O Tubarão Fantasma

Another one of those gut-wrenching horrible, but oh-so-fun-to-watch, bad monster movies from the SyFy Channel. This time it is a shark that comes back as a ghost to wreck havoc and terror on a small coastal village.

Yeah, that was basically the storyline here. And seriously, who comes up with these ideas. It is so far fetched that it is actually hilarious to watch, and the storyline is so bad that you can't help but take the entire movie to be nothing more than a spoof.

A group of rednecks are out fishing when they catch a great white shark. But unable to haul it aboard their fishing vessel, they decide to kill the shark using a gun, a crossbow and a hand grenade. Mortally wounded, the shark swims off to an ancient cavern where it finally dies. But the mysterious runes on the wall in the cavern bring the shark back from death, returning as an undead ghost shark with a ferocious appetite for human flesh. With its newfound ghostly powers, the shark can appear anywhere that has water - be it fresh or salt water (oddly enough!).

The effects in "Ghost Shark" were laughable, as with most movies from the SyFy Channel, but still, it is enjoyable, because the story is so out there. And there were some really hilarious scenes where the shark gobbles up people or maul them. Watch it for yourself, trust me, you will be laughing hard at times.

The acting in the movie was actually quite good, and I must admit that it was Richard Moll that initially lured me to this movie. But it turned out to be yet another of those goofy SyFy movies that you just love to hate and won't admit to have fun watching.

You know what you get here, given the title of the movie in itself.

GHOST SHARK is another bargain basement dud with a ridiculous premise capitalising on the insatiable public appetite for shark movies. This one begins with a redneck fishing trip that goes wrong when a shark is shotgunned to death before returning for revenge. The plot then shifts to a small town where the central characters find themselves being attacked by a creature that can spread through the water pipes, thus attacking people in the bath and the like. It's nonsensical stuff, badly acted throughout and with a script that does little more than join the dots, and of course the special effects are less than special.

In the opening minutes, expect a trio of southern-accented boaters ("rednecks") to bite the dust. They kill a great white shark, which turns into a blue-glowing "Ghost Shark". Considering later events, the story might have been better off starting with the flashback which occurs near the end. For whatever reasons, the beach community "Smallport" is quickly terrorized. Ghost sharks need to eat, too. This one, being spiritual, is not restricted to the beach. It manifests itself wherever water accumulates...

A swimming pool party, bikini car wash, leaky sink and bathtub are among the areas haunted...

Versatile director Griff Furst handles this assignment very well. The likable cast is led by Dave Davis (as Blaise Parker) and Mackenzie Rosman (as Ava Reid), both going places. Creepy lighthouse keeper Richard Moll (as Darnell Finch) may be able to solve the mystery, if he can stay sober (and stop shouting) long enough. If spirits are real and all dogs go to Heaven, the world must embrace and accept ghost sharks. The story doesn't take full advantage of the possibilities, but the shark attacks are highly amusing.

****** Ghost Shark (8/22/13) G.E. Furst ~ Dave Davis, Mackenzie Rosman, Richard Moll, Sloane Coe

Ghost Shark (2013)

** (out of 4)

A group of friends grow tired of a mysterious ghost shark eating their friends so they decide to stick together and try to figure out what's going on. Yes, the title pretty much tells you everything you need to know as SyFy is back with yet another "shark" movie. While they have shown countless shark movies over the years, this one here is the first to actually tell the story of a haunted shark whose ghost attacks people. You might think this is a stupid idea, and it is, but at the same time there's no question that you've never seen anything quite like this and on that level the film remains mildly entertaining. The idea that a ghost of a shark would go around killing people is just downright silly but the film takes it to a whole 'nother level by making the ghost able to go into any sort of water. This gives us some crazy, over-the-top and at times hilarious scenes where the shark attacks a group of kids inside a pool and even a water puddle isn't safe from this thing. I really hope people don't watch a film called GHOST SHARK and expect some sort of serious, Shakespeare-like drama. Those watching this should just be into it for some cheap fun and I think the film delivers on this level. There's still no question that the film contains quite a few flaws including the fact that it simply runs out of gas towards the end, which keeps it from being better. None of the performances are what you'd call great but they're good enough for this type of material. Fans of the silly should certainly get a few kicks out of this even if it falls short of SHARKNADO.

This is the first SyFy shark movie I have watched from start to finish and all I have to say for the most part is, "Ugh." Not a good film by any stretch of the imagination; however, I will give it points for having a certain bit of creativity to it. It was not boring and it was fun making fun of it. Though I am not going to make a habit of watching these films as they are lazy for the most part alluding to the only really good shark film in existence "Jaws". Sharknado started up after this one, and that film made this one instantly better as the concept in it was simply too ludicrous. Granted, this one is not believable either, but they have a better concept than a pod of sharks getting sucked up into a hurricane!

The story here has a deceased shark going on the rampage as a ghost! Yes, it is insane and it is a way to do a shark on screen and make it look less real than the usual computer generated shark in other films. It also sets up for some interesting and funny kills. I did so enjoy the slip and slide part of the film. The film though has a hard time trying to extend this rather flimsy concept into a full film. Richard Moll of Night Court fame plays the grizzled guy who may know what is going on and has a secret!

The film is very bad, but it has enough interesting elements to keep it from being unwatchable and horrid. Like I said, Sharknado came on after this and it was worse and I just could not even sit through it. This one had something to it that kept it a bit interesting and it did some things that made it fun. I predicted a couple of the deaths before they occurred. Ricard Moll was fun to see to hamming it up. The mayor though and all the kids were annoying. I so wanted one more kill at the end as the kids were swimming and doing their Jaws shtick.