GRIZZLY, SQUIRM, & FOOD OF THE GODS / 1976 Eco-Horror Triple Feature!

GRIZZLY (1976) d. William Girdler (USA)
SQUIRM (1976) d. Jeff Lieberman (USA)
THE FOOD OF THE GODS (1976) d. Bert I. Gordon (USA)

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In the wake of Steven Spielberg’s Jaws from 1975, drive-ins and hardtop theaters alike were suddenly overrun by creatures with a taste for human flesh. Intrepid and imaginative independent filmmakers proved that almost any member of the animal kingdom could be transformed into a successful box-office menace. Three standout entries from 1976—Grizzly, Squirm, and The Food of the Gods—perfectly capture the exuberant creativity and unapologetic pulp appeal of the Nature Strikes Back Eco-horror boom.

THE HOWLING & AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON - The Lycanthrope Classics That Changed It All

THE HOWLING (1981) d. Joe Dante (USA) 

AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON (1981) d. John Landis (UK/USA)

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In the spring and summer of 1981, werewolf cinema underwent a radical transformation—not through one film, but two. Released just months apart, The Howling and An American Werewolf in London didn’t just revive a fading subgenre—they redefined what cinematic horror could look and feel like. Each film approached lycanthropy from a different tonal angle, yet together they set a new benchmark for practical effects, storytelling, and the balance between terror and dark humor.

THE FOOD OF THE GODS (1976) Blu-ray Review

The Food of the Gods (1976) d. Bert I. Gordon (USA)

Following an avalanche of late ’50s films featuring oversized beasties – six in two years, including Beginning of the End, The Cyclops, The Amazing Colossal Man, and Earth vs. the Spider – writer-producer-director-special effects artist Gordon (aka “Mr. B.I.G.”) moved away from the subgenre he had helped create, expanding his oeuvre to include ghost stories, action thrillers, and sex comedies. But the 1970s’ ecological horror boom combined with the Jaws-inspired “animals attack” movement proved too alluring to pass up; when longtime producer and American International honcho Samuel Z. Arkoff approached in 1975, inquiring if he had any new projects, Gordon thought immediately of a certain book by H.G. Wells, one upon which he had already riffed with his 1965 romp, Village of the Giants. As he says on Shout! Factory’s new Blu-ray release, “I remembered the giant rats in The Food of the Gods and instantly I knew we had a picture.”