BA_Harrison I watched director William Girdler's animal attack movie Grizzly a while back and completely forgot to write a review about it. Still, it doesn't matter too much that the details are now a little vague, because this film can be summed up easily in three words: Jaws on land.Instead of swimmers being gobbled up in the sea, it's hikers and campers that are on the menu of an 18-foot tall grizzly bear in a national park, with concerned ranger Michael Kelly (Christopher George) in charge of hunting the hairy beast down. He is aided in this task by naturalist Scott (Richard Jaeckel) and helicopter pilot, Don (Andrew Prine), but is hampered by a stupid official who wants to keep the park open.Of course, Girdler's film isn't a patch on Jaws, the director not nearly in the same class as Spielberg when on top form, but it does offer up some cheesy B-movie fun, with a few gory killings (the first victim has her arm torn off and is gripped in a deadly bear hug, a young boy loses his leg, and a horse is decapitated!), an entertaining attack on a lookout tower, and a craptabulous finale in which the bear has a go at Don's helicopter before finally being blown to smithereens with a rocket launcher.

Bezenby This film scared the crap out of me when I was a small kid (what were my parents thinking?), so it was about time I relived it. I'm glad to say that although this is a rip off of some other movie (Enzo Castellari's The Last Shark I think), Grizzly is an effective animal on the loose film. And, strangely, the fourth film in a row I've watched set in a forest (after Forest of Fear, Don't go in the woods, and Attack of the beast creatures).Everything's dandy for forest ranger Kelly (Christopher George) and his helicopter pilot mate Andrew Prine (Andrew Prine) until two girls get gorily dismembered and eaten by a giant grizzly. In a plot point never done before in another film, the park's owner doesn't want to shut the park down due to tourist revenue, so it's up to Kelly, Prine, and some guy who walks around pretending to be an animal to find the Grizzly and put a cap in his arse.The bear, however, is super smart and chows down on rangers and tourists alike, killing one ranger while she rather unwisely takes a topless shower under a waterfall. In another plot point never thought before, some hunters set out to bring down the bear which just leads to more trouble.Two scenes have stayed with me over the years. The part where the bear attacks a small child and his mother, and the bit where one of the trackers is mauled, buried alive, and gets back up again to find the bear is waiting for him. There is something rather intimidating about a crazed, giant bear chasing people through a forest (unlike the film Grizzly rips off, which I think is Bruno Mattei's Cruel Jaws, once you're on land a shark can't chase you, but a giant bear in a forest seems like a bit more desperate situation especially as this one can tear down walls).It was gorier than I remembered, as limbs are torn off (including a child losing a leg), a horse having it's head torn off, and faces being clawed. I couldn't believe it when after the film a notice came up saying the film was a PG! Maybe my parents shouldn't have trusted such notices when I was a child.If Christopher George has made a bad film, I've not seen it. Just watch Pieces, Enter the Ninja and City of the Living Dead for further examples. What's that you say? Graduation Day? Hmm - time for me to go

gavin6942 A fifteen foot tall grizzly bear terrorizes a state park. Ranger Michael Kelly (Christopher George) leaps into the carnage to stop it.While I have not seen many bear attack films, I have seen enough to know good from bad. Some are unbearably bad (no pun intended), such as "Bear", which basically is about infidelity in a minivan.This one is much better, though it does seem to be hindered a bit by its PG rating. There is a fair amount of blood and gore, but they could have gone and went one more step to really make this memorable. The notorious scene with the young boy is not nearly as bad as it is made out to be.Some plot points are odd (such as Scotty's playing dead), but taken with a grain of salt and bowl of popcorn, this is not a bad film.

utgard14 Simian actor Christopher George is the star of this dreadful Jaws wannabe. The film's plot centers on a rampaging giant grizzly bear that we are told has survived extinction for a million years in order to wreak havoc on the forests of Georgia in 1976. Where the bear has been for the last million years is never explained but honestly does it need to be? There are a few reasons to watch this otherwise avoidable mess. First we have the always hammy Andrew Prine lighting up every scene he's in, especially with his overdone Southern accent. I particularly enjoyed the "Indian story" scene, which is I suppose this movie's version of Robert Shaw's classic USS Indianapolis speech from Jaws. I defy anyone to find a point to Prine's story, except that bears can and will kill people, which has "duh" written all over it. Also watch for the scene where the bear attacks a young boy. The child actor can't refrain from smiling throughout his vicious mauling. Another character worth watching is the TV news reporter, who bears a striking similarity to John Oates. This actor seems to have gone from his first day at acting class straight to the set to film his scenes in this movie. His role is small but amusingly memorable. Finally the most important reason to watch Grizzly is for the great simian actor Christopher George. It's a little known fact that George is actually a shaved ape. It's a shame because this wonderful animal actor deserves his recognition alongside famous animals like Lassie and Benji that have entertained moviegoers for decades. Well, if any of the reasons I listed above is enough to make you give Grizzly a shot, good luck. Otherwise I'd suggest watch Animal Planet or National Geographic Channel instead.