpless as Haley is thrown into this storm and her flooded home, the film brilliantly ensures that there is urgency and peril at high octane, via shocking moments that leaves your heart in your mouth from the opening to the closing credits.
What impressed me the most about “Crawl” – is the manner in which its limited setting soaking in water maximizes the sense of tension and prompts primal fear. The father-daughter relationship brings on an emotion to the chaos where their struggle for survival becomes very personal. The silent and deadly lurking alligators are a bloody infamous enemy, a remorseless foil of nature. The tone of the film bounces between the adrenaline rush of action and the suspenseful quiet, ready to explode. It’s all an exhilarating ride of dread. The effects on practical level and design of creature are masterfully terrifying, which makes the presence of predators that much more biologically alive.
Although “Crawl” is imaginative when it comes to speed, suspense, and visual heat, it sometimes reverts to type—and the scenario’s logic may leave some food for thought, especially driving into a hurricane. But the visceral force, amazing creature work, and an emotional center, make the film worth the watch. It distilled in me an enhanced feeling of vulnerability and awe at the naked force of nature but tied with a gripping tale of conquering it and familial love. It’s an exhilarating, anxiety inducing rollercoaster that capitalizes on basic fears and provides high-octane fun.
