Alligator People, The (1959)

As with so many of this era’s sci-fi B movies, the story revolves around scientists messing with nature with horrific results. In the case of Alligator People, a bride is mysteriously dumped on her wedding night. She traces her husband to a remote estate in Louisiana, where she unearths a terrible secret amongst the swamps and alligators. Her husband was saved from death by an experimental medical procedure involving a serum that mimics the reptilian ability to replace damaged limbs. While the limbs may have been repaired, there are more serious and less desirable side effects. You guessed it – he’s turning all scaly.

Despite the B-movie title and topic, Alligator People is a surprisingly good, well-acted, and tightly directed film. The special effects – often the most amusing part of similar films – are kept to a minimum in the film. There are a number of atmospheric moments in the film, especially the scene where the heroine chases after her increasingly scaly husband, only to find herself in the midst of the overgrown swamps, literally tripping over alligators and snakes in the process. There are clear shades of ‘The Fly’ in the relationship between the distressed wife and her desperate husband in search of a cure. The film moves quickly along right through to its gripping climax. An enjoyable and well-made film.