Chupacabra Terror

Dr. Pena (Giancarlo Esposito), a "crypto-zoologist" (fancy term for one of those self-deluded losers who likes to study extremely rare - read: nonexistent - animals) and his crew of hunters manage to trap a Chupacabra, a big, scaly, elusive fast-moving beast. To get it to the mainland, they smuggle it on a Grecian cruise ship and some idiots open up the crate containing it despite being told specifically not to. I guess the strange growling noises coming from inside weren't a good enough deterrent either. The monster then does the monster thang; running around biting chunks out of various passengers until the ship's captain (John Rhys-Davies), a square-jawed special agent pretending to be an insurance salesman for some reason (Dylan Neal), a squeaky-voiced blonde Tai Bo instructor (Chelan Simmons), a bunch of guys with machine guns and others try to stop it. The main victims (who I think are supposed to be the comic relief but it's hard to tell) are an old rich bitch (Paula Shaw) with a yippy terrier and a snobby effete gold-digger (David Millbern). Apparently the monster can be knocked out with a single tranquilizer dart, but can live through dozens of bullet hits. The Chupacabra design is acceptable (though unoriginal) but the rest of the movie is devoid of suspense, surprise or interest. A boring Sci-Fi Channel "original" movie; they've made dozens of movies just like this with nearly interchangeable characters and plots, but with slight alterations on the creature. Enough already!

Yet another bland Sci-Fi movie, this time involving a monster that is immune to bullets but not Tae-bo. Some of it is well-done, and the Chucacabra does look scary. But I thought the most interesting, and slightly disturbing, element was the human victims... they are immortal! They can't be killed! At one point, the Chucacabra tears a guy in half, leaving his intestines spilling all over the room, and he WAKES UP after supposedly dying! Yes, all of sudden he comes to, sees his guts on the floor, and starts screaming. How he managed to wake up from a cozy nap with 50% of his body missing is beyond me.

Also note-worthy is the man who gets his throat ripped out by the Chupacabra, and lays on the floor moaning. The other characters can do nothing to help him, and leave him to die. Well, about 10 minutes later, this guy gets up and starts staggering around the hall! It's like "Night of the Living Dead!" Other than the Victims That Wouldn't Die, however, the rest of this isn't too interesting. It is pretty silly and formulaic. I would only recommend this to hardcore B-movie fans.

4/10 stars.

I've loved John Rhyes Davies ever since Indiana Jones and Sliders. But not even he could save this movie from being downright awful. The story is stupid and goes nowhere, there is not history or explanation of the Chupacabra, the action is nothing more than a monster loose on a ship.

Don't waste your time with this movie, the creature is obviously a guy in a suit, only added effects are sped up footage, nowhere near enough to make this a good horror movie.

I cant understand how John agreed to make this garbage after LOTR, what a waste. The specials/segments on the chupacabra in other documentaries and shows are far superior to this movie, watch them instead.

Well, the Sci-Fi channel keeps churning these turkeys out... and they seem to get worse every time. When normally good actors like John Rhys-Davies and Giancarlo Espositto come off as rank amateurs, you can imagine how abysmal the REST of the cast in this waste-of-your-time effort is. The only halfway decent thing is the rubber outfit of the creature(which is glimpsed in such quick flashes that you don't really have time to see how phony it really is). The dialogue...the plot...if this "movie"(and I use the term loosely) was food, Jack-In-The-Box would be a gourmet meal compared to this. Watch a re-run of "The Munsters" for the 372nd viewing- your time would be better spent(and a lot scarier as well)!

Without John Rhys-Davies, I have to admit that this would never even register on my movie-meter. But in spite of that single fact, this is not a bad little thriller, considering the low budget, the low quality effects, the stiff acting and the Sci Fi Channel aspects. The blood effects are very convincing, and the Chupacabra actually looks realistic... regardless of what you think a Chupacabra looks like this is one good-looking Chupacabra.

Aside from the positives, this runs kind of like Kolchak: The Night Stalker (Darren McGavin, remember?) meets the Love Boat, but in spite of the ultimate cheese of this work, it still holds something resembling a plot, and actually attempts to gain your respect while making you laugh and roll your eyes.

As conflicted as this work is, I still managed to find some enjoyment herein. Maybe you will, too.

It rates a 5.2/10 on the Made 4 TV Scale.

It rates a 4.1/10 on the Movie Scale from...

the Fiend :.