Violence to Animals in Film

Heads Up, Ears Down

This blog accurately identifies depictions of violence and cruelty toward animals in films. The purpose is to provide viewers with a reliable guide so that such depictions do not come as unwelcome surprises. Films will be accurately notated, providing a time cue for each incident along with a concise description of the scene and perhaps relevant context surrounding the incident. In order to serve as a useful reference tool, films having no depictions of violence to animals will be included, with an indication that there are no such scenes. This is confirmation that the films have been watched with the stated purpose in mind.

Note that the word depictions figures prominently in the objective. It is a travesty that discussions about cruelty in film usually are derailed by the largely unrelated assertion that no animals really were hurt (true only in some films, dependent upon many factors), and that all this concern is just over a simulation. Not the point, whether true or false. We do not smugly dismiss depictions of five-year-olds being raped because those scenes are only simulations. No, we are appalled that such images are even staged, and we are appropriately horrified that the notion now has been planted into the minds of the weak and cruel.

Depictions of violence or harm to animals are assessed in keeping with our dominant culture, with physical abuse, harmful neglect, and similar mistreatment serving as a base line. This blog does not address extended issues of animal welfare, and as such does not identify scenes of people eating meat or mules pulling plows. The goal is to itemize images that might cause a disturbance in a compassionate household.

These notes provide a heads-up but do not necessarily discourage watching a film because of depicted cruelty. Consuming a piece of art does not make you a supporter of the ideas presented. Your ethical self is created by your public rhetoric and your private actions, not by your willingness to sit through a filmed act of violence.

Bad Girls Go to Hell

Bad Girls Go to Hell. Doris Wishman, 1965.

😸

Edition screened: Included in AGFA Blu-ray set The Films of Doris Wishman: The Moonlight Years. English language. Runtime approximately 65 minutes.

Summary: No depictions of violence or harm to animals.

The Beastmaster

The Beastmaster. Don Coscarelli, 1982.

😿 😿

Edition screened: Vinegar Syndrome UHD #VSU 01, released 2021. English language. Runtime approximately 118 minutes.

Summary: Depictions and implications of dead animals.

Details:

1) An ox lies on her side while a kneeling witch blocks our view of a fetus being removed from the animal’s stomach. We see a thin bloody incision as the witch leaves. 8:15-8:30.

2) A dog whimpers when he is shot with an arrow at 19:49, but manages to drag wounded Marc Singer to safety. Followed by several images of the dog lying dead, 21:00 - 21:58.

3) Marc Singer affectionately adds the dead dog to the funeral pyre of murdered villagers, 23:21-24:44

4) One of the two companion ferrets nearly drowns in quicksand saving Marc Singer, 30:00-30:40.

5) One of the two companion ferrets lunges at Rip Torn to save Marc Singer, and falls in the sacrificial fire, 1:39:05. There is no depiction of the animal actually hitting the flames.

6) Horses and riders are trapped in a moat of flaming tar, 1:44:36-1:46:00

Europe ’51

Europe ’51. Roberto Rossellini, 1952.

😸

Edition screened: Criterion Blu-ray #674 included in 3-Blu-ray set #672, 3 Films by Roberto Rossellini Starring Ingrid Bergman released 2013. English language with alternate Italian language version. Runtime approximately 118 minutes.

Summary: No particular depictions of violence or harm to animals.

Friday the 13th Part 3

Friday the 13th Part 3. Steve Miner, 1982.

😿

Edition screened: Included in Paramount Friday the 13th: 8-Movie Collection DVD set, released 2017. English language. Runtime approximately 87 minutes.

Summary: Dead rabbits.

Details:

1) Dead rabbits found in their small hutch, 13:08-13:15.

2) A dead and slightly mutilated rabbit lies alongside the road, 21:10-21:13.

Indecent Desires

Indecent Desires. Doris Wishman, 1968.

😸

Edition screened: Included in AGFA Blu-ray set The Films of Doris Wishman: The Moonlight Years. English language. Runtime approximately 75 minutes.

Summary: No depictions of violence or harm to animals.

The Aviator’s Wife

The Aviator’s Wife: Comedies and Proverbs #1/6 (La femme de l'aviateur). Éric Rohmer, 1981.

😸

Edition screened: Blu-ray included in Potemkine box set Coffret Éric Rohmer, l’intégrale, released 2013. French language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 143 minutes.

Summary: No depictions of violence or harm to animals.

The Boy Friend

The Boy Friend. Ken Russell, 1971.

😸

Edition screened: Warner Archive Blu-ray, released 2017. English language. Runtime approximately 137 minutes.

Summary: No particular depictions of violence or harm to animals.

The Day of the Beast

The Day of the Beast (El día de la bestia). Álex de la Iglesia, 1995.

😿

Edition screened: Severin UHD, released 2021. Spanish language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 104 minutes.

Summary: A woman prepares a rabbit in the kitchen and cuts it into pieces, 15:11 - 16:40.

Friday the 13th Part 2

Friday the 13th Part 2. Steve Miner, 1981.

😿😿

Edition screened: Included in Paramount Friday the 13th: 8-Movie Collection DVD set, released 2017. English language. Runtime approximately 87 minutes.

Summary: The mangled body of a small dog is found in the woods, 37:43-37:46.

Identifiable in the bar scene about 50 minutes in are a 1979 Bally KISS and a 1978 Williams Pokerino.

The Incredible Sex Revolution

The Incredible Sex Revolution. Albert Zugsmith, 1966.

😸

Edition screened: Included with On Her Bed of Roses in Vinegar Syndrome ‘Drive-In Collection’ DVD #093, released 2015. English language. Runtime approximately 112 minutes.

Summary: No animals or references to animals in the film.

Love in the Afternoon

Love in the Afternoon: Six Moral Tales #6/6 (L'amour l’après-midi; Chloé in the Afternoon). Éric Rohmer, 1972.

😸

Edition screened: Blu-ray included in Potemkine box set Coffret Éric Rohmer, released 2013. French language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 95 minutes.

Summary: No depictions of violence or harm to animals.

On Her Bed of Roses

On Her Bed of Roses (Psychedelic Sexualis/Psychopathia Sexualis). Albert Zugsmith, 1966.

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Edition screened: Included with The Incredible Sex Revolution in Vinegar Syndrome ‘Drive-In Collection’ DVD #093, released 2015. English language. Runtime approximately 111 minutes.

Summary: No animals or references to animals in the film.

Zatoichi’s Pilgrimage

Zatoichi’s Pilgrimage (Zatōichi umi o wataru). Kazuo Ikehiro, 1966.

😸

Edition screened: In Criterion Blu-ray box set #679 Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman, released 2013. Japanese language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 82 minutes.

Summary: No depictions of violence toward animals.

The fourteenth film in the Zatoichi series.

The Wolf Man

The Wolf Man. George Waggner, 1941.

😿

Edition screened: Included in Universal Classic Monsters Blu-ray set, released 2012. English language. Runtime approximately 70 minutes.

Summary: At the 18:00 minute mark Lon Chaney Jr. beats - a wolf - to death. This happens discreetly behind a tree with no impacts shown.

Throne of Blood

Throne of Blood (Kumonosu jô). Akira Kurosawa, 1957.

😸

Edition screened: Criterion Blu-ray #190, released 2014. Japanese language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 149 minutes.

Summary: No particular depictions of violence or harm to animals. A scattered rain of arrows targets men on horseback but there is no depiction of the horses being hit or hurt.

I consider this moody adaptation of Macbeth one of Kurosawa’a best films.

The Prince and the Nature Girl

The Prince and the Nature Girl (Nackt im Sommerwind). Doris Wishman, 1964.

😸

Edition screened: Included in AGFA Blu-ray set The Films of Doris Wishman: The Daylight Years. German language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 60 minutes.

Summary: No depictions of violence or harm to animals.

Phantom of the Opera (Lubin)

Phantom of the Opera. Arthur Lubin, 1943.

😸

Edition screened: Included in Universal Classic Monsters Blu-ray set, released 2012. English language. Runtime approximately 93 minutes.

Summary: No particular depictions of violence toward animals.

Mondo Freudo

Mondo Freudo. Lee Frost, 1966.

😿

Edition screened: Included in Severin Blu-ray Mondo Freudo/Mondo Bizarro, released 2019. English language. Runtime approximately 76 minutes.

Summary: Staged religious ceremony with dead animals.

Details:

1) As part of an obviously phony satanic ritual, an already-dead chicken is suspended by the feet, stabbed, and we see blood drip (54:48 - 55:03). The chicken is tossed to the floor and occasionally visible in the background through 55:45.

2) Same scene, a fake-looking pig’s head on a table with blood on the face, 56:42 - 56:46, and again 59:11 - 59:18.

Mondo Bizarro

Mondo Bizarro. Lee Frost, 1966.

😿 😿

Edition screened: Included in Severin Blu-ray Mondo Freudo/Mondo Bizarro, released 2019. English language. Runtime approximately 80 minutes.

Summary: Animals murdered in a staged religious ceremony.

Details:

1) As part of a staged vodou ritual, a live chicken is beheaded and its blood drained into a a cup, followed by a small boa constrictor similarly beheaded and its blood drained into the same cup. This all happens at a distance and the image is dark and grainy, 11:00 - 12:20.

Mallrats

Mallrats. Kevin Smith, 1995.

😿

Edition screened: Arrow Blu-ray, released 2020. English language. Runtime approximately 94 minutes.

Summary: Mean humor about kittens.

Details:

1) The movie begins with a voice-over about killing kittens for an obscene reason, 00:20 - 00:52. The comic book-style opening credits come next, the best part of Mallrats by far.

2) We meet Jay 16:16 - 18:55, who pounds at the kittens on the glass pet shop window just like you never should.

Shannen Doherty’s performance is good and her physical appearance is lovely. The scattered vignettes of Jay and Silent Bob are somewhat entertaining. Everything else about Mallrats is wretched.

Mad Monkey Kung Fu

Mad Monkey Kung Fu (Feng hou). Liu Chia-Liang, 1979.

😿 😿 😿

Edition screened: Included in the Arrow Blu-ray box set Shawscope: Volume Two, released 2022. Mandarin language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 115 minutes.

Summary: Depicted abuse and murder of a trained monkey.

Details:

1) A street performer has a monkey on a chain leash. The monkey is made to perform backflips when the owner jerks him upward via the chain, 21:12-21:22.

2) The monkey is seized by thugs at 32:46, who swing the monkey violently in circles by his chain before smashing him against a tree. The dead monkey is tossed to the ground and picked up by his owner through 33:24.

The Invisible Man

The Invisible Man. James Whale, 1933.

😿😿

Edition screened: Included in Universal Classic Monsters Blu-ray set, released 2012. English language. Runtime approximately 72 minutes.

Summary: A young white cat is sprayed overall with something like pressurized black paint from a distance of about six feet, 1:02:21 - 1:02:24. This short scene is mean and upsetting.

I had been enjoying The Invisible Man much more than I expected to, but the short “comedy” scene with the poor cat ruined the movie somewhat.

I’m No Angel

I’m No Angel. Wesley Ruggles, 1933.

😸

Edition screened: Kino Lorber Blu-ray, released 2021. English language. Runtime approximately 87 minutes.

Summary: No particular depictions of violence or harm to animals.

Friday the 13th

Friday the 13th. Sean S. Cunningham, 1980.

😿😿

Edition screened: ‘Uncut’ edition included in Paramount Friday the 13th: 8-Movie Collection DVD set, released 2017. English language. Runtime approximately 95 minutes.

Summary: A snake in a camp cabin is harassed by shrieking teens then hacked into pieces with a machete, 26:59 - 27:04.

Five Superfighters

Five Superfighters (Shao Lin da peng da shi). Lo Mar, 1979.

😸

Edition screened: Included in the Arrow Blu-ray box set Shawscope: Volume Two, released 2022. Mandarin language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 100 minutes.

Summary: No particular depictions of violence or harm to animals.

The Films of Doris Wishman: The Daylight Years

The Films of Doris Wishman: The Daylight Years. 1960-1964.

😸

Edition screened: AGFA Blu-ray, released 2022. English language. Combined runtime of feature films approximately 428 minutes.

Summary: No particular depictions of violence or harm to animals.

Click on individual titles for additional information:

Hideout in the Sun (1960)

Nude on the Moon (1961)

Diary of a Nudist (1961)

Blaze Starr Goes Nudist (1962)

Gentlemen Prefer Nature Girls (1963)

The Prince and the Nature Girl (1964)

Diary of a Nudist

Diary of a Nudist. Doris Wishman, 1961.

😸

Edition screened: Included in AGFA Blu-ray set The Films of Doris Wishman: The Daylight Years. English language. Runtime approximately 72 minutes.

Summary: No depictions of violence or harm to animals.

Diary of a Nudist has the highest aspirations of these early Wishman films despite the female lead’s resemblance to Butt-Head in a blonde wig.

Creature from the Black Lagoon

Creature from the Black Lagoon. Jack Arnold, 1954.

😿

Edition screened: Included in Universal Classic Monsters Blu-ray set, released 2012. English language. Runtime approximately 80 minutes.

Summary: The surface of the lagoon is littered with dead fish after rotenone is put in the water, 44:07-44:23. The use of rotenone comes up several other times in the film, always emphasizing that the fish are drunk and will recover in a few hours. No.

Concerning Violence

Concerning Violence (Om våld). Göran Hugo Olsson, 2014.

😿😿

Edition screened: Reported with reliability. Swedish with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 90 minutes.

Summary: The film begins with cows being shot, and was watched no further.

Classe tous risques

Classe tous risques (The Big Risk). Claude Sautet, 1960.

😸

Edition screened: BFI Blu-ray, released 2014. French and Italian languages with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 112 minutes.

Summary: A bratty young woman teases a cat with a goldfish plucked from an aquarium. The fish is replaced unharmed.

César et Rosalie

César et Rosalie. Claude Sautet, 1972.

😸

Edition screened: Studio Canal Blu-ray, released 2012. French language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 111 minutes.

Summary: No particular depictions of violence or harm to animals.

52 Pick-Up

52 Pick-Up. John Frankenheimer, 1986.

😸

Edition screened: Koch Lorber Blu-ray, released 2014. English language. Runtime approximately 110 minutes.

Summary: No particular depictions of violence or harm to animals.

9 ½ Weeks

9 ½ Weeks. Adrian Lyne, 1986.

😿

Edition screened: MGM Blu-ray, released 2012. English language. Runtime approximately 117 minutes.

Summary: The spoils of fishing.

Details:

1) A live fish struggles while handled by a butcher. The scene cuts away before the fish is finished off, 5:08-5:20.

2) Alley cat with a rat in his mouth, 1:10:29.

3) An elderly man sits on a bench gently handling a dead fish he has caught, 1:25:22-1:26:39.

Unidentifiable pinball machine in silhouette, 20:42.

The 36th Chamber of Shaolin

The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (Shao Lin san shi liu fang). Liu Chia-Liang, 1978.

😿

Edition screened: Included in the Arrow Blu-ray box set Shawscope: Volume Two, released 2022. Mandarin language. Runtime approximately 116 minutes.

Summary: A particularly odd attempt to thwart warriors on horseback involves rigging modest amounts of rice flour to fall from the city gate as they pass below, 1:50:00. Hmmm. The horses are not injured but are visibly confused and weirded out, understandably.

54 (Christopher)

54. Mark Christopher, 1998.

😸

Edition screened: Miramax DVD, released 1999. English language. Runtime approximately 93 minutes.

Summary: No animals or references to animals in the film.

Alps

Alps (Alpeis). Yorgos Lanthimos, 2011.

😸

Edition screened: Kino Lorber Blu-ray, released 2019. Greek language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 93 minutes.

Summary: No particular depictions of violence or harm to animals.

Amazon Jail

Amazon Jail (Curral de Mulheres). Oswaldo de Oliveira, 1985.

😿

Edition screened: Included with Amazon Jail 2 in Vinegar Syndrome Blu-ray set #442, released 2023. Portuguese language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 99 minutes.

Summary: Campsite cooking.

Details:

1) Campsite with plucked birds hanging from clothes lines during dialogue, 1:00:32 - 1:00:53.

2) Large fish impaled on a spit over a campfire, 1:18:45 - 1:19:23.

3) A piglet carcass is rubbed with blocks of ice or salt in preparation for cooking, 1:25:00 - 1:25:06. This image is not clear.

4) The piglet is impaled on a spit over a fire during the entire dance sequence, 1:27:42 - 1:29:26. There are several gory closeups.

. . . and a note for someone else’s “Violence to Polymers in Film” blog: Amazon Jail also includes a depiction of a man smashing a geometric piece of plastic on his leg while pretending it is an insect.

Amazon Jail 2

Amazon Jail 2 (Prisioneiras da Selva Amazônica). Conrado Sanchez, 1987.

😿 😿

Edition screened: Included with Amazon Jail in Vinegar Syndrome Blu-ray set #442, released 2023. Portuguese language with English subtitles. Runtime approximately 70 minutes.

Summary: Terrible handling of a snake.

Details:

1) We see a live pet tarantula on a man’s leg. The man then eats an obviously fake tarantula, 6:35-6:45.

2) A man grabs a very large snake that was minding his own business at 28:07 and handles him roughly, culminating in tying the reptile in a bulky knot at 28:26.

Aside from the mortifying snake abuse, the last half of the film is like a 1980s TV advertisement for a Family Fun Drive-Thru Safari. The four hostage girls handle snakes nicely, cuddle jungle kittens, and share the water with small wild pigs. At no point is a ‘jail’ of any sort seen on screen.