Creature (2011) (Review)

Creature (2011) Synopsis: In the backwoods of Louisiana, friends mistakenly unleash the wrath of a horrendous swamp creature. 

So…. this isn’t going to be an easy review, because this film is so bad! I shouldn’t waste a second or an ounce of energy talking about this piece of rubbish, but I have to!  First of all… why embark on such a film? It’s a bit like the effect of a drug, I think. When you test it out, you love it, but afterwards you want the same feeling, but you never get it again. With the mythical Alien and Predator, it was discovery and mission accomplished. Since then, monster movies have gone into decline. The Monster (2016) still managed the challenge of creating thrills and a credible creature. And I loved Walking Against The Rain (2022).  

Okay, back to the review. The film’s critical reception was extremely negative. Indeed, Scott Foy of Dread Central criticised the film, giving it a 1/5 star rating and calling it “unworthy of wide release”. Neil Genzlinger of the New York Times gave the film a negative review, saying in his review of the film, “The six actors in the central and edible roles look as if they could have made a Scream-like satire, but since they weren’t asked to, there’s little for them to do but follow the clearly visible paths to their doom. Not all are doomed, of course – cinematic tradition demands survivors – but the climactic scene, which seems inspired by mud wrestling, is so silly that perhaps those who survive the swampy ordeal wish they hadn’t. Corey Hall of Metro Times criticised the film, concluding, “Creature is so ridiculously pathetic it’s worth a laugh, but what’s truly amazing is that huckster Sid Haig (a Rob Zombie movie actor) put up the money to dump this mud-covered turd in over 1,500 cinemas across the country, proving that hope, like evil swamp monsters, is eternal.” Mark Olsen of the Los Angeles Times called it a “delightfully silly” film that “has no illusions about what it is: an exploitation horror film of creatures, boobs and blood”.

As for the blood, yes, there’s plenty of it! As far as creatures go, yes: we see big giant crocodiles (one of them albino!), followed by a guy who becomes a cannibal after killing the gigantic one with his bare hands to avenge his wife, simply because he’s so angry and furious. Except that afterwards, he also eats the human remains left by the giant albino. And so he transforms himself into a monster, half man, half crocodile.  The creature he becomes is nevertheless very interesting (even if we don’t believe his story for a second!)… but relatively poorly done, so that too falls in the water, even in the swamp.

As for the breasts: there isn’t a leading actress in this film who doesn’t bare her breasts. Presumably to attract as many viewers as possible. Which didn’t really work given that “Creature” was released in US cinemas on 9 September 2011. The film grossed $327,000 in 1,507 theaters on its opening weekend, making it the second-worst opening weekend ever for a film appearing on more than 1,500 screens, and the third-worst average per location ever. It finished its run with a domestic gross of $508,714.”

The film tried to be classified under horror comedy, but there’s nothing funny about it. It’s just tragic to see such a waste of time, money and film. 

Even the sexual scenes can’t be taken as something fun, as it quickly descends into the dirtiest incest. And that brings the film back to Wrong Turn 5 and 6, which are the worst episodes of the saga. 

I’ve said enough! The film doesn’t start too badly, you think that once again it’s young adults who are going to get scared and certainly killed off one by one. So… we know it’s going to be violent, we know why we’re watching. But, perhaps contradictorily, I’m also looking for subtlety. Which the film did not have. If you can find that, you’re on the verge of an excellent film. Alas, when there’s none at all, the film sinks to the bottom. A real waste of time, a badly made monster, an improbable ending, illogicalities, inconsistencies, perversity just to shock. This film has my complete aversion !