| Monster Shark | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Lamberto Bava (credited as John Old Jr.) Bruno Mattei (2nd unit director) (credited as Gilbert Roussel) |
| Produced by | Mino Loy |
| Written by | Gianfranco Clerici (screenplay) Lamberto Bava (additional material) |
| Starring | Michael Sopkiw Gianni Garko William Berger |
| Music by | Guido De Angelis Maurizio De Angelis (credited as Antony Barrymore) |
| Cinematography | Giancarlo Ferrando (credited as John McFerrand) |
| Editing by | Roberto Sterbini (credited as Bob Wheeler) |
| Release date(s) | September 7, 1984 (Italy) January 23, 1985 (France) November 14, 1986 (USA) |
| Running time | 90 mins. |
| Country | Italy |
| Language | English |
Monster Shark (also known as Shark: Red on the Ocean, Devouring Waves and Devil Fish) is a 1984 Italian horror film, and one of several environmental disaster films to emerge following the success of the 1975 film Jaws, including films such as: Great White, Orca, Piranha, Tentacles and Tintorera.
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The film takes place along a stretch of coastline somewhere in Florida in the United States, where a local tourist spot has become plagued by a mysterious marine creature. Little do they know, the monster is the product of a secret military experiment — a genetic hybrid mutated from a common octopus and the prehistoric superpredator Dunkleosteus. Unfortunately, the creature has broken loose, and is now feeding on swimmers and tourists swimming or sailing along the coast. And, the monster is only an infant, and will continue to grow if it is left to hunt much longer.
A team of scientists led by a scientist named Peter and his colleague, Dr. Stella Dickens are trying to find the creature and stop it, but a group of military scientists are trying to stop them, as the experiment was classified, and it is military business. Both groups are slowly picked off by the shark while they try and track it down. They eventually find that it is hiding in the everglades and they manage to kill it with repeated blasts from flamethrowers. At the end, Peter tells Stella that he has finally decided to take a vacation. When she asks where they are going, he tells her "the mountains". The ending is a freeze frame shot.
Monster Shark was poorly received by critics. As of September 2009, the IMDB rates the film in 83rd place on their Bottom 100 list.[1]
Monster Shark, under its alternative title of Devil Fish, was featured on an episode of the movie-mocking television series Mystery Science Theater 3000, on which it was spoofed for its poor acting and erratic editing.[2]
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