History Film / Alligator

* KarmicDeath: Ramon [[spoiler: kills the Corrupt Corporate Executive whose experiments inadvertently created him.]]

* KarmaHoudini: The cruel doctor whose experiments turned Ramone into a monster in the first place gets off scott-free. Ditto the almost-certainly-abusive father who flushed him in the first place.

'''Alligator''' is a 1981 horror/comedy film, directed by Lewis Teague and starring Robert Forster and Robin Riker, with a screenplay by Creator/JohnSayles, in which UsefulNotes/{{Chicago}} policeman David Madison has to stop "Ramon", the eponymous beast, who is running amok in the city sewer system after feeding on covertly discarded growth hormone. The film is notable for being among the first of the slew of ''Film/{{Jaws}}'' homages/rip-offs to be produced by the American movie industry. Unlike 99% of the horrors that have come lurching along in its wake, the humor is intentional, the human characters are sympathetic, and the flick is worth seeing.

* CaliforniaDoubling: The film was not shot in Chicago.

* FollowTheLeader: To ''Jaws'', with several of its plot-points being repeated, including [[spoiler: a child being eaten by the beast, setting off a horrific media circus.]]

'''Alligator''' is a 1981 horror/comedy film, directed by Lewis Teague and starring Robert Forster and Robin Riker, with a screenplay by Creator/JohnSayles, in which "Ramon", the eponymous beast, runs amok in the Chicago sewer system after feeding on covertly discarded growth hormone. The film is notable for being among the first of the slew of ''Film/{{Jaws}}'' homages/rip-offs to be produced by the American movie industry. Unlike 99% of the horrors that have come lurching along in its wake, the humor is intentional, the human characters are sympathetic, and the flick is worth seeing.

* ChildrenAreInnocent: Subverted; two of them push their friend into a swimming pool, although they certainly weren't trying to get him eaten. Also the hero has to deal with a [[BrattyHalfPint pretty mouthy kid]] who witnesses one of Ramon's attacks.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: He orders the experiments which thanks to illegally discarded test-animal corpses leads to Ramon becoming the menace he is.
* CowboyCop: The hero's reputation, even though it's not exactly deserved.

* HotScientist: The reptile-expert/love interest who helps the hero in trying to kill Ramon.
* IntrepidReporter: Subverted, in that the guy is an obnoxious jerk, but genuinely goes [[GoingForTheBigScoop looking for scoops]], eventually [[spoiler: taking [[ApocalypticLog crucial pictures]] of Ramon, even as he is devoured.]]

** However, it is played straight when a little girl toddler is in the back yard with her mother's wash. Mom hears the phone ring, goes in to answer it, and along comes the titular beast. Mom sees the monster leave the yard, screaming and crying as she looks for her child. Then the little girl lifts up the clothes basket she was hiding under!

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: The kids at the pool, not the one who's dead. They think it's just a prank, but the moment they see they've just fed their friend to a giant alligator, the sheer look of horror they have just screams off this trope.

* NightmareDreams: The hero has these from the first encounter with Ramon.
* PetBabyWildAnimal: Subverted. Ramon gets unceremoniously flushed into the sewer while still tiny, and his former owner then makes every effort to help kill him, although she has no reason to even know it's the same alligator.

'''Alligator''' is a 1981 horror/comedy film, directed by Lewis Teague and starring Robert Forster, with a screenplay by Creator/JohnSayles, in which "Ramon", the eponymous beast, runs amok in the Chicago sewer system after feeding on covertly discarded growth hormone. The film is notable for being among the first of the slew of ''Film/{{Jaws}}'' homages/rip-offs to be produced by the American movie industry. Unlike 99% of the horrors that have come lurching along in its wake, the humor is intentional, the human characters are sympathetic, and the flick is worth seeing.

A sequel was released in 1991, subtitled ''The Mutation''.

%%* AbsurdlySpaciousSewer

%%* ChildrenAreInnocent: Subverted more than once.
%%* CorruptCorporateExecutive

%%* HotScientist

** However, it was played straight when a little girl toddler was in the back yard with her mother's wash. Mom hears the phone ring, goes in to answer it, and along comes the titular beast. Mom sees the monster leave the yard, screaming and crying as she looks for her child. Then the little girl lifts up the clothes basket she was hiding under!

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: The kids at the pool, not the one who's dead. They thought it's just a prank, but the moment they saw they just fed their friend into a giant alligator, the sheer look of horror they had just screams off this trope.
%%* NeverSmileAtACrocodile
%%* NighInvulnerability: Ramon
* NightmareDreams: David has these from the first encounter with Ramon.
* PetBabyWildAnimal: Subverted. Ramon gets unceremoniously flushed into the sewer while still tiny, and his former owner then makes every effort to help kill him.

* SewerGator: The film is about a deadly giant aligator killing humans in the sewers of Chicago.

* StockFootage: The sequel uses snippets of footage from the first film's alligator sequences in some scenes.

-->--'''{{Tagline}}'''

As usual, you can find the basics at [[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080354/combined IMDB]].

* AbsurdlySpaciousSewer

* ChildrenAreInnocent: Subverted more than once.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive

* FollowTheLeader: ''Jaws:'' several plot-points are repeated, including [[spoiler: a child being eaten by the beast, setting off a horrific media circus.]]

* HereWeGoAgain: The film ends with [[spoiler: another alligator getting flushed into the sewer.]]
* HotScientist

* NeverSmileAtACrocodile
* NighInvulnerability: Ramon

* NumberedSequels: With [[OddlyNamedSequel2ElectricBoogaloo Electric Boogaloo]].

* ReptilesAreAbhorrent

** BrickJoke: Because in the middle of the film, [[spoiler: one of the heroes arrested a man for selling a baby gator for pet and telling the other cops to flush this gator.]]

* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: Ramon counts as this to an extent.

* TalkingTheMonsterToDeath: Literally if sarcastically suggested by the Hot Scientist, in reference to her motor-mouthed mother.

->It's 36 feet long, weighs 2000 pounds, lives 50 feet below the city. Nobody knows it's down there except the people it eats.

'''Alligator''' is a 1981 horror/comedy film, directed by Lewis Teague and starring Robert Forster, with a screenplay by JohnSayles, in which "Ramon", the eponymous beast, runs amok in the Chicago sewer system after feeding on covertly discarded growth hormone. The film is notable for being among the first of the slew of ''Film/{{Jaws}}'' homages/rip-offs to be produced by the American movie industry. Unlike 99% of the horrors that have come lurching along in its wake, the humor is intentional, the human characters are sympathetic, and the flick is worth seeing.

* FollowTheLeader: ''Jaws;'' several plot-points are repeated, including [[spoiler: a child being eaten by the beast, setting off a horrific media circus.]]

* NumberedSequels: With ElectricBoogaloo.

* ShoutOut: The [[Film/TheThirdMan graffiti]] in the sewers, the name of the [[TheHoneymooners sewer-worker]] Ramon kills.

* TheEndOrIsIt: The film ends with [[spoiler: another alligator getting flushed into the sewer.]]

* InfantImmortality:
** Averted when on a dare, a kid jumps off the diving board of his backyard swimming pool at night while the alligator is momentarily staying in it. He realizes at the last moment what is happening and tries to step back, but his friends push him in anyway because they didn't see it and think he chickened out.

* ReptilesAreAbhorrent
* ShoutOut: The [[TheThirdMan graffiti]] in the sewers, the name of the [[TheHoneymooners sewer-worker]] Ramon kills.

* TheEndOrIsIt: The film ends with [[spoiler: another alligator getting flushed into the sewer.]]

'''Alligator''' is a 1981 horror/comedy film, directed by Lewis Teague and starring Robert Forster, with a screenplay by JohnSayles, in which "Ramon", the eponymous beast, runs amok in the Chicago sewer system after feeding on covertly discarded growth hormone. The film is notable for being among the first of the slew of ''{{Jaws}}'' homages/rip-offs to be produced by the American movie industry. Unlike 99% of the horrors that have come lurching along in its wake, the humor is intentional, the human characters are sympathetic, and the flick is worth seeing.

* SuspiciouslyStealthyPredator: Because it just wouldn't be a ''{{Jaws}}'' ripoff if the beast let anyone but the hero realize it was out there too soon, would it?

* SuspiciouslyStealthyPredator: Because it just wouldn't be a ''{{Jaws}}'' ripoff if the beast let anyone but the hero think it was out there too soon, would it?

* SuspiciouslyStealthyPredator: Because it just wouldn't be a ''{{Jaws}}'' ripoff if the beast actually let anyone but the hero think it was out there, would it?

* InfantImmortality: Averted when on a dare, a kid jumps off the diving board of his backyard swimming pool at night while the alligator is momentarily staying in it. He realizes at the last moment what is happening and tries to step back, but his friends push him in anyway because they didn't see it and think he chickened out.
** However, it was played straight when a little girl toddler was in the back yard with her mother's wash. Mom hears the phone ring, goes in to answer it, and along comes the titular beast. Mom sees the monster leave the yard, screaming and crying as she looks for her child.
Little girl lifts the clothes basket she was hiding under!

* InfantImmortality: Averted when on a dare, a kid jumps off the diving board of his backyard swimming pool at night while the alligator is momentarily staying in it. He realizes at the last moment what is happening and tries to step back, but his friends push him in anyway because they didn't see it and think he chickened out.