20 Horror Monsters That Were Scarier Before You Saw Them
11. The Sand Beast - Blood Beach
The success of Jaws spawned a deluge of imitators, including Piranha, Orca, Great White, and countless more. Although Blood Beach was clearly inspired by Steven Spielberg's classic blockbuster, it mixed up the formula by having the monster attack on the sand instead of the water.
In this 1980 creature feature, an unseen critter takes residence under Venice Beach, pulling its victims below before devouring them. Even though Blood Beach doesn't shy away from its campiness, the premise is surprisingly creepy.
The monster doesn't surface until the end, urging viewers' imaginations to run wild, wondering what it looks like. Sadly, whatever viewers envisioned in their heads was drastically better than what they got.
To be fair, the sand beast's design is cool in theory, as, based on its plant-like shape and gargantuan mouth, it's obviously supposed to be akin to a Venus flytrap. Emphasis on the words "supposed to". Due to the puppet's cheap and poor texture, the sand beast more closely resembles an oyster. Even if you're among the select few who find oysters scary, the creature looks too static and fake to freak out anybody.