Subgenre Sampler
Rental > Horror > Animal Amok: 52 Films to Rent
Crawl (2019)
- Dir. Alexandre Aja
Feat. Kaya Scodelario, Barry Pepper
- When a category 5 hurricane hits South Florida, a young woman attempts to save her father and finds herself fighting to survive in a flooded house…
Pet Sematary (2019)
- Dir. Dennis Widmyer, Kevin Kölsch
Feat. Jason Clarke, Amy Seimetz, John Lithgow
- Nothing if not audacious, this updated screen adaptation of the terrifying Stephen King novel takes liberties with the plot to arguably increase the…
47 Metres Down (2016)
- Dir. Johannes Roberts
Feat. Claire Holt, Mandy Moore
- Survival horror with two sisters on vacation in Mexico who become trapped inside a shark viewing cage 47 metres under the ocean. Fairly predictable…
When Animals Dream (2014)
- Dir. Jonas Alexander Arnby
Feat. Sonia Suhl, Lars Mikkelsen, Sonja Richter…
- 16–year old Marie lives on a small island with her seriously ill mother and her father, who takes care of the family. But suddenly mysterious…
Piranha 3DD (2012)
- Dir. John Gulager
Feat. Danielle Panabaker, Katrina Bowden, David Koechner…
- This chestier sequel to 2010's Piranha remake goes overboard with gratuitous T&A and wanton violence. Dumb, but if you're in the mood, a lot of fun,…
Birdemic: Shock and Terror (2010)
- Dir. James Nguyen
Feat. Alan Bagh, Whitney Moore
- Shoe–string trash homage to Hitchcock's THE BIRDS that follows a romantic couple whose small town that is attacked by birds.…
Piranha (2010)
- Dir. Alexandre Aja
Feat. Elisabeth Shue, Richard Dreyfuss, Jerry O'Connell…
- Stupefyingly gory remake has the man–eating fish dining out on exhibitionist students while Sheriff Shue must do her best to protect the…
Black Water (2007)
- Dir. David Nerlich, Andrew Traucki
Feat. Maeve Dermody, Diana Glenn, Andy Rodoreda…
- A fishing tour turns deadly for tourists when their boat is capsized deep in the swamp by a large crocodile in this skillful survival horror.
The…
Rogue (2007)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Greg McLean
Feat. Radha Mitchell, Michael Vartan, Sam Worthington
- Second terrifying outing from the dir. of WOLF CREEK centers on a 'rogue' giant crocodile in the Australian outback, whose latest prey is a boatful…
Black Sheep (2006)
- Dir. Jonathan King
Feat. Nathan Meister, Danielle Mason, Peter Feeney…
- A slick splatter–comedy in the Kiwi tradition of BAD TASTE, about a herd of rabid, flesh–eating sheep run amok in rural New…
Cursed (2005)
- Dir. Wes Craven
Feat. Christina Ricci, Joshua Jackson, Portia de Rossi…
- Two siblings (Ricci, Eisenberg) are bitten and infected by a werewolf on the loose in their manicured Los Angeles suburb.
Discovering that…
Isolation (2005)
- Dir. Billy O'Brien
Feat. Essie Davis, Sean Harris, Marcel Lures
- Macabre Irish thriller contained entirely to a farm where a small group of people are pursued by a group of mutated parasites.
Itself a bit of a…
Locusts - Day of Destruction (2005)
- Dir. David Jackson
Feat. Lucy Lawless, John Heard
- Cheese–dipped thriller set in the good ol' US of A, where a swarm of pissed off bio–engineered locusts run riot across the countryside…
Willard (2002)
- Dir. Glen Morgan
Feat. Crispin Glover, Jackie Burroughs, R. Lee Ermey…
- Stylistic update of the 70s mini–classic of the same name, with cult actor Crispin Glover as the meek office clerk who befriends and trains a…
Ginger Snaps (2000)
- Dir. John Fawcett
Feat. Emily Perkins, Katherine Isabelle, Mimi Rogers
- Canadian variation on the teen–horror model mixes the gene pool of adolescent angst with the werewolf genre, adopting lycanthropy as a metaphor…
Lake Placid (1999)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Steve Miner
Feat. Bridget Fonda, Bill Pullman, Oliver Platt
- Gleefully silly horror contrivance abitrarily plonks a 30ft Asian crocodile down in Black Lake (where did Lake Placid go?) to dine on pigs, chickens…
An American Werewolf in Paris (1997)
- Dir. Anthony Waller
Feat. Julie Delpy, Tom Everett Scott
- Belated official sequel to the '80s horror–comedy classic takes up with the progeny of the London howler (Julie Delpy), also plagued by…
Pet Sematary (1989)
- Dir. Mary Lambert
Feat. Dale Midkiff, Fred Gwynne, Denise Crosby
- A competent scarefest scripted by Stephen King from his own novel about a country doctor's experiences with things that won't stay dead.
Monkey Shines (1988)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. George Romero
Feat. Jason Beghe, John Pankow, Kate McNeil
- A first–rate thriller about an invalid who loses control over his pet monkey that has been subjected to cerebral experiments. Intelligent…
King Kong Lives (1986)
- Dir. John Guillermin
Feat. Linda Hamilton, Brian Kerwin, John Ashton
- A truly blasphemous sequel to the already inessential 1976 remake, has the big ape somehow survive the fall from the World Trade Centre but needing a…
Howling II, The (Your Sister Is A Werewolf) (1985)
- Dir. Phillipe Mora
Feat. Christopher Lee, Annie McEnroe, Sybil Danning
- A young girl whose sister was murdered by werewolves helps an investigator track down a gang of the beasts. This film has the dubious honour of being…
Silver Bullet (1985)
- Dir. Daniel Attias
Feat. Gary Busey, Corey Haim, Everett McGill…
- Gary Busey livens Stephen King small town werewolf déjà vu.
Company of Wolves (1984)
- Dir. Neil Jordan
Feat. Angela Lansbury, Stephen Rea
- This modest, dream–like horror fantasy was liked so much by author Anne Rice, it led to the Irish director calling the shots on INTERVIEW WITH…
Cujo (1983)
- Dir. Lewis Teague
Feat. Dee Wallace-Stone, Danny Pintauro, Daniel Hugh Kelly
- Of a higher quality than the usual Stephen King adaption, the scariness of this tale of a rabid St Bernard dog will generally depend on your own…
Of Unknown Origin (1983)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. George Pan Cosmatos
Feat. Peter Weller, Shannon Tweed
- A mostly inspired horror, this suburban myth plays like an extended episode of 'The Twilight Zone', with claws. Peter Weller is a happily married…
Razorback (1983)
- Dir. Russell Mulcahy
Feat. Gregory Harrison, Arkie Whitely, Bill Kerr
- The expat–Oz director exercises his burgeoning talent with this local debut about a giant wild pig that terrorises a small country town.
An American Werewolf in London (1981)![Aro Favourite Aro Favourite](/img/arofavsm.gif)
- Dir. John Landis
Feat. Griffin Dunne, David Naughton, Jenny Agutter
- Screamingly funny resuscitatation of the werewolf genre is great fun for the whole family, replete with Oscar–winning effects and many a great…
Full Moon High (1981)
- Dir. Larry Cohen
Feat. Adam Arkin, Ed McMahon, Elizabeth Hartman…
- Wry horror–comedy with Adam Arkin as a jocular teen whose good time in Transylvannia is marred by his transformation into a werewolf. Change of…
Howling, The (1981)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Joe Dante
Feat. Dee Wallace Stone, Patrick Macnee, Dennis Dugan
- A well–regarded werewolf movie that gets funnier and scarier as it progresses. Rob Bottin's bone–crunching werewolf transformation scenes…
Piranha 2 - The Spawning (1981)
- Dir. James Cameron
Feat. Lance Henriksen
- Mediocre but bearable sequel to the fun 1978 horror about the ravenous, maneating fishies.
This sacrifices the campy fun of the original for a…
Wolfen (1981)
- Dir. Michael Wadleigh
Feat. Albert Finney, Edward James Olmos, Gregory Hines…
- Well–made werewolf yarn based around detective Albert Finney's investigation into a series of flesh–shredding killings in…
Alligator (1980)
- Dir. Lewis Teague
Feat. Robert Forster, Robin Riker, Michael V. Gazzo
- Post–Jaws monster thriller, with giant alligator lurking in Chicago sewers. John Sayles script.
Piranha (1978)
- Dir. Joe Dante
Feat. Bradford Dillman, Heather Menzies, Kevin McCarthy
- A gag–filled spoof of JAWS and B–Movies from the 1950s. Premium schlock from the pen of John Sayles.
Swarm, The (1978)
- Dir. Irwin Allen
Feat. Michael Caine, Katherine Ross, Henry Fonda…
- The 70s Disaster Movie rarely got this far–out, with Michael Caine trying to swat a cloud of killer bumble–bees. Many other…
Kingdom of the Spiders (1977)
- Dir. John Bud Cardos
Feat. William Shatner, Tiffany Bolling
- Insecticides poison the food supply of the local tarantula population, setting them off on a hysterical man–hunt in the Arizona desert.…
Zoltan, Hound of Dracula (1977)
- Dir. Albert Band
Feat. Michael Pataki, Jose Ferrer
- Strange and not a little camp entry in the 'Dracula' series, has a canine incarnation unleash his fangs on Los Angeles while searching for family…
Squirm (1976)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Jeff Lieberman
Feat. Don Scardino, Patricia Pearcy
- A storm–toppled powerline drives large (and vicious) sandworms out the surrounding swamp–waters, terrifying the local populace in this…
Jaws (1975)![Aro Favourite Aro Favourite](/img/arofavsm.gif)
- Dir. Steven Spielberg
Feat. Richard Dreyfuss, Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw
- Brilliantly executed, famously scary Spielberg pic about a killer fish. Spawned three forgettable sequels (also available!) and dozens of imitations.
Chosen Survivors (1974)
- Dir. Sutton Roley
Feat. Jackie Cooper, Alex Cord, Richard Jaeckel…
- Sci–fi horror about a group of people who have been flown to a futuristic bomb shelter in the desert, after being chosen at random to survive…
Phase IV (Phase 4) (1974)
- Strange structures are appearing in the desert. Scientists are shocked to find that they are the work of super intelligent ants with sinister motives.
Frogs (1972)
- Dir. George McCowan
Feat. Ray Milland, Sam Elliott, Joan Van Ark
- Swamp critters exact revenge on wildlife predator Ray Milland in this enjoyable schlockfest. Bonus film with PREMATURE BURIAL.
Legend of Boggy Creek, The (1972)
- Dir. Charles B. Pierce
Feat. Vern Stierman
- Giggle inducing 'documentary' examines the mysterious happenings in lil' ol' Fouke Arkansas where some big ape creature has been stirrin' up folk…
Night of the Lepus (1972)
- Dir. William Claxton
Feat. Stuart Whitman, Janet Leigh, Rory Calhoun
- One of the most incredibly lame (and strange and entertaining) horror films of all time, in which giant mutant rabbits terrorize a small community in…
Willard (1971)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Daniel Mann
Feat. Bruce Davison, Elsa Lanchester, Ernest Borgnine
- Superb persecuted–teen–gets–revenge picture about a young nerd who identifies more with rodents than people. The sequel, BEN, is…
Blood Beast Terror, The (1967)
- Dir. Vernon Sewell
Feat. Peter Cushing
- In Victorian rural England, Peter Cushing's murder enquiries uncovers a beastly weremoth and the gruesome experiments of a crazed entymologist.
Hound of the Baskervilles, The (1959)
- Dir. Terence Fisher
Feat. Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Andre Morell…
- Quite possibly the best Sherlock Holmes adaptation, with Cushing in the lead, investigating the horrors of the Baskerville killings. The 'Hammer'…
Mighty Joe Young (1949)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Ernest B. Schoedsack
Feat. Terry Moore, Ben Johnson, Robert Armstrong…
- Worthy successor to KING KONG, reunites many of the cast and crew, with a compellingly different slant on the 'Giant Ape' premise.
Here, Armstrong…
Curse of the Cat People (1944)
- Dir. Gunther V Fritsch, Robert Wise
Feat. Simone Simon
- Sequel of worth to the original Val Lewton psychological chiller, again with the feline Simone Simon, here haunting the imagination of a small girl…
Leopard Man, The (1943)
- Dir. Jacques Tourneur
Feat. Dennis O'Keefe
- The final Val Lewton–Tourneur horror collaboration concerns an escaped leopard (apparently) running amok in a small New Mexico town. A slim…
Cat People (1942)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Jacques Tourneur
Feat. Simone Simon, Jack Holt, Kent Smith…
- Producer Val Lewton's most celebrated low–budget horror evokes a disturbing atmosphere of repression and menace with shadows, music and the…
Wolf Man, The (Wolfman) (1941)
- Dir. George Waggner
Feat. Lon Jr. Chaney, Bela Lugosi, Claude Rains
- Universal horror classic has Lon Chaney Jnr. bitten by werewolf Bela Lugosi among the foggy glades of Alpine–set English villages.
King Kong (1933)![Aro Favourite Aro Favourite](/img/arofavsm.gif)
- Dir. Merian C. Cooper, Ernest B. Schoedsack
Feat. Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong
- An iconic classic of cinema that literally smashed new ground in terms of special effects, and must have had unwitting audiences of the day…