Sharktopus vs. Pteracuda

Sharktopus vs. Pteracuda (2014)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

A (what else?) nutty scientist creates a half pterodactyl, half barracuda, which breaks free and goes on a killing rampage. To try and battle it they set free the half shark, half octopuses and soon the two are killing countless swimmers and battling each other.

SHARKTOPUS was a pretty bad made-for-TV movie but I'm sure the concept alone got people to tune in so we were greeted with this sequel, which is slightly better but that's really not saying too much. When it comes to these types of movies, one really shouldn't expect quality but instead they should just hope for something entertaining. With that being said, SHARKTOPUS VS. PTERACUDA isn't a complete success but there are enough campy moments to make it worth viewing once if you're a fan of these types of films.

The highlight has to be the cameo by Conan O'Brien. O'Brien, the actor, is quite annoying playing himself here as he simply goes too far over-the-top but what follows is quite campy and actually hilarious. I'm not going to ruin his fate or what happens but it's quite funny. Robert Carradine is decent in his role as are Akari Endo and Tony Evangelista as the heroes. There are a lot of fun and gory deaths throughout the running time but after a while the movie really gets boring and it starts off rather poorly. Too many slow moments keep this from being more entertaining.

From "Sharktopus" (2010), the half-shark / half-octopus has returned. In the opening, the monster is seen eating water-sports fans. Meanwhile, a "Pteracuda" has been created by mad scientist Robert Carradine (as Rico Symes). This prehistoric half-pterodactyl / half-barracuda creature is also seen eating people. Through the miracle of editing, the Sharktopus turns out to be the little baby we see being discovered by "Munoz Del Mar" aquarium worker Katie Savoy (as Lorena Christmas). The little bugger grows up quickly and gets loose. The two monsters eventually have a battle. Very handsome Rib Hillis (as Hamm) has a plan to get rid of both monsters and save the world. He rubs Ms. Savoy the wrong way, at first, but they eventually get together. She's not only very pretty, but also has a very winning screen presence. Best line, "I'm going to have this creature eating out of the palm of my hand!" TV talk show host Conan O'Brien has a cameo. If you've seen Alice Cooper and others in Syfy TV Movie cameos, you've seen the act.

*** Sharktopus vs. Pteracuda (8/2/14) Kevin O'Neill ~ Katie Savoy, Rib Hillis, Robert Carradine, Tony Evangelista

Absolutely horrible. A TOTAL HORRENDOUS MESS. This might cause unexpected suicides. Do not watch this.

While this movie is full of plot holes and dialogue mistakes, I have seen worse shark movies. But if you only see one Sharktopus movie, watch Whalewolf not this one.

Sharktopus was not a great, or even good, movie but it was reasonably fun to watch. The photography is pretty decent, Katie Savoy is a winning presence and the scenery is lovely, other than that Sharktopus vs. Pteracuda fails on all levels and is far too inept to pass for a fun B-movie. The special effects are very cartoonish and look so fake against the background, while the Sharktopus is goofy-looking the Pteracuda fares worse, the dinosaur skeletons in the Natural History Museum's dinosaur exhibition are far more convincing. Neither of them show any personality or menace whatsoever(not unexpected, there's already a long line of personality-less SyFy creatures) other than repeatedly attacking people and each other, only when the Pteracuda slaps Sharktopus do we see any glimmer of a personality, and if Sharktopus was meant to be smart that trait is literally non-existent. The attacks are far too gimmicky, are too predictable to be tense and too cheesy to be fun. The dialogue is so inane it makes the toes curl, anything the American tourist couple say is particularly embarrassing, and the story even for a movie that shouldn't be taken seriously is ridiculousness taken to extremes at the sacrifice of suspense, and because it doesn't do anything with the already over-familiar concept it is extremely predictable as well. The ending felt anti-climatic and abrupt and because things and themes are barely developed and what should make a creature feature work being absent the pacing quickly loses steam and the movie loses interest long before it finishes. The characters are personality-and-development-free, Ham being especially bland. Other than Savoy the acting doesn't work. Robert Carradine's performance consists of either chewing the scenery or being indifferent, on paper it was ideal for him but the performance itself is all over the place. Rib Hillis is disadvantaged by his character being so bland and he sleepwalks his way through his performance, while Conan O'Brien's cameo was just bizarre and felt really tacked on. But the worst acting came from the American tourist couple, their parts are so overacted that they somehow make their already annoying characters even more so. The direction is not incompetent as such but it is very flat and could have been more playful if the execution of the rest of the movie was better. All in all, has two or three things that work a little but Sharktopus vs. Pteracuda is messy stupidity from start to finish. 2/10 Bethany Cox