Captain_Couth Review of Eaten Alive

Eaten Alive (1976)

Tragically overlooked film by Tobe Hooper

[9/10 · 1 October 2003]

Eaten Alive (1977) is one of the most overlooked and under-appreciated films. Maybe the critics and fans were disenchanted with it because they were probably expecting a film in the vein of first film Texas CHAINSAW MASSACRE. In many retrospects the films are similar. They both feature dying, old ways of life (privately owned slaughter houses, roadside motels with sideshow exhibits). The film's main character is Judd, the proprietor of the Starlight Hotel and Zoo. Judd is a crazed war vet with broken dreams who's haunted by ghosts from the past. Neville Brand portrays Judd with such an eerie, uncanny flair (his experiences as a decorated WWII vet gives his role an aura of authenticity). A true slice of dying Americana as only Tobe Hooper can tell.

The support players are William Finley, Marylin Burns, Stuart Whitman, Mel Ferrer, Robert Englund and an unrecognizable Carolyn Jones (TV's Morticia

Addams). This film has been restored for DVD by Elite. Beware of the cheaper DVDs because they are truly ghastly.

Strongly recommended