Whether it's 'Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes' or 'Kingdom Of The Spiders', movies love showing how nature wants us dead.
This weekend, Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes managed to take control of the weekend box office, raking in $73 million dollars. The film follows a group of super-intelligent apes who take over the world, and a rogue group of surviving humans who are fighting to stay alive.
While people seem to be loving this particular entry into the 'animals destroy humanity' genre, most movies that show the rise of a deadly species are super-campy creature features that are good only because of how wonderfully bad they are.
To get a feel for how well-done DotPotA really is check out these 11 So-Bad-They're-Great Creature Features.
Piranha (1978)
Trying to capitalize on Jaws, the creators of Piranha made the shark a bunch of piranhas (obviously) and then they… well that's it really. While it's considered a parody of Jaws, it's mostly only considered that in hindsight when they were trying to explain how bad it was.
Empire Of The Ants (1977)
Loosely – very loosely- based on a story by H.G. Wells, Empire Of The Ants is about a group of prospective land developers being attacked by giant ants who were mutated by toxic waste. You know, that old chestnut.
Frogs (1972)
This movie is about killer tigers. No, clearly it's not. Despite sounding like one episode of a nature documentary dedicated to this specific animal, this gem is part of the 'eco-horror' genre, meaning the protagonists in the story are attacked by all kinds of animals, including birds, snakes, and even butterflies. It's like that Brendan Fraser movie Furry Vengeance, only it's creepy on purpose. Also, not sure why they chose frogs as their selling point.
Kingdom Of The Spiders (1977)
Here is all you need to know about Kingdom Of The Spiders: it's about a horde of deadly, migrating tarantulas, and it stars William Shatner.
The Day Of The Triffids (1963)
This movie has a lot going on. A meteor in the sky blinds almost everyone and, while that’s happening, hyper-intelligent plants that can walk escape a lab and go on a rampage. How are you not all flocking to Amazon to buy the DVD right now?
The Swarm (1978)
Nothing good has ever come in a "swarm." Only things you don't like swarm. Bugs, creepy birds (if you don't like the term "flocking") and crowds at the mall. In The Swarm, killer bees invade American cities, killing millions.
The Food Of The Gods (1976)
A mysterious substance oozes up from the ground in the woods, mutating forest creatures like ants, wasps and rats. The giant creatures attack a cabin and all those stuck inside. Actually, if you can get past the cheesy effects, some of it is pretty fun.
Arachnophobia (1990)
This one is actually supposed to be funny. It stars Jeff Daniels and John Goodman and focuses on a large super-deadly South American spider who makes its way to the US where he breeds with American spiders, and the offspring begin killing everyone in a small California town.
Them! (1954)
Vague title, sure, but that famous poster art was more than enough to get people into the theaters. The film is about nuclear testing in the New Mexico desert that causes ants to grown to epic, monstrous sizes.
The Birds (1963)
While this Hitchcock classic might be intensely well-known, and there are shots in it that are brilliant, you can't deny that a majority of the effects go off the cliff into disbelief. It's the inherent problem of animal attacks. Even The Birds remade today with CGI would probably still look ridiculous.
Night Of The Lepus (1972)
Giant killer bunnies hippity hop their way into murdering the population of a rural town. It's incredibly bad, and painfully funny.
