10 Unfathomably Frightening Sea Creature Features
Back when I was a kid growing up in the Bronx, before my obsessions with UFOs and Bigfoot started, I was head over heels in love with the Loch Ness Monster and whales. The little library by my house had lots of whale books with glossy pictures. Luckily for me, it also had a few books on Nessie and other sea creatures. As a little one who knew of small beaches and lakes, the mysteries of the deep fascinated me.
It’s no wonder that when I became a writer, I was eager to pen my own sea monster tales for Severed Press like They Rise, Loch Ness Revenge, Fury of the Orcas and Megalodon in Paradise. You can even throw Just Add Water into the mix if you consider sea monkey-esque beings in a moist sewer a big old fish tale. I may be a land lubber, but part of my heart belongs to the sea and the creatures both real and imagined that lurk within it.
Because of my early love for Nessie, I’ve been a sucker for aquatic horrors all my life. I know there are plenty of others out there just like me. Which is why I wanted to share my list of sea creature features you should check out. I’m going to leave out movies like Jaws, Humanoids from the Deep and Creature from the Black Lagoon because, well, that’s just too easy. Here are 10 others that will satisfy that wet monster itch.
10. The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms (1953): This classic sci-fi monster movie is a classic for a reason, featuring a giant dinosaur-like creature unleashed by an atomic bomb test that wreaks havoc on New York City. It features some amazing special effects by the legendary Ray Harryhausen and a thrilling plot. I fell in love and awe of this movie as a kid and that hasn’t change one iota over the years.
9. It Came From Beneath The Sea (1955): This classic film stars none other than the giant octopus created by, who else, Ray Harryhausen, the renowned special effects maestro. Its tentacles reach out to destroy San Francisco before it can be stopped. It cemented my inability to even comprehend eating octopus.
8. The Host (2006) – This South Korean horror movie follows a family that must battle a monster that lives in the polluted Han River. It’s an intense and non-stop thriller that will have you jumping out of your favorite armchair.
7. The Bay (2012) – This horror movie follows a small town that must battle a mysterious creature living in the Chesapeake Bay. Talk about a movie that doesn’t get the love and attention is deserves. You’ll never fish or swim in the Chesapeake Bay again. Pure parasitic perfection!
6. Orca (1977): This film follows a fisherman as he attempts to take revenge on a killer whale that killed his pregnant wife. The suspenseful story is full of action and a lot of exciting underwater scenes and stars Richard Harris and the beautiful Bo Derek. I was OBSESSED with this movie when it came out. I remember the back of every comic book at the time had a full page ad for the movie.
5. Piranha (1978): This movie follows a group of people as they battle a school of piranha that were released into a lake by an earthquake. Okay, maybe not a threat from the depths, but damn is this a fun one. You can’t beat a movie written by John Sayles and directed by Joe Dante!
4. Tentacles (1977): This movie follows a team of scientists as they investigate a series of mysterious disappearances in the Mediterranean Sea and discover a giant octopus is responsible. Maybe not the finest example of quality moviemaking, but a must see for you sea monster completists.
3. The Shallows (2016) – This movie follows a surfer (Blake Lively) who must battle a great white shark while stranded in the middle of the ocean. For most of the movie, it’s just Blake, a seagull, a killer shark and a bloated whale corpse. And somehow, it all works as the second best shark movie of all time.
2. The Deep (1977): This film follows two divers as they search for buried treasure off the coast of Bermuda and run into trouble with a giant shark. The underwater adventure is full of suspense and some of the best underwater scenes of the decade.
- DeepStar Six (1989) – This horror movie follows a team of deep-sea miners who must battle a giant sea monster. It’s a great mix of horror and suspense that has attained classic status for many.
What are some of your favorites? How many on this list have you seen? Most importantly, can you recommend something I may not have watched? Bring it on!
The Hunt for the Loch Ness Monster Goes Hi-Tech
Is the truth about the existence of a lake monster in Loch Ness just around the corner?
Scientists from the University of Otago have already gathered over two hundred samples from the famous Loch and plan to run Environmental DNA (or eDNA) testing to suss out the wide and varied life forms living under the dark waters. Even passing creatures will leave their mark, a floating residue waiting to be analyzed.
The kid in me is excited. As a matter of fact, so is the adult. It’s said that we should know if anything anomalous and Nessie-like has been found in a few months. Look, I’m not running to Vegas to lay down good money that we’re for-sure going to find out that Nessie is real. But I am fascinated to see what they do find. The Loch is bigger than you think and the odds of finding an elusive creature are slim, but for my money, this is the largest net cast yet for answers.
Wouldn’t it be fascinating to find out the Loch Ness Monster is real, and to finally know what it really is? Or is it better to let it remain a tantalizing mystery? What’s your take on this latest search for Nessie? Comment below and I’ll pick 2 random people to receive a free ebook of LOCH NESS REVENGE.
New Cover Reveal – LOCH NESS REVENGE!
I have a little something special to share with my Hellions. Here is the cover to my second novel with Severed Press, LOCH NESS REVENGE. Ain’t Nessie just beautiful? I love the art department at Severed. The book will be available on November 3rd.
Until then, wear some tartan, drink some whiskey and have a shortbread cookie or two.
Don’t Mess With Nessie : My Love Affair With Loch Ness
See that picture? That was my first foray into the wonderful and weird world of cryptozoology at a time when I didn’t even know what the word meant. I was about 8 years old and at the tail end of my fascination with whales. I’d read everything the library had about them and was ready for something new.
Enter Nessie. I can’t remember where I first saw that picture. It was either on In Search Of or in a magazine or newspaper. I just remember the doors of my imagination being blown wide open. I would never be the same. Back in the 70s, there was a lot of interest in the strange creature swimming the depths of Loch Ness in Scotland. It was relatively easy to get my hands on all things Nessie. I devoured it all.
My father saw my budding interest in mythical sea creatures and bought me a book not only about the Loch Ness Monster, but all creatures bizarre and unknown. And so was laid an integral part of the foundation of a future Monster Man.
Out of all the cryptids out there, I think the case for sea creatures is the most solid. We know so little about the pitch fathoms of our seas. As our underwater technology improves, we discover new species of creatures plumbing the depths on an almost daily basis. Personally, I don’t think Nessie lives in the Loch. It’s my belief that if she exists, she kinda gets lost from time to time, slipping from the cold ocean into the Loch for a spell, stirring peoples’ fascination. And in a world where there’s so much doom and gloom, isn’t that a good thing?
So, what is Nessie? Is she a plesiosaur, a remnant from the time of the dinosaurs? Maybe she’s some kind of super sized eel, or a misindentified family of seals? Thanks to my man Scott for this latest article that says sightings of the monster skimming the waters is nothing but the result of a geological phenomenon.
Like all mysterious beasts, I really hope there is some truth to the Loch Ness Monster. Even though the photo that cemented my interest as a child was proven to be a hoax, I still hold out hope.
Like this blog post was too long coming, so is our latest episode of the Monster Men where we talk all things Loch Ness. Can’t believe it took us over 40 episodes to get the the core of my monsterhood. Sit back, put on a kilt, pop open a bottle of good Scotch and enjoy.
Hunter Shea 