National treasureBetty Whitecould have lived to be 150, and most fans would probably still sayshe left us too soon. But the iconic TV legend does live on in our hearts, whether as the sweet and endearingly naive Rose Nylund fromThe Golden Girlsor the much snarkier and more worldly Elka Ostrovsky fromHot in Cleveland. Part of the charm ofHot in Clevelandwas the fact that White’s character was so different from who she played onThe Golden Girls, but the truth is, White had already shown us the polar opposite of her sweet old lady persona in 1999’sLake Placid. This classic creature feature about an enormous crocodile terrorizing a small town is about as silly as it sounds, butWhite steals the few scenes she’s in as a foul-mouthed, sarcastic widowthat says things that would make Rose faint and Elka blush. And she’s not the only delight to be found in this underrated flick; on top of White dropping an F-bomb onBrendan Gleeson, right before he gained national attention in movies like28 Days Laterand long before he would finally be nominated for an Oscar,Lake Placidfeatures some pretty satisfying crocodile attacks.
Come for the Crocodile, Stay for the Comedy
Lake Placidisa classic ’90s creature featurefeaturing a cast of very eatable charact– I mean, talented actors going up againstan enormous saltwater crocodile that has no business being in a lake in Maine.The investigative team is ostensibly led by Fish and Wildlife Service officer Jack (Bill Pullman) with paleontologist Kelly (Bridget Fonda) sort of…tagging along as her boyfriend/boss’s way of getting her out of the way after he breaks up with her (yikes).Since the tooth they find is obviously not prehistoric, Fonda’s character mostly serves as the city-slicker foil to Pullman’s more rugged nature, and as an introduction to the actual crocodile expert, Hector (Oliver Platt). It’s a messy script, but we all know that we don’t go into most creature features for the plot –we want to see big animals eating people. And for all its flaws,Lake Placiddoes deliver on that front; there’s even a moment almost on par with the shock ofSamuel L. Jackson’sdeath inDeep Blue Sea,another iconic animal attack movie from the ’90s. The rest of the movie’s tension is split between on-screen confrontations with the crocodile and seeing the gory aftermath of the attacks; it’s not a particular bloody movie, but there are severed body parts galore.
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Betty White was the queen of comedy and lovable all-around!
ButBetty White is almost as vicious as the crocodileat the center of the movie, at least with her words. Part of the appeal is that the role of widow Dolores Bickerman issuch a departure from Rose Nylund; that role had only ended six years before and White was still heavily associated with playinga very grandmotherly, sweet-natured woman. So if you ever wondered what it’d be like to hear White call someone “Officer F*ckmeat,” among other things,Lake Placidis where to go. My personal favorite moment is White saying to Brendan Gleeson, “If I had a dick, this is where I’d tell you to suck it.”This isn’t just hearing an otherwise pleasant old lady swear; Bickerman very much resents the investigation of the deaths intruding on her personal business and has no qualms about letting them know it. Of course,her business is actively feeding the crocodiledespite its danger to the locals, essentially making her the human villain of the whole movie.
Betty White Isn’t the Only Surprising Star in ‘Lake Placid’
Even when Betty White isn’t onscreen,Lake Placidis filled withsharp-tongued banter from the rest of the supporting cast. Oliver Platt is always a solid choice fora more comedic side character, and he doesn’t disappoint here as Hector, buthe also has an excellent sparring partner in Brendan Gleesonas Hank. In contrast to Hector’s obnoxiously energetic personality, Hank is the quiet, deadpan snarker who is annoyed by sarcasm but is more than capable of dishing it out himself. A perfect example is a conversation between the two after the group discovers a severed toe left behind by the crocodile (I told you there were a lot of body parts). Hector holds up the toe with mock gravitas and asks, “Is this the man who was killed?”,clearly having fun despite the gruesome circumstances. Gleeson responds in the most disdainful voice possible, “He seemed taller.” It may have takenThe Banshees of Inisherinfor Gleeson to receive Oscar recognition for his talents, but even in a dumb-fun movie as early in his career asLake Placid, he knows how to deliver the goods.
Gleeson, Platt, and most especially White all elevateLake Placidbeyond a generic “wild animal attacks people” flick, more so than its more traditional leads, at any rate. Their comedic deliveries coupled with a few gnarly surprises with the croc are enough to warrant a revisit of the film from modern critics, as well as a fresh watch for first-time viewers.
Lake Placid
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