Based on the low rating and highly unfavorable reviews from the fellow users I usually agree with, I feared "Night of the Sharks" would be a giant waste of time. Then why even bother watching it? Well, because every horror/exploitation movie featuring killer sharks eventually must play on my television set; - that's why!
And maybe just because my expectations were set so low, I was quite entertained and didn't think it was as awful as claimed around here. The plot is standard and derivative action guff, most of the performances are painful to behold, and the action footage is un-spectacular, but at least it wasn't boring and there really are shark attack sequences. That sounds obvious, but you wouldn't believe how many "Shark" movies don't feature any real shark kills, like "Shark's Treasure" or "Cave of the Sharks".
Treat Williams isn't half bad as the action hero, here trying to remain out of the hands of the gangsters that murdered his brother and violently want to recover a CD full of incriminating material. His character lives near the beach in Cancun, and whenever he sets one foot in the water, there's plenty of stock footage of prowling sharks; - like they are stalking him or something. I think the writers/director want us to believe it's always the same shark, but funnily enough there's stock footage of a Great White as well as a Tiger Shark. Oh well, although not very graphic, the attack sequences are fun to watch. Antonio Fargas (as Treat's buddy) and most of the gangsters terribly overact, and composer Stelvio Cipriani doesn't exactly deliver his best work, neither.
Although his role is rather brief here, my viewing of "Night of the Sharks" also marks me bringing homage to John Steiner; the marvelous but sadly underrated B-movie actor who passed away on July 31st, 2022.
And maybe just because my expectations were set so low, I was quite entertained and didn't think it was as awful as claimed around here. The plot is standard and derivative action guff, most of the performances are painful to behold, and the action footage is un-spectacular, but at least it wasn't boring and there really are shark attack sequences. That sounds obvious, but you wouldn't believe how many "Shark" movies don't feature any real shark kills, like "Shark's Treasure" or "Cave of the Sharks".
Treat Williams isn't half bad as the action hero, here trying to remain out of the hands of the gangsters that murdered his brother and violently want to recover a CD full of incriminating material. His character lives near the beach in Cancun, and whenever he sets one foot in the water, there's plenty of stock footage of prowling sharks; - like they are stalking him or something. I think the writers/director want us to believe it's always the same shark, but funnily enough there's stock footage of a Great White as well as a Tiger Shark. Oh well, although not very graphic, the attack sequences are fun to watch. Antonio Fargas (as Treat's buddy) and most of the gangsters terribly overact, and composer Stelvio Cipriani doesn't exactly deliver his best work, neither.
Although his role is rather brief here, my viewing of "Night of the Sharks" also marks me bringing homage to John Steiner; the marvelous but sadly underrated B-movie actor who passed away on July 31st, 2022.