The Breed

A bunch of undergrads (played by 30 and 40somethings--no joke!) take their jet to an abandoned island for a vacation. Because undergrads do that? They get attacked by wild dogs that turn out to be genetically engineered killers. Scary! History has taught me to stay away from anything labeled "Wes Craven Presents," but I decided to check this out because how bad could a movie starring Michelle Rodriguez vs Killer Dogs be? Rodriguez isn't the best actress, but I always enjoy seeing her one-note tough-girl shtick in movies or TV (long live Ana Lucia!) And she does her own stunts in this! There's no CGI, which is commendable, though I'm not entirely sure how I feel about a large number of dogs being trained to attack for the sake of a dumb horror movie. And this is, indeed, a dumb horror movie. All the clichés are intact, the writing is awful, and there's even a dumb subplot about brotherly love. Or something. Taryn Manning is cast as the "hottie" of the group, though she looks washed-up and talks like she smokes six packs a day. There's an interesting subplot with her character that would have made the movie more interesting had it been expanded upon. This is enjoyable for what it is, but it's nothing special.

let me start by saying I am a big fan of the nature/animal gone berserk type films and I was very excited when news of a new Wes Craven produced killer dog flick was being made and would star tough cookie Michelle Rodriquez and cool and sexy Hill Harper from CSI: New York. What eventually was made by first time director Nick Mastandrea is sadly a disappointing entry into the genre. Where in the world was Wes?? This is not to say it didn't show some small moments of promise but it never quite rises to the occasion. The story revolves around a group of five childhood friends vacationing on an Island who come across a band of sinister German shepherds who have laid claim to the Isle after surviving what is explained as a "rabies" outbreak on a compound that sits on the other side of the Island which once housed a dog training facility. Most of the back story of the dogs isn't really explained and we're left with just a few specs of dialog from cast members Eric Lively and Oliver Hudson, who play siblings that grew up on the island, to to shed a dim light. The gang enjoy some sun and water until they are visited by a pup whose visit is more like an infiltration of the enemy camp and shares one of the better moments scenes with Hill Harper. Soon the dog-pack descends on our unsuspecting group who must now find a way off the Island before becoming dog-food. The best attack scene takes place in the house where our heroes have boarded themselves up but this isn't enough to save the film. The director was obviously asleep at the wheel and it shows when one of the characters ( I wont say which as not to spoil it) suffers an injury to the leg and later seems to forget they should be limping and they can be seen walking around like nothing ever happened. Where in the world was Wes??? Yes the setup is as old as wine but I still had hopes that the makers would inject some fresh blood into the story; it never happened. The film is hurt by uninspired camera work and the even more uninspired direction of Mastandrea. I hope somewhere, some place, someone will still make an old style killer dog flick with a decent plot, great camera work, and characters you can care about. Is that too much too ask? Oh yeah..this is Hollywood...oh well

When I went to the cinema I was supposed to see Almodovar's "Volver" and now I regret not to have done it. "The Breed" begins and ends like the typical horror film that we're used to see: some college friends go to a desert place where strange creatures haunt and kill them one by one. Here there are super-angry dogs but we will never get to know what really happened to them. Poor dogs... Someone imagines to see a psychic doctor or something similar, but there's nothing, probably an experiment gone badly. There is also a little drama but just like the whole film it is something we have already seen. In the end it's not a boring film but it's dejà-vu without any kind of explanation.

I remember watching director Nicholas Mastandrea's 2006 movie "The Breed" back in the day when it was a new movie. But I haven't watched it since, and thus I opted to revisit the movie here in 2025, as I had the opportunity to do so.

Writers Bob Conte and Peter Wortmann put together a rather straightforward script and storyline that was easy to follow, yet remained entertaining and enjoyable throughout the course of the entire movie.

While the movie has a small cast ensemble, it is actually a great cast ensemble, and with some very familiar faces on the screen. With the likes of Michelle Rodriguez, Oliver Hudson, Taryn Manning and Eric Lively, to mention the familiar faces only, then you are certainly in capable company. The acting performances in the movie are good.

The character gallery in the movie was nice, as the writers were capable of putting together characters with the ability to think reasonably and not just mill about on the screen as mindless eye-candy, which is often the case in horror movies.

The dogs in the movie are very convincing, and thus have been very well-trained. And a movie such as "The Breed" wouldn't have been as entertaining and effective if the dogs weren't this capable. Just look at the recently released 2025 movie "A Breed Apart".

If you haven't already seen "The Breed", and you get then chance to do so, I would say that it is a movie that is worth checking out.

My rating of director Nicholas Mastandrea's 2006 movie "The Breed" lands on a five out of ten stars.

Movie concepts don't get much simpler than this: on a supposedly deserted island, genetically enhanced, rabid-like dogs attack five college kids who have gone there for a weekend of fun. It's kind of surprising that a movie like this, made in 2006, still gets theatrical release in some countries; this is usually direct-to-DVD stuff. With that said, however, "The Breed" is effective at what it sets out to do. What gives this movie an edge over other contemporary "creature features" is that the "creatures" are real, highly-trained dogs instead of fake CGI bats, crocodiles, snakes, spiders or whatever. This adds an element of realism to the proceedings, as does the fact that the characters behave rationally for the most part. Michelle Rodriguez looks great (what else is new?) and shows her physicality, and the rest of the cast may not be brilliant, but they're not bad, either. The movie does suffer from a terrible ending though - it was probably intended as a shock but it's so sudden that it looks as if the producers ran out of money or time or something. (**)