“Lake Placid” is sort-of a mix of “Tremors” and “The River Wild” with its monster on a lake setting and its as cheesy as both of those pictures. It’s not a great film but it certainly delivers a satisfying film about a crocodile on the loose.

In “Lake Placid”, a Fish and Game officer (Bill Pullman “Independence Day”), a palaeontologist (Bridget Fonda “Kiss of the Dragon”), a sheriff (Brendan Gleeson “Braveheart”) and a millionaire crocodile enthusiast (Oliver Platt “2012”) are the hunt for a creature in a lake in Maine after a fatal attack. It isn’t long before they discover what they’re looking for is a crocodile.

Bill Pullman is okay but Brendan Gleeson steals the show as Sheriff Hank Keough. The interactions between Sheriff Keough and the crocodile enthusiast are pretty funny most of the time. Bridget Fonda is alright but the whole reason why the character is even there feels so forced that the character feels as if they’ve merely been added for no real reason. I disliked the old lady (Betty White) in the film. The crocodile looks pretty impressive and I particularly like the scene in which it eats a bear. It looks a lot better than the snake in “Anaconda” and the shark in the “Jaws” sequels.

“Lake Placid” is definitely a silly film but the creature looks good and you can engage with the goofiness; it isn’t quite as witty as a film such as “Tremors”. I don’t know why the film is generally so disliked because if you go into expecting a cheesy crocodile film then how can you be disappointed with what’s on offer? There aren’t enough of these films in cinemas these days, it seems most films with creatures attacking people air only on TV and it’s a shame because I think it often means less effort goes into them. All-round, if you like films about creatures on the attack then I think you’ll enjoy “Lake Placid”.