GATOR KILL

Crider's laconic part-time Texas p.i. Truman Smith (Dead on the Island, etc.) takes on a job for old-timer friend Fred Benton. Fred and wife Mary own a huge chunk of Texas backwoods, a lot of it swampland. Someone has killed and skinned one of Fred's beloved alligators, leaving the carcass to rot, and he wants Truman to find out who and why. Other oddball things have been happening on Fred's property—strange noises and strange vehicles, one of them a Ford truck that attacks like an army tank. Truman survives the truck, barrages of bullets, and an underwater swim with ravenous gators before he finally figures out who the nasty villain is and what he's up to. Lots of swamp lore and a familiar plot—a sluggish performance, overall, in Crider's laid-back, good ol' boys style.