Il fiume del grande caimano (1979)

User Rating:

3.9/10   

Director:

Sergio Martino

Writers:

George Eastman (story)
Cesare Frugoni (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

3 November 1979 (Italy)

Genre:

Horror

Plot:

Tourists on a tropical island anger an island god, who turns himself into a giant alligator and stalks them.

Plot Keywords:

Tourist | Native | Island | Boat | Survivor

Cast

Barbara Bach	...	Alice Brandt
Claudio Cassinelli	...	Daniel Nessel
Mel Ferrer	...	Joshua
Romano Puppo	...	Peter
Fabrizia Castagnoli	...	Minou's Mother
Enzo Fisichella	...	Maurice, lover of Minou's Mother
Lory Del Santo	...	Jane
Anny Papa	...	Laura
Bobby Rhodes	...	Joshua's forman
Clara Colosimo	...	Tourist
Peter Boom	...	Tourist With Rifle
Giulia D'Angelo	...	British Tourist
Marco Mastantuono	...	British Tourist
Piero Jossa
Marco Giannoni
Geneve Hutton	...	Sheena
Silvia Collatina	...	Minou
Richard Johnson	...	Prophet Jameson
Donald Dias
Christopher Ferrando
Paul De Odeasie
Peter Peiris
D. Pauline Skilton
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ted Rusoff	...	Joshua's forman (voice: English version) (uncredited)
Susan Spafford	...	Alice Brandt (voice: English version) (uncredited)

Directed by
Sergio Martino

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
George Eastman		story (as Luigi Montefiore)
Cesare Frugoni		writer
Ernesto Gastaldi		writer
Sergio Martino		writer
Mara Maryl		writer (as Maria Chianetta)

Produced by
Luciano Martino	....	producer

Original Music by
Stelvio Cipriani

Cinematography by
Giancarlo Ferrando

Film Editing by
Eugenio Alabiso

Art Direction by
Massimo Antonello Geleng

Costume Design by
Barbara Pugliese

Makeup Department
Sergio Gennari	....	hair stylist
Stefano Trani	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Franco Cuccu	....	production manager
Marco Giannoni	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Massimo Manasse	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Bruno Moreal	....	sound mixer
Roberto Petrozzi	....	sound

Special Effects by
Carlo De Marchis	....	special effects: alligator
Paolo Ricci	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Gianlorenzo Battaglia	....	underwater camera operator
Bruno Cascio	....	assistant camera
Rolando Ferrario	....	assistant camera
Giorgio Garibaldi Schwarze	....	still photographer
Claudio Morabito	....	camera operator
Daniele Nannuzzi	....	underwater camera operator

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Stella Battista	....	seamstress

Editorial Department
Teresa Negozio	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Stelvio Cipriani	....	conductor

Other crew
Maria Luisa Rosen	....	script supervisor
Raffaello Saragò	....	administrator

Production Companies

• Dania Film
• Medusa Produzione

Distributors

• Succéfilm AB (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Beam Entertainment (Japan) (DVD producer)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1982) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Creative Axa Co. Ltd. (Japan) (DVD)
• DMEG (2004) (Sweden) (video)
• European Video Corporation (EVC) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Gorgon Video (video)
• Lamberto Forni Film (LF) (Italy) (VHS)
• MPI Home Video (video)
• NoShame Films (2005) (USA) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Alligators
Big Alligator River
Great Alligator River (Australia) (video title)
The Big Caimano River
The Great Alligator

Runtime:

USA:89 min | France:90 min | West Germany:89 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Italy:T | USA:Not Rated

Filming Locations:

Sri Lanka

Company:

Dania Film

Trivia:

German Import DVD has a Super-8 Version (German language only), as a special feature on the disc.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 50 Worst Movies Ever Made (2004) (V)

Better than its rep.--judge for yourself

This movie has generally been critically lambasted over the years, and quite unfairly. It's generally been regarded as a "Jaws" rip-off even though the only thing it really has in common with "Jaws" is a fake-looking beastie and a guy (Mel Ferrer) who doesn't want to scare off the tourists from the luxury hotel he is operating in an undisclosed Third World jungle location. The giant caiman (incredibly, this movie has even been taken to task by some people over its inaccurate English-language title)may not be just a normal overgrown monster, but may actually be the god of a nearby group of indigenous people (do you remember that from "Jaws"?--I sure don't), who turn out to be even more dangerous to the hapless tourists than the caiman. There is also a mad missionary (Donald O'Brian)living in a cave who might be the Robert Shaw figure, but might just as well have been "ripped-off" from the novel "Heart of Darkness" as from "Jaws".

The hero (Claudio Cassanelli) is a photographer(i.e. not a sheriff)who comes to the resort for a fashion shoot. But then his model gets together with a native to make the beast with two backs out on a river island, after which they're both promptly eaten by the giant beast with one back, so it is up to the photographer and the PR spokeswoman for the hotel (Barbara Bach)to stop the rampage of this enraged "god" before he chows down on more tourists. And they also have the murderous and sacrifice-happy native tribe to deal with. This movie has a real social and environmental message about the developed world exploiting the developing world and despoiling nature. It's pretty muddled (not much more convincing than the ones found in most Italian cannibal films) but it's also very un-"Jaws"like.

This movie has also been unfavorably compared to director Martino's previous cannibal outing "Mountain of the Cannibal God". This movie doesn't feature a naked Bond girl like Ursula Andress (and clothed latter-day Bond girl Barbara Bach is admittedly a poor substitute), but it also doesn't contain tasteless animal atrocity footage (watching people get eaten by a patently fake caiman is a lot more fun than watching a real monkey get slowly eaten by a real snake). It also gives the underrated Claudio Cassanelli a chance to shine, away from the shadows of big international and American stars like Andress or Stacy Keach (there's certainly no danger of Bach upstaging him). Sure the caiman's pretty fake, but this is still infinitely preferable to Tobe Hooper's "Crocodile" or other recent CGI garbage. Watch it and judge for yourself.