I am an unapologetic fan of "animals attack" films. Actually, animals, insects or whatever attacking people in movies is a favorite genre of mine. Did a list of favorites years go:
http://rupertpupkinspeaks.blogspot.com/2010/03/when-animalsand-insects-attack.html
I had been able to see this one via a bootleg, but it was quite tricky to track down at that time. I found that to be a bit of a shame as it's got a solid cast and has a that great 70s-TV-movie vibe to it. I love movies about institutions that don't really exist any more. THE BEASTS ARE ON THE STREETS is about animals getting loose from a safari park after a freak accident tears down a section of their fenceline. Of course safari parks still exist in some capacity, but have all but disappeared, especially in the U.S.(as far as I know). The idea of a park where there are wild animals roaming free and you tour it via a tram or in your own car seems like a bad idea in the litigious society we live in today. So many potential lawsuits! Anyway, it makes for an enjoyable 1970s TV-movie in my opinion. What can I say, I just like to see movies where animals are roaming free and running around. There's an Italian film called THE WILD BEASTS from 1984 that is similar to this movie. Of course, in the Italian version, a zoo's water supply is contaminated with PCP and the animals go nuts and get loose. This is a bit tamer than that, but it still features lots of citizens being attacked by and fleeing from large live animals. It's hard not to bring up CGI when watching something like this. I realize that I harp on it a lot, but it's just on my mind a lot watching older films as much as I do. This movie would have little to no live animals if made today. It's a sad thing to me. I love watching the way real animals move and react on camera. It really does give me a sense of genuine suspense that I like a lot. Also, animals are just pretty to look at. Simple as that.

THE BEASTS ARE ON THE STREETS is currently streaming on Warner Archive Instant in HD:
http://bit.ly/RoxpVa
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