User reviews

I respectfully disagree with those who say we viewers need to dumb down our standards in order to watch low-budget movies. There are plenty of good low-budget horror movies out there. This one isn't one of them. This movie keeps using the same footage and the same canned music over and over again. The plot takes forever to develop. There is no suspense. The ending might be creative but there's no point in watching an entire poorly-executed film only for a decent ending.

People, seriously, you can't go watching a direct-to-video movie like this expecting material worthy of an Oscar, okay? You just can't come on here, slap it with a 2/10 rating just saying it was the worst movie ever. You don't go looking for plot holes in a virtually plot less movie. You just don't go complaining about under-developed characters or implausible events in a movie like this. This movie is about a Megalodon, which is a giant prehistoric monster-shark. So lighten up, folks. If you don't know what to expect from a movie like this, than you clearly haven't seen enough of them yet. So lower your standards and try to see it for what it really is. SHARK HUNTER (which is a very awful title in general and even a rather inappropriate one for this movie in particular) is in the same league as many of those recent underwater CGI sci-fi/horror/action quickies we've come to know recently (DEEP SHOCK, MEGALODON, OCTOPUS…). And it's even a bit in the same vein as those lovable 80's gems, like LEVIATHAN and DEEPSTAR SIX (albeit not on par with those), with the only difference that instead of some unknown mutating monster, it now features a… Megalodon.

The set-up to the story is negligible. They use the opening-sequence to provide Antonio Sabato Jr.'s character traumatic background (yes, the dude's clearly still active in motion pictures): He saw his parents attacked and killed by a Megalodon (anyone seen the recent KRAKEN: TENTACLES OF THE DEEP? – they did the exact same thing in that one too). Then we learn that Antonio designed and built a complete submarine, but isn't allowed to play with it anymore by his superiors. He sobs and nags about it until an underwater research facility is destroyed by our over-sized granddaddy shark. So Antonio finally gets his chance to go underwater sailing again. And thus we quickly get to what this movie is all about: A crew, trapped in the claustrophobic setting of a submarine, which priority quickly shifts from capturing the Megalodon to eventually trying to kill it. Now let's rate it for what it is, because it is that and nothing more.

The crew constantly battling the shark and the shark constantly damaging the sub (and even infiltrating it in one scene) are mildly entertaining events as far as that goes. The Megalodon vs. the mini-sub was fun too (although scenes like these are always inevitable in flicks of this kind). The underwater CGI (both of the machines and the Megalodon) were surprisingly good (they wisely decided to use a lot of shadows to hide all too obvious CGI). A tad bit better even than what you'd expect from a movie like this. They apparently used their little budget to the fullest and hired capable set designers to built the convincing, nice-looking interior sets of the submarine (although I admit, it looks pretty small inside if you compare all that to the exterior CGI shots of the sub). The acting even wasn't too bad, and Grand L. Bush (as Harrington) quickly became my favorite crew-member. Not only did he come across as the most talented actor of the whole cast, he also has the best lines of the movie. My summary-line of this comment is one of them (nice nod to Spielberg's JAWS, of course) but he's got more to say. The "Bambi vs. Godzilla" line and calling the Megalodon "a goddamn train with teeth" was funny, and you should see him during that whole "Stay out of my torpedo room"-conversation with Antonio (especially the look on his face when he says "Big f***ing deal."). That man really should move on to do bigger pictures.

But what really made sitting through this movie all worthwhile was… the ending. You've seen this type of movies a zillion times before and you just know how it's going to end, right? Well think again, because what happens near the end earns this movie a whole big extra point. I for one sure didn't see this one coming.

Low budget movie about a giant shark. It really seems that Spielberg's JAWS (1975) made quite an impression on the world. SHARK HUNTER is just another film from an entire genre in the shadow of JAWS. Antonio Sabato Jr. stars as some sort of marine biologist hell bent on proving that his parents were killed by a prehistoric megalodon shark. Next thing you know he's at the bottom of the ocean with an experimental navy sub (crew included) fighting the twenty ton shark. Blah blah blah and loopholes so big, the shark could swim through them. However, no one is watching this type of movie for the story line...or even the acting. You are watching it for the killer shark.

Every scene of this film with the sixty-foot long shark is computer-generated and it looks like the movie's budget went into these effects. And it surprisingly pays off. They did a pretty damn good job. The CG shots look better than the majority of scenes with CG sharks in Renny Harlin's DEEP BLUE SEA (1999).

The only disappointment for me in this film were the shark attacks. The shark is so big that it can easily swallow a mini-sub (as shown in the movie). My point is that the shark is to big to attack people.

The highlight of SHARK HUNTER, for me, was the ending. It took me by surprise...really unexpected.

In conclusion, this is a really bad movie. However, if you love killer shark movies and have seen JAWS one too many times, this one's for you.

Compared to other shark/creature movies I've seen over the past few weeks, Shark Hunter is surprisingly not bad. It is nothing great though, with an awful script which is full of stilted and cheesy lines, parts where editing lacks focus, sluggish pacing, a hammy performance from Antonio Sabbato and a story which while good in concept and having some decent moments is overly-silly. However, the underwater sequences are surprisingly well-shot with CGI that is not as cheap as it could have been, scenes that actually do have more suspense and tension and less predictability such as the ending the shark is adequately menacing(already an improvement on the sharks from the SyFy creature movies and the last two Jaws sequels) and Grand L.Bush is decent and likable.

Overall, not a great movie, but watchable especially compared to what it could have been. 5/10 Bethany Cox

Years after witnessing his parents deaths by a Megalodon, Spencer Northcut is called in to uncover what caused the destruction of an undersea research vessel. Unbeknown to him however and as he is about to discover, the culprit was, yes you've guessed it…….

OK so this is obviously rather daft stuff but if you approach it in a relaxed frame of mind it is an entirely harmless, even mildly enjoyable way to spend an hour and a half.

Acting and special effects range from OK to pretty damn poor with some rather cringe inducing melodramatics on the acting front and a few decidedly ropey digital fx in places. Special mention must also go to the rather pathetic, obviously cost cutting 'underwater' footage involving divers…….the scenes are simply filmed in a normal studio with little particles of polystyrene blown around the set to represent bubbles etc!!!

Still, credit where credits due, the ending in this is admittedly a downbeat surprise and I must admit, I'm a real glutton for shark movies so I'm not going to be overly critical of the shortcomings in this.

By no means a classic, and whilst admittedly a million miles away from the big daddy of all shark films, Jaws, if it's a quick ichthyological predator fix you're after, this may well make you smile.

After watching a huge shark kill his mother and father, "Spencer Northcut" (Antonio Sabato Jr.) has devoted his life to further research on these creatures. He has also helped to assemble a submarine capable of diving into ocean depths that few underwater vessels have ever visited. So when the crew of one particular underwater research vessel is destroyed he eagerly volunteers to man a second expedition. However, his presence aboard the submarine "Argos" doesn't quite inspire all members of the crew and this skepticism is further aroused when he suggests that a megalodon is responsible for the deaths of their colleagues. And as it so happens it is targeting them as well. Now rather than reveal any more of this movie and risk spoiling it for those who haven't seen it I will just say that for a "shark movie" this one wasn't too bad. At least I didn't think so. Admittedly, there were some scenes and characters I didn't particularly care for but all in all I found it to be fairly decent. That said I rate it as about average.

Still traumatized from an early encounter, a scientist joins an expedition to uncover the truth behind a strange distress signal and finds a thought-lost species of prehistoric shark running amok and must stop it before it escapes.

Though this is initially a lot better than expected, this is still a rather lame entry. One of the main reasons is the films' complete abandoning of normal horror film scenarios and putting it more in the realm of an adventure film, where it's hardly ever built on scenes with the sharks' presence and it rarely goes on the attack due to the storyline issues. The fact that this is forced upon us with the constant and never-ending scenes of him going around complaining about not getting to use the machine and how it'll allow him closure against his parents' death turns it into a really boring film in the first half instead of expecting it to be a full-on horror film. There's also some rather tiring story lines here where it manages to feature so many clichés in the group's arrangement and personalities that come into play at the end, where some are still trying to save and capture it rather than kill it becomes a little much when it's clearly obvious that will do nothing to stop their predicament so there's some rather tiring scenes going on at the wrong moments. There's also the incredibly irritating factor of the CGI shark running around which isn't all that believable and realistic more for the fact of its constant changes in size and positioning in the scene rather than the general appearance is actually the biggest offender with this since on the whole it's better than expected. Still, the principle about it being employed is there and while not egregious it's still obvious which allows it to stand out even among the few positives here. The opening attack on the small rowboat is highly atmospheric with the foggy, night-time setting and the strange bumps against the boat lend to a highly chilling scene that's an enjoyable set-up for the later scenes. There's also plenty of action here, mostly in the assault on the underwater station where the size of it comes into play quite nicely, and the finale to deal with the creature is a long, drawn-out action scene that piles on the clichés for the best action bits as there's plenty of attempts on both sides to end the fight which is quite fun. As well, the CGI doesn't tend to look too bad here and comes off better than expected, but overall this one still undone by its' flaws.

Rated R: Graphic Language and Violence.

I got to see Antonio Sabato, Jr. fresh from his appearance at the Republican convention in this film. It should better be titled Shark Destroyer because that's the mission Sabato is on.

You can't really blame him, this prehistoric sixty foot Megladon survivor took his parents from him. Since then Sabato has become an oceanographer, but all that was training the subduing of his particular white whale.

After another couple of incidents where this big guy did some serious damage, the last incident to an underwater laboratory, Sabato gets assigned to a submarine where the people there are divided between capturing and killing the big shark. Of course Sabato wants to kill it, but Heather Marie Marsden wants to take it alive.

This is a plot we've seen a lot of, most especially in the first version of The Thing. Marsden also a scientist sounds a whole lot like scientist Robert Cornthwaite from that much better film.

Think of Moby Dick when you see this. With the script most definitely not written by Herman Melville.

I saw this in the video store, placed right next to "Shark Attack III," which also deals with a Megalodon. I'm a big fan of Megs, having read Steve Alten's book "Meg" and the sequel. Although I had read the horrible reviews on Shark Attack II and seen the first Shark Attack movie, and imagined it would be as god awful as those. I was actually pretty surprised. Despite Antonio Sabato Jr in the lead role, the acting was fairly decent for this type of movie. The special effects were very well done, and the shark was very realistic, along with the sub. The plot was pretty typical of some of the TBS-made movies you see a lot of, but I rented it more for the action.

I had read some decent reviews of this movie and decided to give it a try. I was pleasantly surprised. The scenes with the shark were realistic and there was a lot of action. The ending to the film could have been more upbeat, but overall it was fairly entertaining.

Having switched over to late night Sky Movies, I thought this was just going to be another rubbishy clone movie that I could switch my brain off to, then it turned out to be the completely opposite. The tense bits were tense, the special effects were very good for a "hmm, never saw 'that' one at the movies" movie, and the acting was OK. My only complaints with it were plot wise, the crew seemed to very quickly jump into plan to capture a giant monster that none of them believed existed in the first place, and the investigation of the research centre to which they were sent to 'investigate', encompassed nothing more than cursory glance and the extraction of a Shark tooth from the side of a wall. The ending was also a bit, well... unsatisfactory. Other than that, it held my attention and is a very worthy "Aaah, giant Shark" movie.

this could have been good,but sadly,its too inplausible,anthony sabato jr has a grudge...PLEASE!I wanted to like it,love shark movies ,someone should have asked my opinion before they wrote this.ha!ha! the shark is cool but the story lacks...alot!

Now out of all the shark movies I've seen, this one takes the cake! The plot of the movie was good, but the excitement factor sort of took a nosedive afterwards. Antonio Sobato, Jr. does an excellent role as a son who seeks the shark who killed his father. A megaldon is one of the biggest sharks of all and the most dangerous one as well. The view of the shark was indeed scary in some angles, but the effects were a blur, and the scenes were a little weak in some places. With the mini-sub's weapons there, that would take out a whole school of sharks there. It was great that the son would get the exact revenge on that monstrosity, although it would indeed cost him his life as well. Like they say revenge has it's price, but was it worth it? That answer could go on and on, and this movie was a major letdown. The beginning was fine, and at the end, it went like the Titanic. 1 OUT OF 5 STARS!

a really awful movie about a 30 meters long shark. bad story bad discussions bad characters bad plot even a confusing ending a complete. a waist of time in my point of view I thought it was a TV movie, but then I saw it was not I cant imagine having paid to see this load of crap please avoid this movie at any cost. even if u liked jaws, which I averagely did, don't see it even if you have interests in paleontology, don't see it even if you like corny movies with corny actors, corny plots during corny TV time, do humanity a favor and do not, I repeat, DO NOT pollute your mind with this ridiculous excuse for a sci-fi animal thriller still, some people gave it a ten ranting... don't know if they were serious or not (but sincerely expect they weren't)

this is one of the worst movies ever There is a scene where they are supposed to be underwater and they are literally walking on land and they added bubbles! The shark is boring and is just this big slow computer generated silly thing. Antonio Sabato is horrible, I mean even worse than normal. How does this guy work? The directing is the worst and there is nothing redeemable in the entire films. I love shark movies and this one just disappoints. I've seen this studios movies before and everything they do has some star on their way down doing bad work. I'd rather see an unknown actor who cares about making a good story.

Dear Director who made this film I can't believe how bad this is this is actually the worst film ever made.

After his parents are killed by a giant, supposedly extinct shark (the Megalodon), the now-adult design engineer Dr. Northcut (Antonio Sabato Jnr) seizes an opportunity to balance the ledger, whilst having to convince those around him that the creature has risen from apparent extinction.

Better than expected undersea action thriller, which, despite Sabato Jnr's attempt to exhaust a lifetime of intensity in an hour-and-a-half, manages not to become overly trite and complicated. No unnecessary plot deviations, undercutting by characters or – mercifully – conspiracies of any kind to be seen, which is a welcome retreat from the usual. The set design looks realistic and while some of the shark effects are a little clumsy, the effects team don't make the same mistake of other "Meg" movies in using photo-magnification tricks to enhance the scale of actual shark footage.

The supporting cast aren't bad for a film of this type, and the screenplay is often witty, intelligent, believable and capably delivered. Kudos to Grand L. Bush, who delivers some hilarious lines without becoming a self-parody (of the funniest is when he reacts to Sabato showing him a giant shark tooth he's retrieved from the wreck of the first submarine station, with "you found a big f*%$-ing tooth, big f*%$-ing deal"). There's also a mildly amusing reference to "Jaws" which while might have appeared funny on paper, seems too calculated.

Of most surprise though is the film's somewhat offbeat resolution, which while tidy, the most positive spin could only describe it as bittersweet. Some audiences may find it a little depressing, but again, it's a refreshing departure from the typical, clichéd ending that is common to most creature feature movies. Though I may be alone in saying judging by the other comments made concerning this film, I'm delighted to be able to say that "Shark Hunter", despite its origins and the reputations of its cinematic cousins, is actually well worth a watch.

In the wake of the surprise success "Deep Blue Sea" (1999), which is still well worth seeing, this less ambitious follow-up was made in inexpensive Bulgaria.

Antonio Sabato Jr. Goes on the hunt for the legendary ancient shark Megalodon with a motley crew. The young, dynamic marine researcher (Sabato Jr. With long hair like the ones nerds wore at the turn of the millennium) carries a traumatic childhood experience with him and, despite all the difficulties, can now face the final battle with the monstrous primal fish .

As a former underwear model, Antonio Sabato Jr. Of course, he sometimes takes off his shirt and shows off his abdominal muscles, but he doesn't achieve the charisma of his father Antonio Sabato (GOLDEN GLOBE nomination in 1967 for GRAND PRIX).

The megalodon has more charisma, as it can bare its teeth in a fearsome manner. The rest of the crew consists of Christian Toulali, Grand L. Bush and the very blonde Heather Marie Marsden, none of whom rise above stereotypical portrayals.

You can watch it if you like shark horror!

Luckily, I saw this movie on the Sci-Fi channel and didn't waste money renting it. Yes, it was pretty bad.

Lets begin: Antonio Sabato Jr. plays Dr. Spencer Northcut, a professor and quite possibly the only human on the planet who can design every facet of a deep sea research submarine (subtle sarcasm there, folks), who's family was attacked by a shark called a Megaladon that became extinct over 40 million years ago. The problem is that Dr. Northcut cannot seem to get a berth on the very sub that he created, maybe because of his obsession to get even with the monster shark that took his parents from him, or maybe because he's just not qualified for a position on the sub (did you ever think about THAT, Northcut?), and he spends the first fifteen minutes of the movie pouting about it. Then, as if a sign from above, a research facility is destroyed and it's Northcut to the rescue. Why he would suddenly become qualified to help investigate the destroyed facility is beyond me but he finally gets a berth on "his sub". As the story rolls along we also find out that Northcut is a qualified diver, paleontologist, submarine commander, mini-sub driver and martyr extraordinaire. Wow, can this guy do it all or what?

The other characters were almost as bad, not to mention most of the acting. Whomever casted Heather Marie Marsden (in a laughable performance) should seriously think about another career and the diction coach should have been fired. I don't have a problem with foreign actors but if they're going to use American slang at least do it properly. Example: One of the guys in the research facility tells another guy, "I sick of your stupid-ass games" but the way he said it, it sounded like, "I'm sick of your stupid ASS games." I've been trying to figure out what those are ever since. The only character I liked was Harrington, a no-nonsense mini-sub driver that thinks Northcut is an unqualified nut that could endanger the entire crew. Grand L. Bush's portrayal of Harrington was the most realistic of all the characters and the only one who questions Northcut's qualifications...finally.

The animation was also atrocious. Whose idea was it to make the shark look like it was snarling? I almost expected to hear it growling! And don't forget to check out the radar display. At one point there is a large, green shape of a shark coming across the screen! If anyone has ever seen an actual radar screen (and I use one on my boat) they'll know that images are just big blots of color and not distinguishable from one another: could be land, could be a boat or it could be a channel marker. Radar's do not decipher what's in front of you, so the image of a shark floating by was pretty funny indeed!

If I have to describe this movie in one word it would be "Pffflllttt" (big fat raspberry).