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36%
Overall Rating
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Ranked #4,407
...out of 20,888 movies
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A huge iceberg calves that holds a megalodon (mega shark) and a giant octopus frozen inside it. Deployment of a LFAS (low frequency automatic sonar) unit causes it to shatter. The two behemoths thaw and return to life. The shark terrorizes the California coast while the octopus creates havoc things near Japan. A group of three oceanographers put together a plan to draw the beasts into a trap with pheromones.
--IMDb
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Review by Chad
Added: March 10, 2010
I love The Asylum. I'll be the first to admit that they haven't released a single classic yet, but there's just something enjoyable about digging through an endless stream of mockbusters along the lines of Transmorphers and Death Racers in addition to their handful of original productions. The thing with these movies is that they're cheap and filled to the brim with bad acting and worse effects, but they usually have a sort of charm to them that makes them worth the while of any b-movie fanatic. The title alone should tell you this, but Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus - The Asylum's most infamous movie to date and already a YouTube sensation - is no exception to this rule.
The storyline is dead simple, as it should be in a giant monster movie. Government scientists are working on some new underwater sonar equipment up near the north pole, and releasing these devices into the ocean causes a massive glacier to explode. What happens to be frozen inside that glacier? Why, a megalodon, a shark so huge that it can leap 30,000 feet out of the ocean to take down a commercial airliner, and a behemoth octopus that can destroy an oil rig in mere minutes. The Americans have produced Emma (Deborah Gibson) and her old college professor Lamar (Sean Lawlor) to tackle the problem, while Japan gives us Dr. Seiji Shimada (Vic Chao) and the military produces the charming Allan (Lorenzo Lamas) to assist. When conventional methods fail, our heroes realize that they must do the unthinkable: somehow pit the two mortal enemies against one another in a battle to the death.
So, as I mentioned, The Asylum is not known for their cutting edge special effects or their deep roster of seasoned actors, and Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus doesn't break that trend. I've seen better special effects on the Sci-Fi Channel, and some of the scenes found in this movie are recycled to save a few dollars more (one scene in particular shows up a whopping three times). The CGI effects used to create the shark are serviceable enough, but I think I've seen games released on the original Playstation that had better artwork and motion. Oh, and that infamous "shark versus airplane" scene? You know what's going on and it's decent enough in terms of effects wizardry, but you will definitely find yourself laughing at the effects used for it in addition to the sheer outrageousness of the notion that a shark could pull that off.
As for the acting, Deborah Gibson is... well, she's still as cute as a button, but I honestly don't see how she even managed to star in music videos with her acting chops. Here's a tip: I know the movie wasn't meant to be taken seriously and I know that the cast probably knew this, but there are other emotions besides "laughter". The shark is about to kill you? Your lover is thought to be dead? The Golden Gate bridge has just been destroyed? Mrs. Gibson is either laughing or has a goofy grin on her face the entire time. Lorenzo Lamas completely hams it up in his role, dropping one-liners and spewing racist remarks at every turn, and though his performance is enjoyable, I'd be laughed off of the site if I said that he was actually "good" here. The rest of the cast is just sort of there: nobody is great, nobody is horrible, they just sort of go through the motions to tell the story.
Now, with all of that said: I really enjoyed the movie. This is one of those releases that, given the mindset of the viewer, will either be a love it or hate if affair. Do you want a modern Gojira with subtle messages and a deep storyline? Do you want amazing special effects? Do you want a storyline that makes sense? You'll hate this movie if you're in the market for any of that. If, on the other hand, you simply want to see a cheesy b-movie that delivers a mega shark fighting a giant octopus after both beasts tear shit up around the world, then yes, you will likely enjoy this movie as much as I did. It's no classic, but I'll be damned if it wasn't an entertaining ninety minutes in front of the tube.
Overall, it's a bad b-movie with giant monsters. It has its flaws and it's by no means a great movie, but if you're in the mood for something that you can pop in for some mindless entertainment, then you could do much worse. Besides... did I mention that a freaking shark jumps 30,000 feet out of the ocean and eats an airplane? You just don't see that very often, folks. 8/10.
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#1:
mongoose665
- added September 4, 2010 at 7:01am
8/10... What?!
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#2:
Chad
- added September 4, 2010 at 11:55am
If you want a "legit" sci-fi action
movie, then no, 8/10 does not apply. If, however,
you want some cheesy action and some laughs -
which one should expect given the title, the
premise, the trailer, and everything related to
this movie - then yes, it does warrant an 8/10.
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#3:
Nirrad
- added September 5, 2010 at 12:31am
Wow. What the fuck was this. I don't know how they
could have fucked this up but they did. 4 of us
started watching this and 4 of us fell asleep. No
joke. Sooooo boring and just plain awful.
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#4:
Tristan
- added September 5, 2010 at 12:59am
Wow, weird that we watched this on the first day
of comments. Anyway, yeah. I got about 30 minutes
in and headed upstairs for a nap. Totally was not
digging this. Should have been campier. Boo.
2/10 for what I saw.
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