Eaten Alive (1977)

Director:

Tobe Hooper

Writers:

Alvin L. Fast (written by) and
Mardi Rustam (written by) ...
(more)

Release Date:

May 1977 (USA)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

He's out there and he's got murder on his mind!

Plot:

A psychotic redneck who owns a dilapidated hotel in the backwater swamps of Louisiana kills various people who upset him or his business, and he feeds their bodies to a large crocodile that he keeps as a pet in the swamp beside his hotel.

Plot Keywords:

Hotel | Crocodile | Swamp | Louisiana | Monkey

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Neville Brand	...	Judd
Mel Ferrer	...	Harvey Wood
Carolyn Jones	...	Miss Hattie
Marilyn Burns	...	Faye
William Finley	...	Roy
Stuart Whitman	...	Sheriff Martin
Roberta Collins	...	Clara
Kyle Richards	...	Angie
Robert Englund	...	Buck
Crystin Sinclaire	...	Libby Wood
Janus Blythe	...	Lynette (as Janus Blyth)
Betty Cole	...	Ruby
Sig Sakowicz	...	Deputy Girth
Ronald W. Davis	...	Country Boy
Christine Schneider	...	Waitress
David Hayward	...	The Cowboy
David Carson	...	Marlo (as David 'Goat' Carson)
Lincoln Kibbee	...	First Guy in Bar
James Galanis	...	Second Guy in Bar
Tarja Leena Halinen	...	Miss Hattie's Girl
Caren White	...	Miss Hattie's Girl
Valerie Lukecart	...	Miss Hattie's Girl
Jeanne Reichert	...	Miss Hattie's Girl
Scuffy	...	Snoopy

Directed by
Tobe Hooper

Writing credits
Alvin L. Fast		(written by) and
Mardi Rustam		(written by)
Kim Henkel		(screen adaptation)

Produced by
Alvin L. Fast	....	co-producer
Larry Huly	....	associate producer
Robert A. Kanto	....	associate producer (as Robert Kantor)
Mardi Rustam	....	producer
Mohammed Rustam	....	executive producer
Samir Rustam	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Wayne Bell
Tobe Hooper

Cinematography by
Robert Caramico		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Michael Brown

Casting by
Edward R. Morse		(as Eddie Morse)

Art Direction by
Marshall Reed

Set Decoration by
Michael Wiegand		(as Mike Wiegand)

Makeup Department
Craig Reardon	....	hair stylist
Craig Reardon	....	makeup artist
Beth Rogers	....	hair stylist
Beth Rogers	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Sheldon Lee	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jefferson Kibbee	....	second assistant director (as Jeff Kibbee)
Louie Lawless	....	second assistant director
Ron Smith	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Richard Gillis	....	assistant property master
Marshall Reed	....	set designer

Sound Department
Lowell Brown	....	boom operator
Jean Clark	....	boom operator
Bob Dietz	....	production sound mixer
Jay M. Harding	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Jay Harding)
William L. Manger	....	sound effects (as Bill Manger)

Special Effects by
Robert A. Mattey	....	special effects: crocodiles (as Rob Mattey)
Ken Speed	....	special effects (uncredited)

Stunts
Paula Crist	....	stunt double
Von Deming	....	stunt coordinator
Andy Epper	....	stunt double
Gary Epper	....	stunt double
Jeannie Epper	....	stunt double (as Jeanie Epper)
Donna Garrett	....	stunt double
Minor Mustain	....	stunt double

Camera and Electrical Department
Victor Alexander	....	second assistant camera
Jack Beckett	....	camera operator: second unit
Jim Bowie	....	best boy
Hedy Dietz	....	still photographer (as Heddy Dietz)
Rich Foster	....	gaffer
Dennis Glas	....	grip (as Dennis Glass)
Gary Graver	....	grip (as Robbie McClure)
Lee Heckler	....	gaffer
Ken Kerr	....	grip
Ann McDonald	....	assistant photographer
Michael Donovan O'Donnell	....	key grip (as Michael Donavan O'Donnell)
Anthony R. Palmieri	....	first assistant camera (as Tony Palmieri)
Raman Rao	....	grip (as Romy Rao)
Jonathan West	....	second assistant camera (as Jon West)
Bobby Westwater	....	grip
Gary Zietlow	....	best boy

Costume and Wardrobe Department
J. Mancbach-Fletcher	....	wardrobe (as Jane Mancbach)
Greg Tittinger	....	wardrobe

Editorial Department
Andy Ruben	....	assistant editor
David Block	....	colorist (uncredited)

Music Department
Wayne Bell	....	conductor
Wayne Bell	....	music arranger
Tobe Hooper	....	conductor
Tobe Hooper	....	music arranger
Lee Osborne	....	music editor

Other crew
John D'Amato	....	script supervisor
Lou Schumacher	....	dog owner
Lou Schumacher	....	dog trainer
Gloria Gunn	....	production assistant (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Mars Productions Corporation

Distributors

• Saguenay Films (1977) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Postels (1980) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Atlantic Film (2005) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Beam Entertainment (Japan) (DVD producer)
• Creative Axa Co. Ltd. (Japan) (DVD)
• DMEG (2004) (Sweden) (video)
• Dark Sky Films (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• EastWest Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Elite Entertainment (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Future Film (2007) (Finland) (DVD)
• ITT Contrast (????) (West Germany) (VHS)
• Prism Entertainment Corporation (video)
• Sunrise Entertainment (2005) (Germany) (DVD)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2004) (Australia) (DVD) (as "Eaten Alive")
• Video Instant Picture Company (VIPCO) (UK) (video)
• Virgo International Pictures

Special Effects

• A&A Special Effects (as A&A)

Other Companies

• Consolidated Film Industries (CFI)  processing
• Echo Film Services  sound effects (as Echo Film Service)
• Glen Glenn Sound Company  recorded by (as Glen Glenn Sound)
• Screen Time Images  film restoration
• Total Optical Productions  titles and opticals

Also Known As:

"Brutes and Savages" - USA (alternative title)
"Death Trap" - UK
"Horror Hotel" -
"Horror Hotel Massacre" -
"Legend of the Bayou" -
"Murder on the Bayou" -
"Slaughter Hotel" - USA (reissue title)
"Starlight Slaughter" -
"Blutrausch" - West Germany
"Death Trap - Die Nacht der Bestie" - West Germany
"Krokodil" - Turkey (Turkish title)
"Le crocodile de la mort" - France
"Quel motel vicino alla palude" - Italy
"Sta sagonia tou krokodeilou" - Greece (transliterated ISO-LATIN-1 title)
"Sti folia ton krokodeilon" - Greece (reissue title)
"Trampa mortal" - Spain (imdb display title)
"Zjedzeni zywcem" - Poland (imdb display title)

Runtime:

91 min | UK:87 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Sweden:15 | Netherlands:16 (orginal rating) | Norway:15 (2007) | Finland:K-18 | New Zealand:R16 | Germany:18 | West Germany:18 (JK/SPIO) (cut) | Italy:VM18 | Australia:R | France:-16 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Raleigh Studios - 5300 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Mars Productions Corporation

Trivia:

Loosely based on the story of Joe Ball (also known as the Bluebeard from South Texas or the Alligator Man) from Elmendorf, Texas, sometime after Prohibition ended. He owned a bar with an alligator pit serving as an entertainment attraction. Several murders of women ensued, but it was never proven that the flesh found in the pit was human. However, Joe did commit suicide upon possibility of capture.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Right at the end of the film when the crocodile pulls Judd under the water head first, look to the left of the screen to see a scuba diver under the water who turns is clearly moving. He is obviously a safety stuntman of some sort. You can clearly see his hand and is dressed in black.

Movie Connections:

Featured in American Grindhouse (2010)

Tobe Hooper's 70's films still stand as his best ones! Golden horror!!

`The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' (of course) and `Death Trap' (less obvious already) are the only two films Tobe Hooper should be really remembered for as a horror director. They both are raw and chilling explorations of the angry rural America. The location of this film looks like a giant swampy area, homed by underdeveloped perverted rednecks and other freaks of society. Neville Brand terrifically portrays Judd, the isolated owner of the Starlight Hotel. Judd suffers a bit from the incapability to communicate with people and the guests at his hotel are doomed to die as soon as they enter his facility. He also has a pet crocodile swimming underneath the porch of his hotel, which is a pretty convenient method to get rid of human leftovers… A poor, rejected prostitute is the first to undergo Judd's murderous rituals. Her relatives soon come to search for her and are doomed as well. In the meantime, the croc feeds on some more unfortunate by passers. Although I regard this as Hooper's second best film, it doesn't come close to the power of TCM…Which kind of gives you an idea of how great I think TCM was! The settings and photography of Horror Hotel (one of the film's a.k.a's) look nasty and utterly cheap. Just as it did in TCM, this actually increases the macabre atmosphere and you constantly feel something wicked is about to happen. The characters – although pretty imaginative – aren't as convincing as the Sawyer family but they too seem to come running straight out of a freakshow as well! There's Judd of course, but also a very memorable Robert Englund who plays a retarded yokel with an obsession for anal sex. The scream-queen prototype Marilyn Burns returns as well before disappearing into actress-oblivion forever. The crocodile as well as most other horror scenery looks really cheap, but to me, this only increases the trash-fun value of this film. Highly recommended viewing as far as I'm concerned.