NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Synapse Films Blu-ray (July 2024): Synapse Films have transferred Sompote Sands's Crocodile (aka "Chorakhe") to 1080P Blu-ray. It is advertised stating: "Synapse Films is proud to present the Blu-ray world-premiere of Crocodile in its original U.S. release version, meticulously restored from the original English 35mm camera negative." It actually looks okay - with a few weaker patches. There are some pleasing close-ups (many of the Croc's eyes.) Colors look decently balanced if a shade faded. There are a few instances of depth and overall, I think it looks far better than I was anticipating.

NOTE: We have added 56 more large resolution Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Synapse Films use a DTS-HD Master dual-mono track (24-bit) in the English language. There are plenty of fast-edit attack sequences and a notable electric storm but no credited score. There is some, presumably, stock music cues utilized that are quite dramatic. They work for the low-budget, kitschy, tone of the presentation as a whole. Synapse Films offer optional English (SDH) subtitles on their Region FREE Blu-ray.

The Synapse Films Blu-ray has a commentary by the late film historian Lee Gambin (author of Massacred by Mother Nature: Exploring the Natural Horror Film.) This is more of an analysis of a 'creature feature' than detailing the production history. Lee offers insightful critiques of other related films in the genre... as well as Sompote Sands' Crocodile shortcomings, ecological horrors (like Tintorera, Kingdom of the Spiders, Tentacles, Orca, Night of the Lepus and extensively on one of his favorite films, Alligator, as well as many others), the long prologue of the film, the characters, and the six types of eco-horror devices (displaced characters, resorts-beaches, beautiful girls, humans entering animal turf etc.) He discusses specific narrative tropes and offers analysis of performance, audience appreciation and the filmmaking craft of this genre plus the variant versions. He was incredibly knowledgeable and passionate - a pleasure to listen to. RIP, my friend. There is also a 1/2 hour video interview with original director Won-se Lee (Chorakhe being a hybrid of his 1978 Crocodile Fangs.) There are also six deleted / alternate scenes; including the original Thai ending, 'The Monkey and the Little Boy' scene, an extended 'Town Attack', 'Crocodile Cruelty' and alternate Spanish release ending and the alt-International opening scene (longer version.) Lastly is an original theatrical trailer.

Sompote Sands' Crocodile (Chorakhe) is a bit of a mess qualifying for the 'so bad it's good' category. It was produced by the Thai production company, Chaiyo Productions. They was known for using unauthorized footage from uncredited sources. Crocodile is a cult film that is often called a Jaws-clone but I thought it was creative to include flashbacks and the prolonged opening family sequences were appreciated by this reviewer. Yes, there is an undeniable link from crocodile/alligator to sharks in this genre with less-seen underwater attacks. There is gruesome gore in Crocodile (Chorakhe) - like a crocodile being slashed to death with a knife - but it is mostly masked with fast edits, as are direct shots of the creature in-action. I imagine those interested in Synapse's Blu-ray are quite niche but it does have its own energy, dizzy-inducing editing but is a decent horror premise. To each his own. 

Gary Tooze