• LIKE on Facebook • FOLLOW on X/Twitter • FOLLOW on Instagram

• SUBSCRIBE on YouTube • BUY ME A COFFEE on Ko-Fi

Stars: Jai Courtney, Hassie Harrison, Josh Heuston
Director: Sean Byrne
Distributor: Vertigo Releasing

“Mummy Shark…”

The concept of Jai Courtney playing a psychotic boat captain who provides experiences swimming with sharks is as crazy as it sounds and surprisingly…it works.

When a pair of young, slightly naive tourists pursue Tucker’s Experience to go swimming with sharks, they get much more than they bargained for. Tucker, played magnificently by Jair Courtney, is eccentric beyond belief, but he comes with scars. A survivor of a shark attack at a young age, he now lives life providing fun experiences for tourists with his shark cage. Except, there’s an undisclosed element of the experience: abduction and imprisonment.

One day, Tucker comes into brief contact with Zephr (Hassie Harrison) at a quiet surfing spot. Before sunrise, and before she knows it, Tucker abducts Zephr – who, rather than a foolish tourist, is quite obviously a drifter with presumably no connections. However, Tucker doesn’t know that Zephr had just spent the night with Moses (Josh Heuston), who is absolutely crazy about her. When Zephr isn’t at the famed surf spot at the Gold Coast, but instead has had her vehicle towed away, Moses isn’t one bit convinced, and embarks on an almost impossible search for her.

Along with another victim, Zephr finds herself onboard the adventures of Tucker’s Experience. A boat trip to hell featuring sharks, plenty of blood and guts, but most frighteningly, Tucker’s fascination over a retro camcorder and his personally produced snuff tapes. Does Moses stand any chance?

Dangerous Animals succeeds with a duality of vibes: 1. It’s actually safer in the water than on the boat with Jai Courtney. 2. Between the boat and the ocean, nowhere is safe. Both of these, whilst awful for Tucker’s victims, establish a suffocating concept for the viewer where there is an ambiance of constant dread.

In terms of spectacle, Dangerous Animals absolutely needs to be witnessed upon the biggest screen possible. Such a shame that this doesn’t have an IMAX run. The bigger the screen, the increased risk of a panic attack. Quite unsettling. The film opens with a run of exciting shots of the ocean, but later on, an underwater sequence will take your breath away with its dangerous beauty.

Without exaggeration, this could be a career-defining role for Jai Courtney. He goes in the attack with such a multi-layered performance. There are so many aspects of his character on show, and so many that are merely suggested, but left to one’s imagination. The snuff film collection and obsession with blank VHS tapes is both amazing and frightening. Courtney makes it work. During one scene in particular, Courtner channels his inner Buffalo Bill to both terrifying and hilarious results.
From director Sean Byrne, Dangerous Animals is a thrilling black comedy horror. Pure B-movie vibes throughout, but also quite artsy with its underwater spectacles. Truly a film that is essential to be seen on the biggest screen, don’t let the boat sail on its theatrical run.