I first saw this in the late 80s on a VHS. Revisited it recently on a DVD. Too much of red color n fake studio settings but nonetheless the cinematography, editing n most importantly the acting of the psycho was good enuff. Given this was Hooper's follow up to one of the greatest horror films (Texas chainsaw massacre) ever made, it brought with it some high expectations. Some may find shades of Psycho. Its about a hotel run by a psycho, (an older version of Anton Chigurh look-alike) n his pet crocodile. The highlight of the movie ain't bah the croc but Neville Brand's portrayal of the psycho, who kills the visitors with a scythe n sometimes jus pushes them in the pond to his gator. Ignore the viewers who complains bout the mechanical gator, although some shots r effective in small doses. Jus enjoy the gruesomeness and the humor. It isn't all that scary, but the sense of hilarity throughout n the kills, especially the scythe piercing thru the cheeks was over the top. One great scene has Judd repeatedly slashing a victim with the scythe when suddenly, the crocodile bursts through the rails on the porch and snatches the victim by the head and pulls him into the murky pond. The scene wher the psycho comes running with his scythe is comical n tension filled at the same time. Also the chase scene with the kid is full of tension. So there is enuff tension, mayhem n enuff nudity. Its atmosphere, madness, surrealism, gruesome sights and sleazy nature is immensely effective. Lots of veteran actors. Check out a very young Robert Englund n his dialogue, "my name is buck n m raring to **ck". Tarantino included this line in Kill bill.

After being thrown out of a brothel for refusing randy redneck Buck (Robert Englund), prostitute Clara (Roberta Collins) stumbles into a run-down hotel run by lonesome weirdo Judd (Neville Brand). Upon finding out she is a prostitute, Judd forces himself on her, and when she struggles and runs away, he butchers her with a scythe and feeds her to his pet giant crocodile. A family arrive at the hotel only to have their pet dog eaten by the croc and their daughter narrowly escaping death. The bodies begin to pile up as Judd tries to protect his beloved man- eater, and when Clara's father and sister turn up, Judd must also evade being discovered by the law.Following up a horror masterpiece like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) is hardly an envious task, but Tobe Hooper decided to stay in familiar surroundings with Eaten Alive (known as Death Trap in the UK). The Deep South provides plenty of opportunities to exploit the inbred yokel stereotype, and Tobe Hooper grabs it with both hands. Chain Saw was disturbing and occasionally genuinely frightening, but it appears that it was tragically a one-off. Eaten Alive contains none of the atmosphere or anything resembling those uncomfortable dinner scene moments of Chain Saw, and instead relies on a pleasingly over-the-top performance by Brand, and a terribly fake-looking rubber croc that appears all too fleetingly.There are some likable moments. Englund's character Buck (who has the film's brilliant introductory line "My name is Buck, and I'm here to f**k!" - homaged in Tarantino's Kill Bill: Volume 1 (2003)) is hilariously vile, but he is way underused. When the family arrives at the hotel, very little seems to happen. There is a murder here and there to lighten things up, but they are blandly staged. Hooper based the film on the real-life murderer Joe Ball who fed a suspected 20 women to his alligators back in the 1930's. It's a fascinating story ripe for a good film adaptation, but it is wasted by Hooper, who fails to squeeze any tension out of the proceedings.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com

Tobe Hooper's 2nd film after Texas Chainsaw Massacre and a major drop - This dull, cheap piece of exploitation seems to have gained a following as other reviews on here show.In some ways I can see how as it does have an 'interesting' cast who's performances vary from good to OTT. Another reason being it's status as a Video Nasty (Why - The gore is little and the deaths (apart from Mel Ferrar's) not particually violent).But to me the plot is basic, the characters mostly irritating and as said above the Gore limited, No horror or suspense and a plastic Croc.Only watch if you want to see how bad Tobe Hooper Dropped after TCM.

A demented inn-keeper named Judd (Brand) in the Florida bayou attracts the dregs of society, and periodically feeds those who cross him, to his pet crocodile. When runaway (Sinclaire) is tracked by her estranged father (Ferrer) to Brand's chop-shop inn, he discovers more than southern hospitality. Sheriff Whitman takes an eternity adding up the litany of crimes that go unnoticed, until finally, Judd's dumb luck comes to a fitting end. It would be unfair to compare Robert A.Mattey's crocodile effects with those he created for "Jaws" considering the relative budgets, but surely more could have been revealed in this instance. More attention is proffered on Judd's scythe wielding antics, than the bone-crushing capabilities of his reptilian garbage disposal unit, which will no doubt disappoint audiences tuning in for the famed crocodile.Bizarre content, acted with manic intensity by the diverse (and very talented) cast, and claustrophobically staged by a director whose cult status was further reinforced with this picture. Tobe Hooper's nightmarish account is thin on plot, with jagged continuity, dull lighting, stage-set sound and limited suspense – the promise and expectation earned on his former "Texas Chain Saw Massacre" is conspicuously absent here, in its place, a dark, cheap-looking stage play, peppered with gratuitous sex and violence. A veritable freak show of circus-like antics, the film has a soap opera feel, and the shaky, old fashioned sets are of similar quality.The enchanting Roberta Collins plays Finley's ill-fated wife, himself a certified nut job (playing to type), while Robert Englund and Janus Blythe are evenly paired as a redneck and his trailer-trash, who chance an encounter at Judd's knocking shop and get more than they bargained. But it's Brand, delivering an endless interminable monologue of crazed babble as he teeters ever closer to breaking point, who provides the film's deranged nucleus off which all the other lunatics pivot. Not an abject failure, yet considering the wealth of talent involved in the production, and the expectation this conjures, it's somewhat disappointing.