★ 1 / 10
So bad itâs laughably good. But they actually
R T
So bad itâs laughably good. But they actually killed sharks for this so fuck'em. It was a piece of shit.
So bad itâs laughably good. But they actually killed sharks for this so fuck'em. It was a piece of shit.
★ 5 / 10
Cornel Wilde is a hoot and Yaphet Kotto
R T
Cornel Wilde is a hoot and Yaphet Kotto is always a pleasure, but the film feels really jagged and unfinished. Yes, the shark footage is all real, but most of…
Cornel Wilde is a hoot and Yaphet Kotto is always a pleasure, but the film feels really jagged and unfinished. Yes, the shark footage is all real, but most of it is obviously sped up too.
★ 4 / 10
Like a Puzzle Put Together by Forcing the Pieces
Okay, a few things. First, the biggest problem with the movie seems to be its editing. Like a freshman essay, there are clearly parts that drag because they're…
Okay, a few things. First, the biggest problem with the movie seems to be its editing. Like a freshman essay, there are clearly parts that drag because they're nothing but obvious padding. Who knows how much footage Cornel Wilde -- who wrote, directed, and stars in this movie -- shot that ended up being badly assembled later. This is obvious because on a shot for shot level, the film is not incompetent. It's the patchwork assembly that makes it struggle.Beneath that baroque mess is a fairly conventional plot. A ragtag group of treasure hunters goes looking for gold in open waters while a group of escaped convicts stand in essentially for pirates. There's the usual tough captain and tense grousing among the crew until the male bonding kicks in. This is also a movie where old fashioned masculinity is on display. Despite what a lot of seemingly young viewers might think about a gay subtext, it was pretty common among tough guys (or the ones playing them onscreen) to exhibit themselves, one part of out narcissism and one part out of intimidation. Sure, it's comical by today's standards, but it was taken more seriously in the 50s, 60s, and even parts of the 70s depending on generation.That leads to the violence, too. We get to see not just the human stuff, tedious as it is, but more than a few sharks and other fish killed in sometimes brutal ways. It may happen in real life, but it just seems gratuitous here to demonstrate another silly masculine trope that killing something minding its own business somehow makes someone a man. The characterizations follow suit. Wilde's captain comes across as an overbearing nut, but if you know anything about his generation and pay attention to the script, it's mostly an act. For instance, his seemingly psychopathic need to control cigarettes aboard his ship is supposed to -- wink, wink -- show he really cares about his crew, as one of them, indeed, quits without initially realizing it.In the end, the movie is a mess but not merely as much as some might think. It's competently if not imaginatively acted and directed, and while the recycled music makes for a patchwork score, there are a few moments where everything actually works. For the mid-1970s, that alone is remarkable given that Hollywood couldn't figure out if it wanted to make traditional movies or imitations of the low budget films the French, Italians, and Japanese had made in the 50s and 60s.
30%
AUDIENCE
· 50 ratings
4.8/10
557
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Lots of gay stuff here. Especially those skimpy briefs. Youch!