Creature features aren’t what they once were. While the likes of Kaiju films such as Pacific Rim and Godzilla have been dominating the box office charts in recent years, classic, throwback creature features are few and far between. Perhaps that’s because mainstream audiences find it hard to take these pictures seriously. It may also be because many of the cult classics of the genre have often been presented in a heightened reality, with grounded plots making way for a much more ridiculous affair.
The only film that has truly come close to what the creature feature is all about in recent years is Cocaine Bear, which kept the spirit of this genre alive, albeit in a completely different style. However, the 1990s were a much more vibrant and exciting time for the genre, with low-budget horror, thriller, and comedy movies catapulting creature features onto VHS with unique angles and gripping conflicts. Lake Placid is very much of its era and, while it may be unfamiliar to modern audiences, it’s nonetheless a classic example of how horrifying these monster movies can be, even if they are a little overdramatic.
Lake Placid Played With The Tensions Of The Deep
Lake Placid debuted in 1999 and was billed as both a horror and a comedy. Directed by Steve Miner of Halloween H20: 20 Years Later and written by Big Shot’s David E. Kelley, Lake Placid presents a timeless tale of man versus monster. The film is set in the fictional titular lake, in Aroostook County, Maine. There, a giant crocodile is on the loose, horrifying locals, killing all that come near, and generally causing a nuisance. While the kills might be graphic and at times over-the-top, the true drive of the piece is the quest to capture or kill the beast. Following a group of sheriffs, scientists, and concerned citizens, Lake Placid puts together a largely ill-prepared team to fight back.
Despite the inexperience in the fictional world, the talent in front of the camera is far more competent. Lake Placid boasts an incredible cast, which includes screen legend Betty White, perhaps best known for The Gilmore Girls, Space Balls’ Bill Pullman, who is also no stranger to comedy, and Harry Potter’s own Brendan Gleeson. Scandal’s Bridget Fonda completes the key ensemble, but the supporting players are no less important. Maybe that’s why Lake Placid just hits differently, because despite the absurdity of the material, everyone brings their A-game.
Watching back Lake Placid from a modern perspective, it’s easy to see its faults, yet they are few and far between considering what the film was able to achieve. With a $56 million global box office and a 47% critical score on Rotten Tomatoes, it would seem as if the film was a failure, but that’s far from the truth. Lake Placid has been cemented as a cult hit that has created a firm following, thanks in large part to its homages to the genre. It was able to take what audiences knew of the creature feature and twist those elements, adding nuance and surrealism where needed. It really was a difficult balancing act!
Creature Features Are So Often Overlooked
Lake Placid Created A Franchise That Played To The Tropes
What’s particularly special about Lake Placid is that it continued to protect a genre that many assumed was dying out. It presented 20th Century Fox with the opportunity to expand the line, with audiences enjoying a great many ridiculous sequels and spin-offs that varied in tone and quality but always came back to the core of what the creature feature is all about: monsters fighting mankind. The likes of Lake Placid 2, Lake Placid: The Final Chapter, and Lake Placid: Legacy highlight the series’ ability to keep on being reinvented. The crossover with the Anaconda series only further played into that respect for the tropes and traits of the genre.
The creators of these films know that they are supposed to be equally silly and scary at times, and, right up until 2018, they have continued to demonstrate that the creature feature can maintain its relevancy. That’s the beauty of Lake Placid. Because it taps into a very real fear of entering a body of water without knowing what may lurk beneath the surface, audiences have been gripped by a very relatable tension. The laughs may ease some of that concern, but Lake Placid and its many spinoffs always remember to shock their audience, just as they’ve grown comfortable again. It could very well be the case that Lake Placid inspires a new generation of creature feature fanatics.
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