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Eaten Alive
Directed by	Tobe Hooper
Produced by	Mardi Rustam
Written by	Kim Henkel Alvin L. Fast Mardi Rustam
Starring	Neville Brand Mel Ferrer Carolyn Jones Marilyn Burns
Music by	Wayne Bell Tobe Hooper
Cinematography	Robert Caramico
Editing by	Michael Brown
Release date(s)	1977 (USA)
Running time	91 min. 87 min. (UK cut)
Language	English

Eaten Alive (known under various pseudonyms in alternate regions, adopting such titles as Death Trap (UK), Horror Hotel, Horror Hotel Massacre, Legend of the Bayou, Murder on the Bayou, Le crocodile de la mort (France) and Starlight Slaughter) is a 1977 horror film directed by Tobe Hooper, featuring Robert Englund, Neville Brand and William Finley.

Synopsis

The local fleabag hotel is run by Judd (Brand), who keeps a pet crocodile. As guests arrive, Judd reveals that he is far from a typical hotel owner, and keen on introducing his lodgers to his scythe and his pet.

Cast

• Neville Brand as Judd
• Mel Ferrer as Harvey Wood
• Carolyn Jones as Miss Hattie
• Marilyn Burns as Faye
• William Finley as Roy
• Stuart Whitman as Sherriff Martin
• Roberta Collins as Clara
• Kyle Richards as Angie
• Robert Englund as Buck
• Crystin Sinclaire as Libby Wood
• Janus Blythe as Lynette
• Betty Cole as Ruby
• Scruffy as Snoopy

Plot

After refusing a request from Buck (Robert Englund), a frisky customer, a prostitute is dismissed from her job at the town brothel. She then makes her way to a run-down hotel where she encounters Judd (Neville Brand), the mentally disturbed proprietor and his pet crocodile. Upon discovering his new lodger is a woman of questionable virtue, Judd attacks. He begins tearing at her blouse while ranting and raving, causing her to run outside, where Judd savagely finishes her off with a scythe. However, once she is dead, Judd looks shocked by what he has done. But it is already too late. Judd's crocodile greedily eats the body ... the first of many he will happily devour in the course of the movie.

Video nasty

• This movie was one of the so called "Video Nasties" in the UK during the early 80s. The movie was not successfully prosecuted for obscenity. Mary Whitehouse apparently took a personal objection to this movie, though she had never actually viewed it.

Legacy

The film was inspired by serial killer Joe Ball, who reputedly fed over 20 victims to alligators as a means of disposal.^{[citation needed]}

Director Quentin Tarantino used this movie's character Buck for the line in his kung fu homage movie Kill Bill, "My name is Buck, and I'm here to fuck".

New York deathgrind band Mortician used a soundbyte from the film for the intro to the song "Devoured Alive" from their 1998 Zombie Apocalypse EP.

Robert Englund claimed in Samhain magazine (1988, no.14) “I found out recently from someone who saw it in Japan that they literally put in insert shots of me in that, so in Japan you can see bogus uncircumcised Robert Englund genitalia. In the American version I say a couple of rude words and I flirt with a girl in brassiere. In Japan it’s a monster shot, I need it. I’m just hoping the guy’s well hung!”

External links

• Eaten Alive at the Internet Movie Database
• Eaten Alive at Allmovie