This is a thriller that takes place on a boat and is all about killing for pleasure. A presentation that comes along with killing for sport. The context around this has its captivating moments, and then the ones that are for shock and awe. Dangerous Animals is in the genre of shocker films that I found to have presence in and around of the suspense itself. What came to my mind was Jaws meets Psycho in that it is a big boat with a killer onboard who throws his victims to the sharks. 

Directed by Sean Byrne, Dangerous Animals introduces the audience to a boat captain named Bruce (Jai Courtney). At the top of the film, he takes a couple on a shark-dive expedition. Later, he blinds them and kidnaps one of them, only to havethem realize that he plans to kill them by hovering them over sharks. Bruce finds enjoyment in seeing and videotaping feedinghis victims to sharks.

The next victim is the main character, Zephyr (Hassie Harrison). She wakes up to go on a surfing expedition, but then Bruce captures her. Once she is on the boat, she finds herself below with another victim named Heather (Ella Newton). Heather was brought onboard the boat before Zephyr and the writing is on the wall for a death scenario for both the victims. Dangerous Animals has that momentum to make the audience feel the sense of predictability, but the many suspenseful moments to escape create the opposite effect. From my point-of-view I asked how can they escape when they are out at sea with treacherous sharks and in front of a killer that is very dangerous?

Going forward the film builds momentum with a man named Moses (Josh Heuston), as he is suspicious about Zephyr’s disappearance and begins searching for her.  Zephyr continuously fights for safety against Bruce, yet he keeps overcoming her chances to escape. Dangerous Animals is a boxing match of moving parts that puts adrenaline to the test. Bruce is anxious to find a good chance to throw Zephyr to the sharks for his enjoyment. The tactics of brutality do not see eye-to-eye, but the dog match to survive knows how to thrive here.

The shock and value are within the shallows. The victimshovering over the water creates the deepest point of terror inknowing that any sudden movement is a leap of death. When that happens, the concept that came to my mind was how stillness means safety. Especially when there is that thought of dying brutally at the mouths of sharks.

Dangerous Animals knows how to scare. It also knows how to maintain its dignity. The continuity feels interactive. The many failed escapes and failed moments of shark attacks are what makes for new doors of terror to evolve. The only question is, how can one depart the boat? Silly in moments and definitely scary in many, it can border on being repetitive. At the same time, it still maintains a sense of creepiness in the ocean. Two-and-a-half out of four stars.