{"id":14554,"date":"2016-12-13T09:00:21","date_gmt":"2016-12-12T22:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/roberthood.net\/blog\/?p=14554"},"modified":"2016-12-13T12:27:23","modified_gmt":"2016-12-13T01:27:23","slug":"when-animals-attack-a-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/roberthood.net\/blog\/index.php\/2016\/12\/13\/when-animals-attack-a-review\/","title":{"rendered":"When Animals Attack: The Book of the Films"},"content":{"rendered":"

A new film book called When Animals Attack: The 70 Best Horror Movies With Killer Animals,<\/em> has just become available in paperback and Kindle format. And it’s a lot of fun!<\/p>\n

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The essays were written by “[leading] horror writers and filmmakers”, who were each asked to write about “one of their favorite ‘animal attack’ films” in detail. The films range from the heights of The Birds<\/em> (US-1963; dir. Alfred Hitchcock) and Jaws<\/em> (US-1975; dir. Steven Spielberg) to the ludicrous depths of Beginning of the End<\/em> (US-1957; dir. Bert I. Gordon) and Sharknado<\/em> (US-2013; dir. Anthony C. Ferrante).<\/p>\n

As the editor, Canadian horror writer Vanessa Morgan (Drowned Sorrow<\/em> and The Strangers Outside<\/em>), commented, “Some of the films are touching, some are repulsive, and some are just plain silly. Not all of these horror movies line up with the critical consensus, yet they have one thing in common: they have made the heart of the writer beat faster with excitement.”<\/p>\n

Published by Moonlight Creek Publishing, When Animals Attack<\/em> may not include ALL the best animal-attack horror flicks, but its 402 pages sure include a decent slew of them. The essays are written in different styles and take various approaches that reflect the individual authors responsible. It makes for both informative and entertaining reading, and will be a useful reference volume for those seeking something new to watch in this sub-genre — or for those who value being reminded of a piece of animalistic cinema they’d forgotten. You may even learn something new about your favourite animal-attack epic.<\/p>\n

Here is the table of contents:<\/p>\n

Alligator<\/strong> by Kevin Matthews
\nAnaconda<\/strong> by Russ Hunter
\nAnts<\/strong> by J.P. Wendel
\nArachnophobia<\/strong> by Declan Lynch
\nAttack of the Crab Monsters<\/strong> by Noah C. Patterson
\nBats<\/strong> by Ton van Rooij
\nBaxter<\/strong> by Daphnis Olivier Boelens
\nBeaks: The Movie<\/strong> by Fawn Krisenthia
\nBeginning of the End<\/strong> by Ken Begg
\nBirdemic: Shock and Terror<\/strong> by Johnny Zontal
\nBlack Sheep<\/strong> by Kate Larkindale
\nBug<\/strong> by D.M. Anderson
\nChosen Survivors<\/strong> by Doug Lamoreux
\nCujo<\/strong> by Maxim Stollenwerk
\nCurse II: The Bite<\/strong> by Justin McKinney
\nDay of the Animals<\/strong> by Erich Kuersten
\nDeadly Eyes<\/strong> by Jay Clarke
\nDeep Blue Sea<\/strong> by Nick Meece
\nDogs<\/strong> by Gert Verbeeck
\nEight Legged Freaks<\/strong> by Chelseaa Benwell
\nEmpire of the Ants<\/strong> by Vanessa de Largie
\nFrogs<\/strong> by Sven Soetemans
\nGrizzly<\/strong> by Steve de Roover
\nIn the Shadow of Kilimanjaro<\/strong> by Charles M. Kline
\nJaws<\/strong> by Warren Fahy
\nJersey Shore Shark Attack<\/strong> by Katelyn Rushe
\nKaw<\/strong> by Paul Kane
\nKiller Crocodile<\/strong> by Jonas Govaerts
\nKingdom of the Spiders<\/strong> by B.J. Colangelo
\nLake Placid<\/strong> by Alex J. Cavanaugh
\nLocusts<\/strong> by Amanda Reyes
\nLong Weekend<\/strong> by Ingrid Dendievel
\nMonkey Shines<\/strong> by Megan Fisher
\nNight of the Lepus<\/strong> by Michael McCarty and Mark McLaughlin
\nOf Unknown Origin<\/strong> by Russell Fisher
\nOrca: The Killer Whale<\/strong> by Brody Rossiter
\nPig Hunt<\/strong> by Bryan Schuessler
\nPiranha<\/strong> by Beverly Gray
\nPrey<\/strong> by Christine Hadden
\nProphecy<\/strong> by Bob Ignizio
\nRats: Night of Terror<\/strong> by Chris Hewson
\nRazorback<\/strong> by Robert Hood
\nShakma<\/strong> by Tenebrous Kate
\nSharknado<\/strong> by Ben Daniels
\nSharktopus<\/strong> by Michael P. Spradlin
\nSlugs: The Movie<\/strong> by Danger_Slater
\nSnakes<\/strong> by Stuart R. West
\nSnakes on a Plane<\/strong> by Christine Rains
\nSquirm<\/strong> by Jeff Lieberman
\nStrays<\/strong> by Daniel Alves
\nThe Beasts are on the Streets<\/strong> by Brian Saur
\nThe Birds<\/strong> by Chris Austin
\nThe Deadly Mantis<\/strong> by Christopher Robinson
\nThe Devil Bat<\/strong> by Sven Daems
\nThe Food of the Gods<\/strong> by Aaron Christensen
\nThe Ghost and the Darkness<\/strong> by Kajah Ram
\nThe Giant Claw<\/strong> by John Kitley
\nThe Killer Snakes<\/strong> by Wim Castermans
\nThe Last Shark<\/strong> by Stephan Jankovic
\nThe Pack<\/strong> by Joel Warren
\nThe Swarm<\/strong> by Adam Artruc
\nThe White Buffalo<\/strong> by Peter Braidis
\nThem!<\/strong> by Barend de Voogd
\nTicks<\/strong> by Matthew House
\nUninvited<\/strong> by Justin Coote
\nWhite Dog<\/strong> by J. Luis Rivera
\nWhite God<\/strong> by Oksana Osachiy
\nWild Beasts<\/strong> by Vanessa Morgan
\nWillard<\/strong> by David Royce
\nZoltan: Hound of Dracula<\/strong> by Marvin the Macabre<\/p>\n

As you may or may not notice, Robert Hood (whose undead backbrain is the creator of this blog), contributed an essay on Russell Mulcahy’s 1984 rampaging wild boar flick, Razorback<\/i>. It’s a favourite of his and definitely at the positive end of the cinematic quality scale.<\/p>\n