The Bayou

The release year of The Bayou (2025) states that it was 2025. Ok, but why on earth is such a movie like this produced in this day-and-age? With an estimated budget of $5 million (unconfirmed) I doubt that they saw a return out of this move.

Madalena Aragão (Alice) reminded me of Kaya Scodelario in her looks, I had to do some searching on that, as it happens, Kaya was in the movie Crawl (2019) which was about gators. Crawl was a better movie.

Anyway, overall The Bayou was just ok, but below average for a 2025 movie. Athena Strates (Kyle) didn't quiet convince me that she was a gator expert. Elisha Applebaum (Malika) worked her magic and totally convinced me to dislike her character, so well done there, Elisha.

Other actors trying to do their bit were Mohammed Mansaray (Sam) seemed to be confused whether he had to be the comedic relief or a wanna be hero. The crazed pilot, Frank (Andonis Anthony), was not convincing at being a leader. Tayla Kovacevic-Ebong (Dom) was probably the hero, or close to one.

Overall, the effects were not too bad, the story and acting are what you would expect from the B movie. Would I recommend this? A few beers or wine and it is a yes.

I have seen Rogue. This is not Rogue. This is of a lower quality, and some of the stock-footage of the actual animals is annoying. Some of the cgi used for the animals is decent, way better than one might expect from a movie like this, which is a lovely surprise.

The characters are distinct and likable enough, and the actors do a good job of portraying them, giving them all enough life so that you can engage with them without overstaying or overstating them.

This is not as tight as some other croc-related movies like Lake Placid or Crawl, but it is certainly better than Primeval or Black Water.

This is enjoyable.

Terrible acting, horrible casting, and a storyline that feels like it was recycled from countless other films-but with an extra layer of awfulness. The dialogue is forced, the characters are unconvincing, and the pacing is sluggish. Any attempt at suspense or emotion falls completely flat. Even the cinematography and editing seem rushed and uninspired. It's almost impressive how every element of this movie manages to miss the mark. I think 1 star is overrating it-this is a complete waste of time.

You will be surprised by the time you will waste watching this cheap movie. Can't believe I wasted my time.

I put this movie on last night not expecting much but it is so much better than I expected.

I thought it would be on par with a lot of Asylum films but this is way better.

The CGI is pretty good, the acting is also pretty good. Sure there's the expected a'hole characters and silly sacrifices but all in all it's a fun movie.

What's not to like? People and alligators in the bayou.

I don't know why other people have given it such rubbish reviews, glad I didn't read them before I watched it.

I went in expecting rubbish and was pleasantly surprised.

Why not give it a go.

If you like creature features, this is the movie for you.

After suffering through Skinamarink, one of the most boring horror films I have ever seen, I needed to cleanse my palate, so to speak. The Bayou fits the bill perfectly - it's a cheap and cheerful creature feature with absolutely no pretensions. It does exactly what it says on the tin and is actually better than I expected, with above average CGI for this kind of thing, a smattering of gore and reasonable performances.

Athena Strates plays Kyle, who flies to the everglades with her friends to scatter the ashes of her older brother Jamie (Flynn Barnard). Disaster strikes when the plane experiences engine trouble and ditches in the middle of a swamp, where the alligator population has turned super-aggressive due to the powerful narcotic that was dumped in the water during a raid on an illegal drug factory.

The film obviously won't win any awards for originality, but it's not trying to - it knows exactly what is required of it, moving swiftly along, delivering a few jump scares and a fair bit of suspense. And it doesn't scrimp on the gator action: there's numerous ravenous reptiles, both practical and computer generated, and they put quite a few similarly themed films to shame.

6/10. Worth a go if it's a brainless, no-nonsense bit of fun you're after.