Day of the Animals
| Day of the Animals | |
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Poster
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| Directed by | Wiliam Girdler |
| Produced by | Edward L. Montoro |
| Written by | William W. Norton and wife Eleanor E. Norton |
| Story by | Edward L. Montoro |
| Starring |
Leslie Nielsen Christopher George Lynda Day George |
| Music by | Lalo Schifrin |
| Cinematography | Rober Sorrantino |
| Distributed by | Multicom Entertainment Group Inc., Film Ventures International |
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Release date
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Running time
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97 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Budget | $1.2 million |
| Box office | $2.8 million |
Day of the Animals is a 1977 American natural horror film directed by William Girdler and based on a story written by Edward L. Montoro. Premiering on May 13, 1977, the movie reunited stars Christopher George and Richard Jaeckel, director Girdler, and producer Montoro from the previous year's hit film Grizzly. Leslie Nielsen stars as the main human antagonist.
Day of the Animals tells the story of a psychosis brought on by depletion of the Earth's ozone layer. This madness affects all animals at high altitudes. A group of hapless hikers must survive the animal onslaught and make their way to safety, even as the psychosis turns them against each other.
In 1978, Film Ventures International rereleased the film to theaters as Something Is Out There. Reviews on release were not good, but later commentators have been more favorable.
The depletion of the Earth's ozone layer by aerosols has been causing increased exposure to UV radiation at high altitudes. Scientists observe that animals over 5,000 feet in altitude become highly aggressive. One small-town sheriff barely escapes getting mauled to death by rats. The government orders the evacuation and quarantine of all settlements above that altitude.
In the midst of this, a group of tourists in Northern California set off on a hike through the wilderness, led by Native American guide Santee (Michael Ansara). With no way of communicating with the outside world, they are ignorant of the strange animal activity and are baffled when a mountain lion attacks their camp. They shrug off the incident and continue the hike, as the woodland creatures eye them menacingly. Later, they are beset by hawks, and a woman falls to her death as a result. They abandon the hike upon finding that their helicopter-dropped food cache has been raided by animals.
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Wikipedia