Barracuda

...from American General Pictures and director Harry Kerwin. Wayne Crawford stars as university marine biologist Mike, who is in the small coastal Florida town of Palm Cove to do some pollution testing on the local waters. A nearby chemical plant, run by the shady Papa Jack (Bert Freed), has been dumping unknown chemicals into the ocean, and it seems to be causing the local barracuda population to become overly aggressive. As Mike digs deeper into what's going on, powerful forces begin to close in.

This micro-budget travesty is a mash-up of Jaws and countless nature-gone-wrong horror tales, slathered in a thick coat of 70's conspiracy paranoia. The acting is woeful, particularly from star, co-writer, and underwater sequence director Wayne Crawford. William Kerwin, star of many of H.G. Lewis' memorable 60's horror films, plays the local sheriff. The killer fish are really secondary to the conspiracy plot, and the fish attacks consist of someone off camera holding a bad barracuda prop and slapping the actors and actresses with it while red fruit punch is generously squirted into the seawater. The movie's cynical ending is not unexpected. Perhaps the only redeeming feature, if barely, is the throbbing synth score from Klaus Schulze, which seems like an almost-there rip-off of Tangerine Dream.

I bought this movie because I really thought it would be terrible. I imagine something like "Spawn of the Slithis", or "Nazi Surfers Must Die", but this movie turns into a good one after all. In the beginning, the plot is very silly - barracudas eat people. Amazing. The filming under water, with the barracudas waving their tails while eating the limbs of people is laughing. But... in the middle of the movie the barracudas disappear, and the story, although with poor acting, is interesting. In fact, X-Files is very close to that. And the end is a lot better than one you could expect from a movie called "Barracuda".

When I put Barracuda on Netflix Streaming after getting home from a long train trip, I was not expecting much, just your basic Jaws rip off with some cheap gore. To my surprise, although it was definitely a cash in on Spielberg's epic, it was still a fun, interesting movie.

The plot, at least initially, is what you'd expect. Killer barracuda suddenly begin attacking swimmers at a Florida beach, sparking an investigation by a local sheriff and a scientist. Things get interesting when the investigation uncovers a conspiracy.

Barracuda delivers all the gore you would expect from a Jaws knock off, but it also features elements that raise it to above average status. In particular, the scientist protagonist acts like an actual scientist, rather than the typical doom sayer we see in these movies. He initially expresses skepticism that barracuda could be behind all of the attacks and looks for evidence, like a real scientist.

Some reviewers have complained that the conspiracy angle crowds out the barracuda in the second half of the film, which has an element of truth. Still, the plot remains interesting, and the gore in the first half of the film more than suffices.

****POSSIBLE PLOT SPOILERS***

I was hoping for another corny 'Jaws' rip-off with this film, but after two unknown divers are killed in a long, drawn out, silent opening scene, the plot immediately changes itself into a land-based conspiracy thriller.

The story is based around the town of Palm Cove, where a large chemical plant is the main source of employment. Chemicals are being put into the water supply in an experiment to control the population - they are also leaking into the sea and stimulate aggression in the local barracuda.

There isn't much to get excited about here - a few 'Jaws' links are of minor interest: a labrador chasing a stick on a beach comes across a divers head; sheriff and marine biologist are the two main characters and they have a night search out on the water similar to the one enjoyed by Brody and Hooper.

The film has the look of a home-grown project and the multitude of credits given to the co-directors Wayne Crawford and Harry Kerwin suggest this may be the case. Once it is clear the barracuda threat is only a plot device the films interest level begins to wane.

Whilst production values are poor 'Barracuda' is still fairly watchable and the characters are fleshed out to a reasonable degree ( particularly Lester, the fat useless Victor Buono-like deputy ). This is still as far below 'Piranha' as 'Piranha' was below 'Jaws' though, so while not quite a full-blown turkey its very close.

A top secret government experiment leads to fatal barracuda attacks on the beaches of a small coastal town formerly renowned for its lobster. University biologist (Crawford) and sheriff (William Kerwin) uncover a plot involving a mentally unstable former war-medic (Evers) pioneering research into hyperglycemia and the effect on human behaviour. Compelling on a small scale, with some effective shocks and special effects, "Barracuda" unfortunately spends too little time underwater with its title stars; in point of fact, the last third of the film plays out on land, focused firmly on the conspiracy theories and intrigue.

Crawford is affable if unconvincing, and he rejoins regular co-stars the Kerwin brothers to write, produce and direct this b-grade thriller. Playboy bunny Leighton isn't the typical victim-based leading lady, and has her share of the spoils, while veteran tough guy Freed is largely wasted in an underdeveloped supporting role, with a retarded son whose character literally fades out without explanation after being prominent throughout the first half. Evers is the real asset to the acting ranks, portraying a distant, unbalanced patriot whose purpose and conviction is dangerously misguided, leading to his own personal tragedy.

Crawford – who also undertook the underwater directing – does a capable job with the toothy critters, and it's just a shame that they are absent for most of the second half. The scene in which the beach walker's dog retrieves the severed head of a scuba diver is memorable, and there's the occasional dismembered limb amid a watery cloud of claret to satisfy the appetite for gore. Audiences accustomed to upbeat conclusions will be disappointed, although Cliff Emmich does manage some light relief as the lazy, obese and apparently narcoleptic deputy sheriff throughout the film. A potentially interesting idea, just a great pity more time wasn't dedicated to the barracuda themselves, who despite their rather innocuous reputation, still look fierce enough to substitute for sharks in this familiar role.