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The Review Geek
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Review Geek
Dangerous Animals (2025) Movie Review – A bloody good time
A bloody good time There's an art to crafting a great trailer that doesn't spoil everything, and Dangerous Animals' teaser is almost pitch-perfect in that regard. It's gripping, intriguing, and captures the essence of this horror/thriller beautifully. Clocking in at just over 90 minutes, Dangerous Animals provides little surprises, living up to the promise produced in that teaser and embracing its distilled B-movie greatness. It's a film that's unashamedly visceral and gory, but also surprisingly effective in execution. The story draws inspiration from 10 Cloverfield Lane and Jaws, blending those influences into a lean teen horror in the vein of Don't Breathe and Hush. The opening of Dangerous Animals sets the scene for the film to follow. Mysterious, tense and just a tad surreally funny – Bruce Tucker (played to perfection by Jai Courtney) – runs a shark-diving expedition on his boat. Unfortunately, it all goes wrong for tourist Heather when her boyfriend is killed and fed to the sharks, while she's abducted by this maniacal serial killer. With Bruce on the hunt for new victims, he sets his sights on survivalist Zephyr (Hassie Harrison), a savvy and free-spirited young surfer. When she crosses paths with Bruce, Zephyr is forced to try and survive, doing everything she can to overcome this maniacal predator. With the stakes raised, Zephyr is handcuffed in the depths of Tucker's fishing boat, while he circles the water like a hungry shark, looking for tasty spots to pick up prey. Zephyr will be the next in line to meet a sticky demise though – unless she can outsmart him. The story is simplistic and rather predictable but the performances from both Jai Courtney and Hassie Harrison help this one stand out. The pair work hard to outshine one another, with Courtney's monologues about the ocean, animal hierarchies and predators both chilling and strangely educational. Courtney has an intoxicating way of filling every scene with an eerie sense of dread, and the movie is all the stronger for lingering the camera on him for an uncomfortably long time. Conversely, Harrison's portrayal of Zephyr – a spunky, tough-as-nails survivor – makes for an easy heroine to root for, especially as the movie examines a bit of her backstory and what drives her. There's no big exposition dumps or overlong explanations about the past though, with Sean Byrne instead letting audiences make draw their own conclusions. One of the standout scenes involves no dialogue at all: Bruce silently eating dinner, the camera lingering uncomfortably long. It's incredibly effective and underscores just how far gone he is. All of this is helped by the way Dangerous Animals effectively builds dread with just the right amount of hard cuts and lingering shots. The editors have done a great job here cutting the film together, clearly knowing when to cut away—and when not to. The film's main antagonistic hook (no pun intended) actually stems from Tucker rather than the sharks. These marine predators are used sparingly but effectively enough to maintain their presence as a formidable foe. However, the movie does a good job of portraying them as actual animals rather than maniacal killing machines too ala. Jaws. It's one of the more unique and welcome aspects of this movie that should definitely be applauded Having said that though, Dangerous Animals overplays its hand on several occasions. The movie attempts one too many break-out attempts for Zephyr and it diminishes their impact over time. It's also worth noting too that Moses Markley (Josh Heuston) is embarrassingly underused here. He doesn't have a whole lot to do beyond some filler investigative work to keep him busy, and the material he is given when joined with Zephyr has him playing second fiddle to her character. Moses lacks agency or anything in the way of charisma, which is a shame because this unrealized potential is a big hindrance to what's otherwise a taut thriller. Overall, Dangerous Animals is a decent, if unremarkable, thriller. It doesn't break new ground, and the plot has few surprises, but the strong lead performances and slick editing keep things afloat. Flaws and all, this one's still a bloody good time. Read More: Dangerous Animals Ending Explained
The Review Geek
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Review Geek
Dangerous Animals (2025) Ending Explained – Does Zephyr manage to survive?
Dangerous Animals Plot Summary The opening of Dangerous Animals sets the scene for the film to follow. Mysterious, tense and just a tad surreally funny – Bruce Tucker runs a shark-diving expedition on his boat. Unfortunately, it all goes wrong for tourist Heather when her boyfriend is killed, fed to the sharks, while she's abducted by this maniacal serial killer. With Bruce on the hunt for new victims, he sets his sights on young survivalist Zephyr, a savvy and free-spirited surfer. When she crosses paths with Bruce, Zephyr must do everything she can to overcome this maniacal predator. Why is Bruce killing? Bruce Tucker is a disillusioned man, killing his victims by feeding them to sharks. He's a firm believer of the hierarchy within the animal world and knows that sharks associate his boat with food, hence why the sharks swim around. He targets impressionable young women – preferably tourists – and chalks their deaths up to 'accidents' at sea. Bruce films the encounters for his own amusement and gets his kicks from watching them back. He has a whole bunch of videotapes in his cupboard recording these deaths, complete with locks of hair for good measure. All of these are locked up (no pun intended) inside his cupboard where numerous other tapes are located. How long does Zephyr have to live? When Zephyr awakens after being kidnapped, she finds herself in the presence of Heather, who's still alive after the incident from the start of the movie. Zephyr shows her resourcefulness and attempts to pick her handcuff lock with the underwire from a bra but it doesn't work. Bruce drugs them both and makes a show of it, killing Heather right in front of Zephyr and filming the encounter. Bruce then decides that Zephyr has 24 hours to live before she goes swimming with the fishes. Zephyr buys herself some time by throwing Tucker's camcorder in the water. As our killer wants to film and savor the experience, he heads back to shore to get a replacement. How does Moses try to save Zephyr? Whilst docked, this gives Moses Markley time to mount a rescue mission. We met Moses earlier in the movie and Zephyr's casual hook-up turns to more when she realizes she genuinely has feelings for him. That feeling is mutual for Moses, who does his own investigation and tracks down the boat. All of this eventually converges with Moses and Zephyr captured and driven out on the boat to Hangman's Shoals, a secluded area in the nearby sea. Having understood now how sharks operate (partly thanks to Tucker's surprisingly informative monologues) Zephyr convinces Moses to stay as still as possible in the water. This works so the sharks don't attack, given they don't mistake him for a seal. Bruce takes things one step further and stabs the guy in the chest before dropping him back in the ocean again. The entire operation however is interrupted by a helicopter flying around outside, prompting Moses' torturous ordeal to be delayed. Does Zephyr manage to get away? Moses bleeds so much that he passes out, allowing Bruce some alone time with Zephyr. He likens himself to her, pointing out he can see the fight she has and likens both of them to sharks; solitary creatures that fend for themselves. Zephyr dislocates (and bites off) her thumb to break free of her handcuff when he leaves, but unfortunately Tucker tracks her down again when she tries to run away. As a result, he's ready for the final show. How does Zephyr manage to stop Bruce Tucker? In the water, Zephyr puts on one heck of a performance, managing to stave off a Great White as it circles her, preparing to strike. With Bruce hungrily filming, Zephyr manages to break free from her restraints and underwater, finds herself face to face with the shark. There's a moment between them as they stare into one another's eyes, seemingly understanding the other's ordeal. The shark decides not to strike. In fact, this shark is battered with scars and sports a nasty gash over its face, a result of Tucker's meddling earlier on. Zephyr makes it back to the boat and outsmarts Tucker, shooting him with a harpoon gun and sending him into the water. The hunter becomes the hunted, as Zephyr watches as the shark grabs Tucker and takes a big ol' chomp out of his side. The same shark that Tucker stabbed with the harpoon gun earlier on. How does Dangerous Animals end? With Tucker dead, we pan across to his camcorder where we ironically find out that his death has been filmed the whole time. In the end, Bruce becomes the final victim in his twisted mausoleum of death. Zephyr and Moses both survive their encounter, thanks to Zephyr firing off some emergency flares to prompt the nearby party boat to turn round and save them. Zephyr realizes she does have something to live for in Moses, and after professing this to him, the pair await rescue as the movie ends. Read More: Dangerous Animals Movie Review
The Independent
05-06-2025
- General
- The Independent
Diver convicted of freeing sharks off Florida coast says he was surprised by presidential pardon
A shark-diving charter boat captain convicted of theft for freeing 19 sharks and a giant grouper from a fisherman's longline off the coast of Florida says he's felt like he was living in an alternate universe for the past five years. That changed last week when he received a presidential pardon. 'This is something I never thought I'd hold,' John Moore Jr. said Tuesday, as he showed off the document with U.S. President Donald Trump 's signature scrawled across the bottom. Moore and crew member Tanner Mansell were convicted in 2022 of theft of property within special maritime jurisdiction. The two men avoided prison time but were ordered to pay $3,343.72 in restitution. The felony convictions prevented them from voting in Florida, owning firearms or traveling freely outside the U.S. Moore said he and his attorneys were surprised by the pardon, because they hadn't petitioned for one. 'We didn't reach out to the White House,' Moore said. 'We never approached them for a pardon, because that was kind of skipping steps, like we had actually filed the paperwork to take this to the Supreme Court.' Moore and Mansell spotted the longline about 3 miles (5 kilometers) off the Jupiter Inlet in August 2020, according to court records. Believing it was an illegal fishing line, the men freed the sharks and a grouper, reported it to state wildlife officials and brought the line back to shore. Federal prosecutors later charged the men with theft. Officials said the line belonged to a fisherman licensed by the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration to catch sharks for research. Mansell and Moore were convicted by a jury, and their appeals were later denied. The full and unconditional pardons signed by Trump erase those convictions. 'Would I have done something different, now that I know that that was a legal line?' Moore asked. 'I was a commercial fisherman. I would never touch a legal line. But now I know more about this, that those things can exist.'
Washington Post
05-06-2025
- General
- Washington Post
Diver convicted of freeing sharks off Florida coast says he was surprised by presidential pardon
MIAMI — A shark-diving charter boat captain convicted of theft for freeing 19 sharks and a giant grouper from a fisherman's longline off the coast of Florida says he's felt like he was living in an alternate universe for the past five years. That changed last week when he received a presidential pardon .
Associated Press
05-06-2025
- General
- Associated Press
Diver convicted of freeing sharks off Florida coast says he was surprised by presidential pardon
MIAMI (AP) — A shark-diving charter boat captain convicted of theft for freeing 19 sharks and a giant grouper from a fisherman's longline off the coast of Florida says he's felt like he was living in an alternate universe for the past five years. That changed last week when he received a presidential pardon . 'This is something I never thought I'd hold,' John Moore Jr. said Tuesday, as he showed off the document with U.S. President Donald Trump's signature scrawled across the bottom. Moore and crew member Tanner Mansell were convicted in 2022 of theft of property within special maritime jurisdiction. The two men avoided prison time but were ordered to pay $3,343.72 in restitution. The felony convictions prevented them from voting in Florida, owning firearms or traveling freely outside the U.S. Moore said he and his attorneys were surprised by the pardon, because they hadn't petitioned for one. 'We didn't reach out to the White House,' Moore said. 'We never approached them for a pardon, because that was kind of skipping steps, like we had actually filed the paperwork to take this to the Supreme Court.' Moore and Mansell spotted the longline about 3 miles (5 kilometers) off the Jupiter Inlet in August 2020, according to court records. Believing it was an illegal fishing line, the men freed the sharks and a grouper, reported it to state wildlife officials and brought the line back to shore. Federal prosecutors later charged the men with theft. Officials said the line belonged to a fisherman licensed by the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration to catch sharks for research. Mansell and Moore were convicted by a jury, and their appeals were later denied. The full and unconditional pardons signed by Trump erase those convictions. 'Would I have done something different, now that I know that that was a legal line?' Moore asked. 'I was a commercial fisherman. I would never touch a legal line. But now I know more about this, that those things can exist.'
