Is there such thing as an AMERICAN Kaiju?!

Instead of going directly to the Japanese legends like Godzilla, Mothra, or even Gamera, this Kaijune kicks off in the streets of Chicago. Everyone knows the urban legend: a child is given a baby alligator as a pet, it gets flushed down a toilet, and then it grows to a hulking, monstrous size, terrorizing the sewer system and beyond. Lewis Teague (Cat's Eye, Cujo) uses this as a launchpad for 1980's Alligator, a creature feature that takes the classic elements of Eastern cinema and infuses them with an inimitably American flavor.

Alligator has so much going for it, not the least of which is a gator the size of a bus. Penned by the legendary John Sayles between his work on Joe Dante's Piranha and The Howling, he takes a potentially absurd concept and grounds it with realistic, human characters. Starring the great Robert Forster (Twin Peaks: The Return, Jackie Brown) as a detective whose partners seem to have trouble staying alive alongside the woefully underappreciated Robin Riker (Get a Life) as a herpetologist whose childhood alligator (Ramon!) just happens to be the beast wreaking havoc, they join forces to hunt down the voracious reptile before it figures out how to ascend to street level.

Don't miss the monster madness when Ramon's rampage hits the screen on June 7th! KaiJune is our month long summer series celebrating the Kaiju Film in all its forms.