Dogs (1976)

A pack of dogs go on a killing spree.

Director:

Burt Brinckerhoff

Writer:

O'Brian Tomalin

Stars:

David McCallum, Sandra McCabe, George Wyner

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
David McCallum	...	Harlan Thompson
Sandra McCabe	...	Caroline Donoghue
George Wyner	...	Michael Fitzgerald
Eric Server	...	Jimmy Goodman
Linda Gray	...	Miss Engle
Dean Santoro	...	Aintry
Holly Harris	...	Mrs. Koppelman
Sterling Swanson	...	Dr. Martin Koppelman
Barry Greenberg	...	Howard Kaplan
Michael Davis	...	Nichols
Russ Grieve	...	Homer
Cathy Austin	...	Annie Watson
Paul Paolasso	...	Carl
Elizabeth Kerr	...	Mrs. Mary McDougal
Lance Hool	...	Robbie Pulaski

Storyline

On the quiet campus of the remotely-located SouthWestern University, something strange is happening. All of the dogs in the area, once loyal, gentle pets, are now banding together in wild packs and hunting down their former masters. Could the strange transformation have anything to do with the secret government experiements being conducted in the school's physics laboratory? More importantly, can the dogs be stopped before it's too late?

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Plot Keywords:

dog | killing | college | animal attack | science | 

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

French English

Release Date:

1976 (USA)

Also Known As:

Slaughter

Filming Locations:

San Diego, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bruce Cohn Productions, La Quinta Partnership, Mar Vista Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

There was to be a sequel, appropriately entitled "Cats". But when "Dogs" failed at the box office, production was canceled.

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Connections

Referenced in Starsky and Hutch: Death in a Different Place (1977)

User Reviews

Barks and bites ... biological terror runs between your legs

What if one day, your cute puppy dog starts taking a run at you and biting your hand or feet? You'd probably think "it's time I get it to its veterinary". But what if a pack of dogs starts assaulting people with wild abandon in a little town in California? DOGS tries to teach us how it could be. After having repeatedly witnessed to all kind of animals attacking humanity between '60s and '70s flicks, here it comes this movie. I pretty like it and it was given to me by chance while I was purchasing a video recorder, about twenty years ago. Very hard to catch I'm afraid, not even on DVD 'till now. From the beginning, I was intrigued by David McCallum and Linda Gray, this one starring as Mrs. Engle before jumping into the Sue Ellen's odyssey on the TV drama DALLAS. And I found interesting the movie was mostly shot closing to the floor at the characters' foot, while they're stroking the pets. Just there, I spotted a reference to a fortunate dog movie series in the '70s: BENJI. But Hitchcock's devices, you know, insinuate all over this era. So what if THE BIRDS over cross the set, taking a little trip from Bodega Bay to Chula Vista, San Diego? Therefore a dogs' parade could become a children and ladies' flight with dogs acting in the way Hitchcock would have directed them and angrily barking and running after innocent, unarmed children and populace. Therefore a man could try to protect his refuge and loves from attacks by covering doors with boards and planks. And differently from the other ones, a dog could resemble the pacific couple of Melania Daniels' caged lovebirds. But what about PSYCHO and its unforgettable scene under the shower? Guess! Anyway, I really appreciate the way the director devised his inspirer sources: he surely set up an original tale with a good location in Southwestern University. Not to mention other influences on it - as SQUIRM on the same year or BUG one year before - this movie really charms due to its scientific and biological explanation: an high energy accelerator near campus maybe drives the dogs crazy. It makes all more realistic than ever, even if political reasons and hidden researches spoil the plot as those in Joe Dante's PIRANHA do.

***Possible SPOILER ahead***

Considering also THE STRAWBERRY STATEMENT movie (1970), You could compare its ending to the one in DOGS. Centering the attention on campus, both of the films turn fatefully to a final massacre between young students living there. The canine mass acts as the police does in the other movie, making us believe society must pay an heavy price because of its political and scientific strategies. This last and the scene about the pets' exposition are my favorite ones. 6/10