Director: Matt Codd
Year: 2001
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Sharks
Plot:
Still traumatized from an early encounter, a scientist joins an expedition to uncover the truth behind a strange distress signal and finds a thought-lost species of prehistoric shark running amok and must stop it before it escapes.
Review:
Though this is initially a lot better than expected, this is still a rather lame entry. One of the main reasons is the films' complete abandoning of normal horror film scenarios and putting it more in the realm of an adventure film, where it's hardly ever built on scenes with the sharks' presence and it rarely goes on the attack due to the storyline issues. The fact that this is forced upon us with the constant and never-ending scenes of him going around complaining about not getting to use the machine and how it'll allow him closure against his parents' death turns it into a really boring film in the first half instead of expecting it to be a full-on horror film.
There's also some rather tiring storylines here where it manages to feature so many clichés in the group's arrangement and personalities that come into play at the end, where some are still trying to save and capture it rather than kill it becomes a little much when it's clearly obvious that will do nothing to stop their predicament so there are some rather tiring scenes going on at the wrong moments. There's also the incredibly irritating factor of the CGI shark running around which isn't all that believable and realistic more for the fact of its constant changes in size and positioning in the scene rather than the general appearance is actually the biggest offender with this since, on the whole, it's better than expected.
Still, the principle about it being employed is there and while not egregious it's still obvious which allows it to stand out even among the few positives here. The opening attack on the small rowboat is highly atmospheric with the foggy, night-time setting and the strange bumps against the boat lend to a highly chilling scene that's an enjoyable set-up for the later scenes. There's also plenty of action here, mostly in the assault on the underwater station where the size of it comes into play quite nicely, and the finale to deal with the creature is a long, drawn-out action scene that piles on the clichés for the best action bits as there's plenty of attempts on both sides to end the fight which is quite fun. As well, the CGI doesn't tend to look too bad here and comes off better than expected, but overall this one still undone by its' flaws.
Overview: **/5
While there are a few enjoyable aspects to be had here with the creature action in the finale, that way too much time throughout the rest of this is really troubling makes for a decidedly underwhelming effort overall. Really only go for this one if you're a creature feature enthusiast or looking for more of a serious-minded take on the genre rather than the sillier features, while those turned off by the flaws should heed caution.
Review:
Though this is initially a lot better than expected, this is still a rather lame entry. One of the main reasons is the films' complete abandoning of normal horror film scenarios and putting it more in the realm of an adventure film, where it's hardly ever built on scenes with the sharks' presence and it rarely goes on the attack due to the storyline issues. The fact that this is forced upon us with the constant and never-ending scenes of him going around complaining about not getting to use the machine and how it'll allow him closure against his parents' death turns it into a really boring film in the first half instead of expecting it to be a full-on horror film.
There's also some rather tiring storylines here where it manages to feature so many clichés in the group's arrangement and personalities that come into play at the end, where some are still trying to save and capture it rather than kill it becomes a little much when it's clearly obvious that will do nothing to stop their predicament so there are some rather tiring scenes going on at the wrong moments. There's also the incredibly irritating factor of the CGI shark running around which isn't all that believable and realistic more for the fact of its constant changes in size and positioning in the scene rather than the general appearance is actually the biggest offender with this since, on the whole, it's better than expected.
Still, the principle about it being employed is there and while not egregious it's still obvious which allows it to stand out even among the few positives here. The opening attack on the small rowboat is highly atmospheric with the foggy, night-time setting and the strange bumps against the boat lend to a highly chilling scene that's an enjoyable set-up for the later scenes. There's also plenty of action here, mostly in the assault on the underwater station where the size of it comes into play quite nicely, and the finale to deal with the creature is a long, drawn-out action scene that piles on the clichés for the best action bits as there's plenty of attempts on both sides to end the fight which is quite fun. As well, the CGI doesn't tend to look too bad here and comes off better than expected, but overall this one still undone by its' flaws.
Overview: **/5
While there are a few enjoyable aspects to be had here with the creature action in the finale, that way too much time throughout the rest of this is really troubling makes for a decidedly underwhelming effort overall. Really only go for this one if you're a creature feature enthusiast or looking for more of a serious-minded take on the genre rather than the sillier features, while those turned off by the flaws should heed caution.
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