Pterodactyl

The characters were terribly written, I never did get their names, they were just "generic nerd" or "stuck-up drama queen". They were all cardboard cut-outs.

The plot was completely unbelievable. Why did the us special forces bother trying to save the American students and then try to argue that no, they can't help them out of the forest? Why bother saving them if you're not committed to the idea? The Generic Professer was relying on these kids to help him save his career? He would have been better off looking for another position.

And the CGI was obvious. I don't have a problem with good CGI, but here it was impossible NOT to notice how fake everything was.

I gave this movie 2*'s to save the rating of 1* on the chance that there are worse movies out there. It's possible. The acting was horrible, but I've seen worse (usually when they decide they need *real* athletes to play roles). The special effects were bad, but I've seen worse (they're usually 50 years old though). The dialog was ridiculous (trying to remember when I've seen worse, but nothing comes to mind -- oh wait, maybe some of the dialog in the recent Star Wars movies). As giant-monster-terrorizing-helpless-people movies go - they're not known for deep character development - this one stood out as being exceptionally bad, as none of the characters behave at any time in any way that a normal human would reasonably be expected to behave under the circumstances. That's quite an accomplishment in itself. This movie might have been funny with a roomful of good friends and lots of tequila. Unfortunately, I had neither at the time.

Like Tremors this is not meant to be art it is fun take it as such. it is a parody of this genre which i happen to like.

only downer is loss of the geek and goofy blond so early.

dialogue is simple and predictable yet watch it for the fun of it and enjoy.

when was the last time you saw pterodactyls? the special effects weren't Star Wars but the flying dinosaurs at least didn't look like they were little clay figures.

over all this is a movie to watch on a cloudy afternoon and talk back to the characters.

The SciFi Channel loves movies about resurrected prehistoric beasts and other monsters. The methodology is always the same: not only are they bulletproof, but bullets hitting them do not even make them wince. The characters, even out in the wide open spaces, never see any more perspective than the audience. They can be surprised by the sudden appearance of a dangerous creature, even when they should have seen it coming a long way off. These animals also always have endless appetites and agendas of death and destruction. This would be an unlikely and unsafe lifestyle for any animal.

Here we had Pterodactyls, actually Pteranodons to be more precise. While all dinosaurs were somewhat fragile and susceptible to injury, flying reptiles were extremely fragile. They probably ate fish, rather than risk tangling with any size of land prey. Human beings would have been extra large prey. To them, we would resemble a two-legged predator, and they would likely avoid us, or at least treat us with great caution.

If one want's to see more realistic dinosaurs, series such as "Walking with Dinosaurs" are a much better bet. In "Chased by Sea Monsters," naturalist Nigel Marvin is show feeding a simulated Pteranodon. There was no movie mayhem here, just a realistic flying reptile.

A great cast is what saves this CGI cheap. Cameron Daddo does the best he can with what he has to work with. Amy Sloan is always interesting to watch. Come on Sci-Fi, give us some deeper plots. Don't underestimate our intelligence..The Sci-Fi channel is pumping out these 2 million dollar movies, and they still can't find the balance between scientific and campy. I have to assume the execs at Sci-Fi think the visuals trump the story, which is too bad. Who watches Star Trek for the effects? I don't even mind bad special effects, I just wish these Original Sci-Fi flicks had more depth and less clichés. A bigger budget is not required, only inspiration.