The Best Animal Attack Movies
When it comes to creature-features, there's nothing scarier than real, living animals we've seen or read about going on an inexplicable or vaguely explained killing spree. Creature-features dealing with animal attacks involving actual animals will always have a special place in the hearts of horror movie fans when done right, simply because there's something deeply unsettling in viewing and imagining what could happen if the animals we know were actually capable of the gruesomeness depicted on screen. It's equally exciting as it's disturbing to see animals (domestic or wild) who are part of the ecological system begin to display traits contrary to established behavioral patterns; viciously preying upon man and brutally craving human blood, ravenously dismembering and disembowling any living being unfortunate enough to cross their path. These are not some genetically mutated creatures or monstors lurking deep in the woods or some unheard, recently discovered carnivore appearing from the depths of the ocean or the bowels of the earth or even beasts of folklore such as werewolves; these are regular animals we've grown up reading and studying about who suddenly develop an insatiable, unusual, and highly abnormal taste for human flesh, wreaking havoc on the local populace or a group of people trapped and fighting desperately to survive; making such animals the real creatures to fear.
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- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsRoy ScheiderRobert ShawRichard DreyfussWhen a killer shark unleashes chaos on a beach community off Cape Cod, it's up to a local sheriff, a marine biologist, and an old seafarer to hunt the beast down.The mothers of all animal attack movies, the greatest creature-feature of all time, and, quite frankly, one of the best horror films ever made. Besides being Spielberg's first major hit and firmly establishing him on the movie map, it also infused everyone watching it for the first time with an unnerving dread of the ocean.
- DirectorAlfred HitchcockStarsRod TaylorTippi HedrenJessica TandyA wealthy San Francisco socialite pursues a potential boyfriend to a small Northern California town that slowly takes a turn for the bizarre when birds of all kinds suddenly begin to attack people.Hitchcock and only Hitchcock could have made flocks of benign birds - who we usually feed a handful of grains, and never pay them much of an afterthought - look so darn scary.
- DirectorJeannot SzwarcStarsRoy ScheiderLorraine GaryMurray HamiltonPolice chief Brody must protect the citizens of Amity after a second monstrous shark begins terrorizing the waters.A worthy follow-up to the greatest shark movie of all time - terrifying in its own right, and successfully brings back that same unnerving dread of the ocean created by its predecessor.
- DirectorRenny HarlinStarsThomas JaneSaffron BurrowsSamuel L. JacksonSearching for a cure to Alzheimer's disease, a group of scientists on an isolated research facility become the prey, as a trio of intelligent sharks fight back.Alright, I'll admit it, I'm a bit biased towards shark-centric films when it comes to movies dealing with animal attacks, but, then again, I do think that they're nature's greatest killing machines that live, and the most brutal creatures in all of the land, sea, and air combined. So expect more animal attack movies involving sharks further down the list. This one is the best shark movie after the first two "Jaws" films. The plot revolving around a bunch of scientists working in an underwater facility to enhance the intellect of a couple of Great Whites in the hope of producing a cure for Alzheimer's disease, but after that initial bit of hokum is out of the way, the ensuing mayhem that unfolds, is tense, nerve-wracking, gory, action-packed, supremely entertaining, and leaves you on the edge of your seat. Oh, and, Samuel L. Jackson gets to mouth another famous, ballsy monologue.
- DirectorFrank MarshallStarsJeff DanielsJulian SandsJohn GoodmanA new species of South American killer spider hitches a lift to a small California town in a coffin and starts to breed, leaving a trail of deaths that puzzle and terrify the young doctor newly arrived in town with his family.The only seriously good, believable, sensible, and genuinely scary-without-being-unintentionally-funny (though it does have its funny moments - mostly involving John Goodman as a bug exterminator) movie about spiders out there. The filmmakers realized that you don't need super-sized, genetically-mutated spiders to create palpable tension and portray the real fear that poisonous spiders can evoke.
- DirectorJoe DanteStarsBradford DillmanHeather Menzies-UrichKevin McCarthyWhen flesh-eating piranhas are accidentally released into a summer resort's rivers, the guests become their next meal.The best imitator in the wake of a mini-horde of 70s and 80s animal attack movies trying to cash in on the success of "Jaws". On its own, Joe Dante does a fine job in capturing the terrifying nature of piranhas and the ferocity those feral, little savages are capable of, unlike those gratuitous, distasteful remakes more than three decades later.
- DirectorJames CameronOvidio G. AssonitisMiller DrakeStarsTricia O'NeilSteve MarachukLance HenriksenA scuba diving instructor, her biochemist boyfriend, and her police chief ex-husband try to link a series of bizarre deaths to a mutant strain of piranha fish whose lair is a sunken freighter ship off a Caribbean island resort.Receiving somewhat of a bad rep upon on its release, this has rightfully acquired cult status over the years. Serving as James Cameron's big-screen directorial debut before he would go on to achieve giddy heights of success, blockbuster status, and a cluster of Oscar statues, the second Piranha outing is as sublime and wacky as it's scary and tense.
- DirectorNicholas MastandreaStarsMichelle RodriguezOliver HudsonTaryn ManningA group of five college kids are forced to match wits with unwelcoming residents when they fly to a "deserted" island for a party weekend.With due respect to "Cujo", this is the movie that makes us see our adorable, canine friends in a totally different way - an apprehensive way, a way in which no one would ever want to look at a dog, even a rottweiler, German shepherd, or a pit-bull. The excitement never lets up, and the film is riddled with precarious, nail-biting scenarios.
- DirectorDavid NerlichAndrew TrauckiStarsDiana GlennMaeve DermodyAndy RodoredaA boat tour of a mangrove swamp turns into a fight for survival when a group of people are attacked by a ferocious saltwater crocodile.The "Jaws" of swampy, backwater, crocodile movies. If "Jaws" gave you an unshakable sense of dread for oceanic waters, this one evokes the same fear for swampy mangroves, marshlands, and serene river spots.
- DirectorKimble RendallStarsXavier SamuelSharni VinsonAdrian PangA freak tsunami traps shoppers at a coastal Australian supermarket inside the building - along with 12-foot Great White Sharks.The Australians do animal attack movies really well, as is already evident from the previous title on this list. A few other entries down the line are also Australian products. They just know how to get the tone right, keep the suspense palpable, not go over-the-top with the gore, restrict the humor to strictly tounge-in-cheek affair without venturing into silly territory, and spend time in weaving some semblance of a plot and establishing the characters before unleashing the action and horror. Now, on the surface, "Bait" may not seem to embody those qualities. The plot is after all about a freak-micro tsunami that traps shoppers at a coastal Queensland supermarket along with 12-foot Great White sharks. But allow yourself to get past this absurd opening sequence, and rest assured, you'll be in for a treat - the movie displays all the elements that make Australian horror films truly great.
- DirectorCarlos BrooksStarsBriana EviganCharlie TahanGarret DillahuntA thriller centered on a young woman and her autistic little brother who are trapped in a house with a ravenous tiger during a hurricane.The misnomer-esque, weird title aside, it's truly surprising to the point of being strange that no one had ever thought of making a creature-feature about the greatest terrestrial killing force of the jungle. Yes, there have been a couple of movies perfectly documenting the savagery of lions, but none that show tigers in the same light. Well, "Burning Bright" sets that score straight, and does so with all the brutality, action, and nerve-wracking suspense befitting a film about a giant ravenous tiger accidentally trapped in a house with a pair of adolescent siblings during a hurricane.
- DirectorAndrew TrauckiStarsDamian Walshe-HowlingGyton GrantleyAdrienne PickeringA great white shark hunts the crew of a capsized sailboat along the Great Barrier Reef.Yet another film involving sharks (or in this case a single Great White shark), yet another Australian creature-feature done to perfection. Probably the most realistic of all shark attack movies, Director Andrew Traucki - who also made the immensely enjoyable "Black Water" higher up on this list - does complete justice to the story based on true events that occurred in 1983.
- DirectorNick RobertsonStarsJack CampbellAnna Lise PhillipsKatie MooreA farmer and his family must fight for survival after a ferocious pack of wild dogs infiltrates their isolated farmhouse. Through a series of frightening and bloody encounters they are forced into survival mode to make it through the night.The final Australian movie on this list. Perhaps doesn't instill the same sense of fleeting aversion towards dogs as "The Breed" did, and maybe includes a few questionable scenes of judgment taken by the characters towards the end, but it still packs a resounding wallop, and demands the undivided attention of anyone looking for a truly scary and relatively unknown animal attack movie.
- DirectorDarrell RoodtStarsBridget MoynahanPeter WellerCarly SchroederAn American family on holiday in Africa becomes lost in a game reserve and stalked by lions.I had stated earlier that they have been quite a few movie about the savagery and brute force of lions, however, the impact most of them have left (barring a few decent ones like Savage Harvest with Tom Skerritt) varies between middling to clumsy to downright ludicrous (and while "The Ghost and the Darkness" is the best lion attack movie out there, I've not included it over here solely because it's more of an action-adventure film than a straight out horror flick; some of the gruesome death scenes notwithstanding), which is what makes "Prey" instantly likable and memorable enough to hold good repeat value. It's supremely entertaining, thrilling to a fault, showcases well-done, gory deaths, and boasts more than a few scenes that would leave you with sweaty palms and gasping for breath. For pound to pound terror and action involving a bunch of humans trapped and fighting for survival from a pride of ravaging, ravenous lions, you could hardly go wrong with the wildly entertaining, guilty pleasure of "Prey".