Gator (1976) on Netflix
After prison, Gator McKlusky returns to his father's cabin in the Okefenokee Swamp. A federal agent offers a deal: help bring down crime boss Bama McCall or lose custody of his daughter.
- Netflix3.0/5
- IMDb5.8/105,650 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes25%
Trailer
Plot summary
Federal agent Irving Greenfield talks with the Governor of Georgia about corruption in Dunston County, where Bama McCall runs the local crime. Greenfield wants Gator McKlusky, an old friend of Bama's who is just out of prison, to get him evidence. Gator is back in the swamp with his father Ned and his daughter Suzie, and he refuses. Greenfield threatens Ned with jail and Suzie with foster care, and Gator agrees to go. In Dunston he meets Bama again at a political rally and is hired as a collector. He also meets Aggie Maybank, a television reporter chasing the story. Bama shows him the high life and quietly orders a background check, and Gator sees an operation built on extortion, drugs and corruption.
Cast
Show all 20 cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Gator (1976)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Burt Reynolds turned the script down flat when it was sent to him, calling it terrible. When the producers then asked whether he would like to direct it, he changed his verdict on the spot: "It's a wonderful script".
- Directing for the first time, Reynolds canvassed three veterans for advice. Peter Bogdanovich told him to cut only on a move, Robert Aldrich told him to listen to everyone and then make up his own mind, and Mel Brooks told him to fire someone on the first day.
- Reynolds used the film to honor his favorite teacher: Watson B. Duncan III, his professor at Palm Beach Junior College, appears in it as the Governor's press secretary.
- The animated series Archer keeps coming back to this film: its title character, Sterling Archer, voiced by H. Jon Benjamin, often calls it his favorite movie.
