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PRIMEVAL

"Ultra-Violent Killer Crocodile"

What You Need To Know:

PRIMEVAL is an intense monster thriller set in Burundi, Africa and inspired by a true story of a real man-eating crocodile known to locals as Gustave. It starts with a deadly croc attack on an aid worker unearthing mass graves of bodies executed by a local warlord, known as “Little Gustave.” An American news team travels to Burundi to capture footage of the crocodile and, if possible, capture the critter. Their expedition turns into a deadly fight for survival against not only the crocodile but also the horrific African warlord and his team of guerilla mercenaries.

PRIMEVAL follows in step with many overdone monster movies. Where PRIMEVAL differs is in trying to illustrate the political unrest in places like Burundi. The parallels of the two stories and the two Gustaves could have been done successfully, but the movie loses credibility as the attacks from the crocodile turn away from anything resembling reality. The acting is secondary to the plot here, and the plot becomes secondary to an unbelievable monster. Ultra-violent, gruesome attack sequences, too much blood, too much foul language, and some pro-evolution and environmentalist elements make PRIMEVAL unacceptable viewing.

Content:

(PaPaPa, ACap, P, Cap, Ev, EE, FRFR, C, Ho, LLL, VVV, S, N, A, DD, MM) Very strong mixed pagan worldview with political elements where civil unrest, warlords and social turmoil in Burundi, Africa create the backdrop of the entire movie, political views include some anti-capitalist elements toward America, but the movie also contrasts this view as one young African boy hopes to come to America because it is the land of hope, plus some elements of humanist evolution as wildlife expert discusses the evolution of crocodiles and some environmental elements as the wildlife expert says that crocodiles are more important to the earth than mankind, with elements of false religion as an African shaman performs a “prophetic” ritual over expedition team, light Christian content as expedition team sings “Amazing Grace” to African natives, and a light homosexual element as dialogue reveals a minor character is gay; at least 40 obscenities (about 16 of which are "f" words), three profanities and one crude gesture; incredibly strong violence includes graphic depictions of dead corpses in mass graves, multiple deadly and increasingly graphic crocodile attacks throughout the movie range from assumed to depicted as the movie progresses, including killing children, guerrilla mercenaries, aid workers, scientists, etc., opening credits are filled with bloody imagery such as skulls and bloody body parts, fisherman chops the head off a fish, rebels are shot by soldiers, a warlord decapitates a shaman and shoots two other people in an execution, a woman is assaulted in an attempted rape scene, a man is shot, another man is hit full speed by a car and then shot at close-range with a machine gun, a young man is shot in the shoulder, mercenary ejected from a car and breaks his back by flying into a tree, two men fight and wrestle in a brutal brawl, a man is shot, warlord burns a cigarette into a woman’s arm, and blood fills the river water in several attack sequences; light sexual content includes a violent assault where a guerilla mercenary attempts to rape a woman (ripping her shirt and exposing her bra, although he is unsuccessful; naturalistic upper male nudity of African tribes people, female cleavage in tight shirts, and a woman’s shirt is ripped open in attempted rape scene as her bra is exposed; alcohol use includes several scenes of beer consumption although no drunkenness is implied; drug use includes shaman using some form of inhalant and one character takes a few “hits” off the shaman’s pipe; and, strong miscellaneous immorality includes multiple racial remarks by the expedition team’s cameraman about how white people don’t care about black on black crime especially in Africa, and other comments about slavery, racism, etc.

More Detail:

PRIMEVAL is an intense thriller about a news team (played by Dominic Purcell, Brooke Langton and Orlando Jones) whose simple expedition to Burundi, Africa to capture footage of a man-eating crocodile turns into a deadly fight for survival against not only the crocodile but also a horrific African warlord and his team of guerilla mercenaries.

PRIMEVAL is inspired by a true story of a real man-eating crocodile known to locals in Burundi as Gustave. It starts with a deadly attack on an international aid worker who is unearthing mass graves of bodies that have been executed by a local warlord, known by the natives as “Little Gustave.” From there, an American news team is sent to get footage and, if at all possible, capture the man-eating crocodile. Teaming with a poacher/guide (played by Jurgen Prochnow) and a “Crocodile Hunter”-style television star and wildlife expert (played by Gideon Emery), the news team quickly finds that this 18-foot crocodile may be more than they can handle.

Soon after their first encounter with big Gustave, the cameraman records “Little Gustave” on tape as he executes some local natives. When word makes it back to the warlord that the Americans have footage of this execution, the news team finds themselves as the target of execution from both man and beast.

PRIMEVAL follows in step with many overdone monster movies. Where PRIMEVAL differs is in trying to illustrate the political unrest in places like Burundi, Africa. The parallels of the two stories and the two Gustaves could have been done successfully, but the movie loses credibility as the attacks from the crocodile turn away from anything resembling reality.

The acting is secondary to the plot here, and the plot becomes secondary to an unbelievable monster. Even though the filmmakers may have wanted to shed light on the injustices and human suffering in Burundi, they have instead made a movie that is (during some attack sequences) almost laughable. In another problematic element, one character makes several comments about racism and hate-crimes in an attempt to add humor.

Ultra-violent attack sequences, some elements of racism and environmentalism, too much blood, and too much foul language help give PRIMEVAL an unacceptable Minus Four rating.

Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.

What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.

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Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.


Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.

What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.

You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.

Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.