When plans for a weekend vacation hit a dead end, a group of close-knit friends find themselves stranded in unfamiliar territory, pursued by a menacing, blood thirsty predator. Holed up in an isolated cabin, tensions mount as long-buried secrets are revealed. As the body count rises, the group must put their differences aside and fight for survival. Written by

Plot Synopsis:
-------------------

The film opens with four people running from an unseen creature. One of them (Eve) is caught and mauled to death, much to her husband's horror. They race off as the creature begins to consume her.

Some time later, a group of five friends, consisting of Jeff (Parker Young), his step-sister Alissa (Keke Palmer), her best friend and Jeff's girlfriend Mandy (Elizabeth Gillies), Alissa's boyfriend Matt (Jeremy Sumpter), and Jeff's friend Sean (Paul Iacono), enter the woods for a camping trip, only to find the trail blocked off for forest rejuvenation. Undeterred, they park their car and go hiking. Matt finds a Marine's discarded backpack. Later that night, while the others discuss which way to go, Mandy walks off the trail to see bits of human remains and screams. The others rush to her side and upon discovering what she saw, decide to call the rangers once they get back to the car. On the way there they discover an mutant creature feeding on a upon something unseen. They attempt to go around it at first but it hears them and looks towards them. Jeff tries to scare it off only for it to become aggressive and chase them down. While hiding out they find the abandoned house from earlier in the movie. Jeff decides to distract the creature while the others run to the house. Unfortunately, he did not know that it was behind him and it attacks and kills him as the others run to the house, horrified at Jeff's demise, and plead to be let in. One of the men inside the house opens the entry way and lets them in. As they run in, the creature grabs Mandy and begins to pull her back while a woman lights something on fire and throws it at the creature. It lets go and they pull Mandy inside the house and the woman tends to her wounds.

They meet the three survivors from earlier, Carl (Thorsten Kaye), his wife Vicky (Joey Lauren Adams), and Douglas (Amaury Nolasco), who have been hiding from the monster inside the house and barricaded every door and window. They explain that the house was abandoned when they got there but they did not put up all the barricades. The group decides to help them barricade the house some more and strengthen the weak spots as the creature apparently tests for weak spots and seems to know something about the house as it earlier at an unseen point broke in through the cellar. Douglas refuses to help and remains upstairs. Alissa attempts to rationalize this in the kitchen while Matt tells her she's over thinking this and that it is just an animal. The creature attempts to break in through the kitchen window and Carl and Sean rush in and helps them barricade the window with a door. The creature then begins to test for weak spots and crashes in upstairs. While Douglas comes downstairs because of this, Carl, Sean, and Matt go upstairs to find it while Vicky goes to get fire. The group upstairs discovers creature in a room and try to close the door while the creature tries to break it down. Downstairs, the stick won't light and Mandy and Alissa rush upstairs to help and struggle to put drag a dresser in front of the door. The creature breaks a spot in the door open as Sean rushes downstairs. The girls continue to struggle as Sean then returns with Bear Replant from earlier in the movie and sprays the creature in the face. It seems to work as the creature runs off and Douglas finally helps and helps put the dresser in front of the door and says it won't hold and that they need to get out of there.

Downstairs, they gather and while Sean remains hopeful that the help he contacted earlier will come, Douglas denies it saying he already tried earlier and no one has come. He says they need to sacrifice someone to get out and Carl disagrees refusing to kill anyone. Matt agrees with both and decides to go for help while Carl and Sean distract the monster while the four groups stay in contact with walkie-talkies, but it catches on and attacks Matt who warns them the creature is coming. Carl and Sean attempt to get back into the house but Douglas refuses them entry saying that they all heard Matt say the creature was coming. Vicky attempts to let them in but is knocked out by Douglas and Alissa contacts Carl and Sean, telling them to go to the kitchen door. The creature approaches and still Carl has not responded. The creature comes onto the porch just as Carl responds and sees that the flare and walkie it followed was abandoned by Carl and Sean who are now inside the house through the kitchen door. Carl knocks out Douglas.

Douglas wakes up tied to the stair well and demands to be let go. Alissa looks around the house as Mandy follows. Alissa says she wants to kill the monster for what it's done and Mandy hugs her sobbing and reveals that she is pregnant and to count her in on whatever she is planning. They go and find Sean who is in hysterics from all the stress and does not want to die with a secret. He reveals that he and Jeff were having an affair. Alissa breaks up the verbal argument that follows and the group hears beeping coming from a walkie in the living room. They find that Matt is paging them and is alive in the cellar. Carl leads Alissa and Mandy down and begins to help get Matt out of the cellar upon his discovery with Mandy's assistance. The creature is shown to be waiting and Carl sacrifices himself to give the others time to get Matt out.

Alissa attempts to keep Matt alive as the tied up Douglas, Mandy, and Sean look on. Vicky is elsewhere in the house sitting in shock and mourning her dead husband. Matt attempts to tell them something regarding the creature as Alissa continues to try and help him. Douglas tells her Matt is dying but she is adamant he can be saved. He continues to try and convince them that Matt is better off being used as bait for their escape as Vicky returns to the room. He asks for a better plan, expecting none, but Alissa says they know if they open the door the creature will come in and suggests trapping it and burning the house as they escape. Douglas agrees and Sean says they need to act fast for Matt's sake. Douglas says he will help carry Matt as that is Matt's only chance. Alissa signals Sean to untie Douglas and he does. Matt attempts to tell Alissa he loves her but is beaten to death by Douglas while the others look on and scream in horror. He argues with the others saying it was simple and that he did not kill anyone, merely sped up a clock that was already ticking.

As Douglas drags off Matt's body while continuing to yell at the others, the creature breaks in through door and Douglas is then attacked as the others watch in horror. While the monster devours Douglas, Alissa grabs matches and a bag and they retreat to the kitchen while Alissa goes to grab the kerosene she saw earlier while Mandy stands watch. They begin to pour kerosene in the kitchen and as they knock something over the creature is finally distracted enough from consuming Douglas' body and goes to investigate. While a small area burns the creature investigates the house, looking for the others. Sean, Mandy, and Vicky have retreated to the cellar after closing it back off and listen to the creature search for them. Alissa closes the creature in a room where she begins to burn it to death. The others start to head out of the cellar from its other entrance as Alissa turns away from the fire. Vicky sees Carl's body and goes to his side and beings talking to him as if still alive as Mandy tells her they need to go. Sean screams for them and screams as he is tossed down, attacked and dragged off as another creature calls out. Mandy pulls Vicky away from Carl and they run off. Mandy escapes outside only to turn around and see Vicky in the doorway begin to bleed from her stomach as she is attacked from behind by the second creature. Mandy looks on and screams as she sees its head as Vicky is dragged away. She runs off to Alissa. They run off as the creature chases them. Mandy falls and as Alissa tells her to get up and that she can, the creature catches up. It attacks Alissa as Mandy screams and looks on in horror. As Alissa finally dies and the creature begins to consume her, Mandy runs. She throws her over shirt to throw her scent and covers herself in dirt to cover the rest of her scent from the creature.

She manages to make it to their car and start it as the second creature breaks through the drivers side window, she climbs out the passenger side and runs around to the drivers side as the creature runs around the car to get to her. She reverses as it begins to climb over the car and throws it off. She runs it over twice and the drives away. A third monster steps out of the forest, going to the second creatures side and calls out.

----------------------------------------
Andrew Gold from United States
----------------------------------------

Animal doesn't have much substance as a horror movie. It's your typical "teenagers lost in the woods and are getting picked off one by one" story, except instead of a machete wielding maniac chasing them it's an Alien-Predator-hybrid animal that has a taste for human meat. For what it is, it's a fun watch - it's exactly what you'd expect from a B-movie called "Animal".

I can't score it any higher because it gets zero points for originality and I can't score it lower because it doesn't try to be anything more than a schlocky monster movie. It's surprisingly cohesive writing-wise, and is definitely more watchable than half the F13 entries. Elizabeth Gillies' ear-piercing screams are annoying yet hilarious and add some extra zest once her friends become fodder to this unstoppable beast.

Overall Animal achieves exactly what it sets out to, but its sights weren't aimed high in the first place. It's a clear homage to old-fashioned monster movies with lots of campiness, cheesy special effects, blood and guts aplenty, and a handful of scares that catch you off-guard. All you can ever want in a B-movie romp-fest.

----------------------------------------
Dobby Peters from Netherlands
----------------------------------------

I'm not really a big horror fan, but this one surprised me and I actually like it a lot. Although it's a typical horror movie in a way, with a group of youngsters chased in a dark wood, there are some really original findings in it. I also liked that not all questions were answered in the end, which make you think about the movie after wards and adds just that extra. For a low budget movie the effects are really good, the monster was well created and a unique kind of creepy. For me Elizabeth Gillies absolutely stood out as the best actress of the bunch. The looks she can give are brilliant and of course she looks stunning, too. I hope to see more of her in the future!

----------------------------------------
Jelly Blossom from Amsterdam
----------------------------------------

After watching this movie three times already, I can say I really love it! Scary but not too scary, it has a good build up starting quite funny and saving the best for last. The last scenes are really nerve breaking, how it ends and who will survive stays unsure until the very end. Some scenes were a bit predictable, but that's normal for horror movies, and in Animal, this didn't happen too often. Actually, there were quite a few turns in the plot that took me by surprise. As someone else already said, Liz Gillies is really impressive. I loved her acting and she sure has the perfect horror movie scream. I can recommend this movie to everyone!

----------------------------------------
Frederique14 from Netherlands
----------------------------------------

I'm probably to big a Liz Gillies fan to give a non-biased review, but then, no review is ever objective is it. But I absolutely love this movie. I already watched it five times and it's still entertaining. I don't like really traumatizing horror (like The Ring) so I'm glad Animal is scary, but not too horrible. I love how the movie starts kind of nice and funny, and gets scarier as the film goes on, with the most action and horror saved to the last scenes. The end is my favorite part, it's so full of action and I love how Mandy (played by Liz Gillies) looks when she's about to get revenge on the monster animal that killed her friends. In short a movie I would recommend to everyone, it won't disappoint you.

----------------------------------------
Casey Hayes
----------------------------------------

As an enormous Liz Gillies fan I waited very long for the movie to come out and I can tell you it's worth the wait. The movie starts direct with a scary scene in which people are being chased by an unknown creature, so you're immediate on edge. Then when the movie really starts and everything seems beautiful, it is a nice and funny moment but because you know what's coming because of the opening scene you're still nervous. Twenty minutes later the horror really starts and it it keeps you alarmed and scared for the rest of the movie. The movie really builds up in tension leading to a grand finale the last fifteen minutes. Those last scenes are really the best. In conclusion, I can say I loved this movie and I would really like a sequel!

----------------------------------------
Thura Beckman
----------------------------------------

Never gave a review before but reading such a complete stupid review that gives poor ratings only because one of the characters is gay, I feel like I should. Because this is actually a very good and entertaining movie. Yes, one of the characters is gay. There's also a black girl, ain't that scary? (sarcasm indeed) Back to the movie, I thought it was really scary and it kept me on nerve till the very last scene. What I really liked was that I was able to relate to the characters even when there's not much time to really get to know them before all the horror starts. That's a problem in most horror movies I think so Animal did a really good job there. I thought the acting was pretty good, Liz Gillies and Paul Iacano were my favorites, I think they did the best.

----------------------------------------
Avan McGillz from London
----------------------------------------

In my opinion this movie is at least as good as can be expected from a low budget horror film. Yes, of course there are some clichés and predictable situations in a film like this, but over all it was very entertaining. I liked the scenery and it gave just the right creepy atmosphere.

My favorite character is absolutely Mandy, played by the beautiful Elizabeth Gillies (she alone is a reason to watch this film). I loved how Mandy started as the typical popular, good looking, slightly superficial girl but changed into the strongest of the bunch, doing everything needed to survive the horror.

----------------------------------------
Gillian Peters
----------------------------------------

I always try to judge a movie within its genre, so the reason I rate this movie high is not because it's an Oscar worthy one, but because I think it's a really good one in comparison to other low budget horror movies. The decor and setting are well chosen, a good place that can both be beautiful and scary. The effects and the created 'animal' were also really good done.

The script wasn't very original, in that way it's a typical horror movie, but it had some nice turns and the end was (to me) unexpected, which I like. The actors were pretty good as well, I could agree with the other reviews that Elizabeth Gillies stood out but she also had the most complicated character so the others hadn't as much chance as she did to show different sides. Never the less she did indeed really good and it's always nice to see former kid actors turn out so good as grown ups.

The movie leaves some questions unanswered, which can be frustrating but I didn't mind much. I think they might have done this intentionally to leave room for a sequel. I would be very interested to see it if they make one.

----------------------------------------
Paul Magne Haakonsen from Denmark
----------------------------------------

"Animal" is actually a fairly decent creature feature. Sure, the movie doesn't offer anything new to the genre. In fact, everything here has been seen before in other similar creature features.

But still, the movie was entertaining and thrilling. And when the movie offers nothing new and is essentially fully a movie much similar to every other creature feature, then what makes it stand out? Well, because the movie follows the "how to make a creature feature" to the point. But it is the creature itself that makes the movie so interesting.

The creature in the movie is unique in appearance and the special effects team did manage to pull it off quite nicely. The creature looked like a strange mutation between a rodent and human of sorts. It did look realistic and was adding a great sense of terror to the movie.

While the creature alone would make for a boring movie, then the people on the cast were doing great jobs with their given roles and characters. And it is especially great that no one is safe and out of harms way. The movie does offer that sense of unpredictability, which adds to the suspense of the movie.

The movie is visually great, but also audibly great. The score is nice and very appropriate to the movie. But the sounds that the creature was making proved to be quite interesting, not to mention unnerving.

It would be great to have another movie made with this particular breed of creature. I can recommend "Animal" if you enjoy a good old fashioned styled creature feature horror movie.

----------------------------------------
Nic0192 from United States
----------------------------------------

The movie was pretty good. Gore is usually not my favorite thing but it was done well and not overboard in any way. Personally think the acting was good, Trying to put myself in their shoes, I would be shaking in my boots. I'm sure my facial expressions and every thing would just be a big jumbled mess so good for them for keeping it together. I was very very pleased with the ending. It was perfect. I almost want to put this movie in the same category as Hatchet with Danielle Harris or Wrong Turn(the first one), Mainly for the monstery antagonist and then the group of people in the woods theme. Those movies are some of my personal favorites and this one definitely goes in that group!

Hopefully everyone else is as well:) I almost hope there is a sequel, guess we will wait and see!

Was shot over the course of 2 weeks.
------------------------

Drew Barrymore is a producer. She is best known for horror roles in Scream & FireStarter
------------------------

Elizabeth Gillies first role in a horror movie
------------------------

Both Keke Palmer & Elizabeth Gillies starred in nickelodeon original shows before doing this film. Gillies starred in Victorious while Palmer starred in True Jackson V.P. Both never worked together despite working for the same entertainment studio until both signed on to star in this film.
------------------------

Cameo: Eve(first victim of the creature)
------------------------

The font used in the opening credits is the same font John Carpenter has used for several of his films, including The Thing and Escape From New York.
------------------------

This is the first time anyone starred in this film has worked with 'ChillerFilms'.
------------------------

weekend|cabin|vacation|wilderness|woods|boarded up window|walkie talkie|backpack|husband wife relationship|boyfriend girlfriend relationship|flare|trapped in a building|monster|creature|hiking|road trip|suv|posing for a photograph|african american|one word title|blood spatter|splatter|coming out|closed road|roadblock|reference to david bowie|reference to freddie mercury|final girl|interracial love relationship|interracial friendship|group of friends|closeted homosexual|gay friend|creature horror|animal attack|cabin in the woods|monster movie|loss of loved one|loss of wife|loss of brother|

AKAs Titles:


Certifications:
USA:Not Rated