Why does this seem so familiar? I wonder?, 7 February 2015
Port Harbor's, a small ocean-side community, preparations are in full swing for the big upcoming windsurfing regatta. However, their plans are rocked when a local windsurfer turns up missing. The only thing that can be found is a portion of his board that appears to have been gnawed on by a rather large great white shark. The mayor is against canceling the big event. The town turns to a salty old sea captain (Vic Morrow doing his best Robert Shaw impersonation) to help capture the shark before anyone else is killed. Sound familiar?
There's absolutely no way to hide where the inspiration for The Last Shark came from. It's as blatant a rip-off of Jaws as I've ever seen – and I've seen a bunch of them. But this one just might be among my favorites. It's so corny in parts that it's often laugh out loud funny. For years, I had read reviews on the internet of a Jaws-type cash-in with a roaring shark. Well, I finally saw it. The repeated roaring of the great white in The Last Shark every time it surfaces is the stuff of legend. It's comedy gold. The special effects are anything but special. The shark in this movie is so fake its mouth doesn't really move. The one person you see eaten is actually lowered into the unmovable jaws. The dialogue is another source of amusement. Utterly ridiculous dialogue presented with a completely straight face – I don't know how they did it. Finally, there are moments that defy description. The best example has to be the scene where the shark targets and rams a small boat from the bottom. The person on board is sent flying 20 feet in the air like a rocket just went off. You need to see it. Hysterical.
Actually, as ridiculous as much of the movie is, I still enjoyed it – maybe for the wrong reasons at times, but it's all harmless and entertaining enough. The movie moves at a good pace and never gets bogged down and boring. There are a couple of decent acting performances and some nice location shots. I think a 6/10 for The Last shark is about fair given the entertainment I got out of it.
One final thing I noticed, The Last Shark has to hold some sort of record for the most mustaches in a movie. Mustache-less lead James Franciscus looks out of place with the rest of the cast.
There's absolutely no way to hide where the inspiration for The Last Shark came from. It's as blatant a rip-off of Jaws as I've ever seen – and I've seen a bunch of them. But this one just might be among my favorites. It's so corny in parts that it's often laugh out loud funny. For years, I had read reviews on the internet of a Jaws-type cash-in with a roaring shark. Well, I finally saw it. The repeated roaring of the great white in The Last Shark every time it surfaces is the stuff of legend. It's comedy gold. The special effects are anything but special. The shark in this movie is so fake its mouth doesn't really move. The one person you see eaten is actually lowered into the unmovable jaws. The dialogue is another source of amusement. Utterly ridiculous dialogue presented with a completely straight face – I don't know how they did it. Finally, there are moments that defy description. The best example has to be the scene where the shark targets and rams a small boat from the bottom. The person on board is sent flying 20 feet in the air like a rocket just went off. You need to see it. Hysterical.
Actually, as ridiculous as much of the movie is, I still enjoyed it – maybe for the wrong reasons at times, but it's all harmless and entertaining enough. The movie moves at a good pace and never gets bogged down and boring. There are a couple of decent acting performances and some nice location shots. I think a 6/10 for The Last shark is about fair given the entertainment I got out of it.
One final thing I noticed, The Last Shark has to hold some sort of record for the most mustaches in a movie. Mustache-less lead James Franciscus looks out of place with the rest of the cast.
6/10
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