Tiburón blanco: La bestia del mar

I genuinely enjoy shark horror movies, but sadly the bar is very low, with lots of trash being released and many of these movies having similar plots about young teens going out into the water on a jet ski or a boat, only to be suddenly attacked by some sort of shark. Beast of War takes a different route and introduces us to some young Australian soldiers being prepared for their deployment in World War II. We are introduced to a range of characters that are overall very stereotypical, but it was still quite enjoyable to get to know them and see what separates them or holds them together as a unit. Our lead character Leo, played by Mark Coles Smith, did a good job, and so did the rest of the cast. They managed to portray these rather stereotypical soldier characters as unique and fun to watch. Soon after the introduction, there's a change of setting, and the soldiers are crossing the Timor Sea when all of a sudden their boat gets attacked and sinks to the ocean floor. The remaining soldiers who survived now have to fight for survival not only against hunger and thirst but also against a very hungry great white shark.

The movie definitely works with a smaller budget, since the shark attack scenes are kept to a minimum, and there are very few moments where you genuinely see the shark in action. However, the shark still looks good and is at least not some very badly animated CGI creature. Instead, it feels like a real threat to the soldiers, which keeps the tension high. The raft that the soldiers are floating on is constantly surrounded by dense fog that never really lifts, which is most likely a decision made for budgetary reasons as well. However, it works well enough and also gives the movie a dark and moody atmosphere. The movie also features some decent gore, and you occasionally see separated limbs or other wounds that look convincing overall. There are also quite a few rather comedic scenes that work pretty well in my opinion. It's not meant as a comedy, but it definitely made me chuckle a few times, especially because of one of the soldiers who has a head injury and from that point on is a reliable source of funny moments, even though not all of them work and the joke gets tired at some point.

However, overall this movie worked pretty well, and for a shark feature, this was a surprisingly entertaining flick with good characters and some solid craftsmanship that made it a really enjoyable experience. Director Kiah Roache-Turner was able to create another great addition to the horror genre after his Wyrmwood movies and last year's spider feature Sting. I had a great time, and even though the movie is not perfect, it's an enjoyable watch and definitely one of the better shark movies out there. [7.2/10]

Were this a 1970s movie, it would be a cult classic. But it isn't, and therefore it is an "almost there", in need of a couple of million more on a shark. But it does have its moments, and for the budget, some pretty decent cast. Well, mostly anyways. I guess in about 25 years someone will say the equivalent of "hey, Siri, polish that and play it for me" and have a good time.

No real character development. We get some basic background on exactly one and only one character. The story is bland and rather pointless. We are introduced to nurses for no reason. We see our main character home is breathe for a long time, never comes in handy later.

I can ignore the inaccurate shark attacks. Wrong specifies for ten area. Not realistic behavior. At this point, this is just a movie thing. None of them get it right, nor even try.

It's convient that the only people who survive the boat sinking are a handful of people who we coincidentally all saw trained together. They can't even be bothered to do anything interesting there. Throw in a random new guy? Nah!

And a movie can still be fun despite all of that but that's not the case here, at all. It is simply not an interesting or compelling story.

I really dug into Beast of War and felt that raw edge of wartime fear right from the boot camp scenes, where the young soldiers' nerves and sweat made their vulnerability hit home hard-it captured that post-enlistment haze so authentically, leaving me tense and empathetic. The survival kicks in brutally after the ship sinks, blending WWII peril with heart-pounding shark attacks that had me gripping my seat, thrilled by the desperate raft fights and oceanic dread. Sure, the ending felt too predictable and cliched, pulling me out of the immersion a bit, but overall, I see it as a solid, rewatchable gem that nails gritty horror with heart-7/10 for keeping me hooked on those primal stakes.

Straight after leaving boot camp, a group of Australian soldiers traveling on a submarine is hit by explosives. Survivors scramble aboard a raft but face a desperate battle to stay alive as a great white shark senses blood.

It's going to get rinsed; that's obvious, but for what it's worth, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Compared to the vast majority of shark films, this one was pretty decent.

It has several tense moments and lots of shark action. It's quite a bloodthirsty movie; that shark is one hungry mama. It features a good mix of characters, and the acting is good. Mark Coles Smith was the standout, I thought.

It has a B-movie vibe, but it's fairly well made. Sensibly, the production team opted to keep actual shots of the shark to a minimum; we get some dimly lit shots of it, plus a few decent close-ups.

Don't get me wrong; it's flawed and patchy here and there, but overall, it's worth seeing, if like me you love shark movies, you'll know how bad most are, give this one a chance.

7/10.