Spoiler Warning: Beast (2022)

Mother Nature can be a terrifying mistress. Any time a person dares to venture into the wild unknown, there is the potential for all manner of dangerous situations to arise around every corner. As such, it is easy to understand why the very real threat of unpredictable natural occurrences has long been a popular focal point for horror films. Instead of choosing to center a movie around a sociopathic killer or a supernatural ghoul, a movie with an antagonist that could reasonably be encountered in real life is sure to shake audience members to their core.

The recently released movie Beast is the newest installment in the tradition of natural horror films. Some of those involved in the project feel that it could be the very picture that reinvigorates cinema as a whole. Whether or not it succeeds on that level, the film has more than its fair share of memorable moments that are sure to be burned into the brains of the filmgoers who see it.

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In the movie, a family visits a remote African village, where a bloodthirsty lion relentlessly attacks them. With razor-sharp teeth and flesh-tearing claws, this large cat is one of the most terrifying horror villains in recent memory. In its wake, it leaves a staggering amount of carnage and chaos, racking up a considerable body count in the process. Here are moments that had audiences on the edge of their seats.

A Lion Attack Ravages an Entire Village

     Universal Pictures

Mourning the death of his ex-wife, who he had completely severed ties with following their divorce, Dr. Nate Samuels, who is portrayed by Idris Elba, takes his two daughters to visit the small African village where their mother had grown up. They are introduced to a local lion pride by Sharlto Copley’s (District 9, Russian Doll) Martin, an anti-poaching advocate and biologist. The pride, who has long lived alongside the nearby villagers, is incredibly friendly.

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However, when Martin returns to the village, he finds that almost every one of its citizens is dead from an unknown cause, though he is fairly sure that a lion is responsible. Shortly thereafter, Nate encounters a man bleeding out on the side of the road, who quickly dies.

Lion attacks are a real issue in the developing world, and this scene, though it does not show any part of the mauling, is one of the most viscerally unsettling moments in the film. It establishes how powerful and destructive a lion can be and reminds audiences how utterly vulnerable they would be in the face of an animal attack.

Poachers Justifiably Mauled

Later in the film, Nate’s family and Martin encounter a gang of roving poachers, who immediately turn hostile toward Martin, given his known opposition to the poaching industry. Just when the scene is beginning to turn violent, the lion attacks the caravan of poachers, brutally mauling them and leaving the majority dead. This scene establishes and seemingly confirms the hypothesis that the villainous lion turned savage after poachers killed its fellow pride members.

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This scene, though equally shocking as many others in the film, is perhaps the only occurrence of human death in the movie that seems somewhat justified. When the animals kill a poacher, it is hard not to view the situation as the natural extension of karma. In Beast, the poachers definitely get what they deserve in a righteously violent bloodbath.

Nate’s Brutal Battle With a Lion

At the end of the film, Nate is forced to battle the lion. He locks his daughters in a secure room and tries to fend off the lion. It is quickly apparent that the lion’s strength is far too much for a man to handle, and Nate begins to be brutally mauled. His fists are no match for the lion’s powerful jaws, and bites quickly accumulate. This scene is incredibly gory and rather difficult to watch. However, just when it seems that Nate will die, the lion is attacked by the rest of the pride, whose attention Nate had caught moments earlier. In order to avenge the death of Martin, who had helped raise them, they rip the antagonist lion apart.

Beast is far from the best-reviewed film to release this year, but it is definitely entertaining and has a fair share of terrifying moments to boot. Most of the deaths in the movie are tragic, though there are a few moments where the audience cannot help but sympathize with the murderous lion. If anyone who saw this film finds themselves on a safari in the future, they will definitely keep their distance from the king of the jungle.