Ragin Cajun Redneck Gators (2013)

Directed by Griff Furst [Other horror films: I Am Omega (2007), Wolvesbayne (2009), 30 Days to Die (2009), Lake Placid 3 (2010), Maskerade (2011), Swamp Shark (2011), Arachnoquake (2012), Ghost Shark (2013), Starve (2014), Cold Moon (2016), Trailer Park Shark (2017), Nightmare Shark (2018)]

With a catchy title like Ragin Cajun Redneck Gators, you might wonder where the film goes wrong, and the answer, unfortunately, is in so many ways. Later retitled Alligator Alley (nowhere near as catchy a title, in my view), this film is just not a good movie.

Look, it’s a Syfy movie, so going in, you know you might be in for a somewhat rough time. Even so, the plot of this film is beyond the pale. Bad batches of moonshine have been dumped into the swamps, infecting the alligators. These alligators are then hunted and consumed. And those who eat them slowly turn into alligators themselves. Oh, and for some Louisiana flavor, there’s a long-time family feud between two families, the Doucette’s and the Robichaud’s.

If it had just been a general alligator attack film, and two families who hated each other had to work together to survive, that might be a tolerable story. But they just instead go an utterly ridiculous route and have people turn into alligators, because of course that’s what this movie was missing. It’s such a damn shame, as theoretically, the movie could have had potential.

Jordan Hinson (Living Among Us) was not particularly great here. I mean, she had the accent, so that’s fine, but I just couldn’t get into her character past a certain point, and the same can be said for many of the cast, such as John Chriss, Nicoye Banks, and Thomas Francis Murphy (Ozark Sharks). I do think that Ritchie Montgomery (Trailer Park Shark, Texas Chainsaw 3D) did great – his personality was fun, and his Cajun accent was hella unique. He was easily my favorite performance, and it’s a shame they took his character in a scaly direction.

I mean, what else can you say about Ragin Cajun Redneck Gators? The special effects were pretty terrible throughout (toward the end, one of my least favorite things happened, being blood splatter effect on the camera), the plot is laughably ridiculous (Hinson’s character referring to the alligator as “daddy” cracked me up quite a bit), and the film is a good example of what Syfy has become in more recent years.

When I first saw this film, I think I liked it marginally more, or at the very least, was more amused by it. Now, while I can appreciate the Louisiana setting and some of the elements here, it’s not really a film I’d care to see a third time; it’s just too silly.

5/10