Blood Beach (1980)

Something or someone is attacking people one by one on the beach. Some of them are mutilated, but most of them are sucked into the sand, disappearing without a trace. What is the creature ... See full summary »

Director:

Jeffrey Bloom

Writers:

Jeffrey Bloom (screenplay), Jeffrey Bloom (story)

Stars:

David Huffman, Marianna Hill, Burt Young

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
David Huffman	...	Harry Caulder
Marianna Hill	...	Catherine Hutton
Burt Young	...	Sgt. Royko
Otis Young	...	Lt. Piantadosi
Lena Pousette	...	Marie
John Saxon	...	Capt. Pearson
Darrell Fetty	...	Hoagy
Stefan Gierasch	...	Dr. Dimitrios
Eleanor Zee	...	Mrs. Selden
Pamela McMyler	...	Mrs. Hench
Harriet Medin	...	Ruth Hutton
Mickey Fox	...	Moose
Laura Burkett	...	Girl in Sand
Marleta Giles	...	Girlfriend
Jacqueline Randall	...	2nd Girl

Storyline

Something or someone is attacking people one by one on the beach. Some of them are mutilated, but most of them are sucked into the sand, disappearing without a trace. What is the creature responsible? Where does it live, and where did it come from? And is there any chance of it reproducing? Meanwhile, David Huffman and Mariana Hill are once-almost-married old friends, reunited over the death of her mother on the beach, and searching for clues in the abandoned buildings where they used to play when they were young.

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Plot Keywords:

beach | sand | monster | slasher | sexploitation | 

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Taglines:

The five people believed to have drowned here never made it past the sand!

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Genres:

Comedy | Horror | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 January 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

La plage sanglante

Filming Locations:

Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Compass International Pictures, Empress Film Production Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of a cycle of 1980s and mid-late 1970s movies made to cash in on the success of Jaws (1975). The films include Jaws 2 (1978), Jaws 3-D (1983), and Jaws: The Revenge (1987), as well as Orca (1977), Piranha (1978), Tentacles (1977), Killer Fish (1979), Barracuda (1978), Tintorera: Killer Shark (1977), Blood Beach (1980), Piranha II: The Spawning (1981), The Last Shark (1981), Up from the Depths (1979), Humanoids from the Deep (1980), Screamers (1979), Devil Fish (1984) and Mako: The Jaws of Death (1976).

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Goofs

At about 45:50, the mic is visible over their heads for the entire scene while they discuss how the creature travels.

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Quotes

1st Boy, 2nd Boy: We found it! We found it! We found the guy's weiner!
[throwing a hot dog at Sgt. Royko]

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Crazy Credits

What is the name of the woman on the movie cover/poster?

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Connections

Referenced in Video Nasties: Moral Panic, Censorship & Videotape (2010)

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Soundtracks

Fools for Each Other
Words and Music by Guy Clark

User Reviews

Textbook B-grade horror, sometimes slow, but has its moments.

'Blood Beach' is a fairly typical example of a B-grade horror film. The acting is just competent enough to keep the plot going, but no-one would scratch their heads wondering why these artistes aren't better known. There's the stoic male lead doing his best to look moody despite the early 80s low lighting. There's the predictable love interest, the sceptic, the comic relief, and the wise all-knowing scientist who no-one listens to. All the boxes have been checked here. The plot is straightforward and threadbare, and the budget would be equal to what Spielberg spends on a typical lunch.

However, I really enjoyed this thing as a kid, and watching it again recently reminded me why. For one thing, the film-makers know their financial limits, and the menace threatening the sleepy Southern Californian beach is wisely kept out of sight until the very end, and even then, you don't get a truly good look at it. This is a wise approach even when you do have money to play with, as it builds suspense, and avoids disappointment. Additionally, 'Blood Beach' is mostly filmed on-location, so there are few desperately cheap-looking sets. Finally, the film ends the way all good horror films do, though I just wish it hadn't been made so obvious earlier on.

I think the main reason 'Blood Beach' gets a low score is probably that it gets a little slow in places. This isn't helped by the two-dimensional characterisation, that if developed in a better script, could probably have alleviated the problem.

Nonetheless, it has its redeeming features as mentioned, and it's a good bit of late-night disposable viewing if you like horror and there's nothing better on.