Monster of the Day #1073

The rip-off so blatant Universal was literally able to legally bar it from playing in this country. And so it remains roughly 40 years later. There was a little company which put out like a 500 unit DVD run, probably not strictly legal. Of course, a copy sits on my shelves. This poster exaggerates things a bit, the shark is more like, say, the shark from Jaws II in size. Ridiculously huge, I mean, but not a Megalodon or anything.

Hmm, this wouldn’t be a bad watch during our pre-B-Fest watchings.

The film really isn’t any more slavish in aping Jaws than, saw, Grizzly, but I guess making the monster a gigantic great white shark was a bit on the nose. I will say that if Universal had a brain, they’d just buy the rights and put this out themselves.

  • Gamera977

    Maybe they should have made it a mako or hammerhead?

  • Flangepart

    I was right. Fems and Fishes it is.
    Ya know, Ken has a lot to work with on this concept.

  • And that, my friends, is why I live in a land locked part of the country.

  • bgbear_rnh

    Good to call yourself “Port Harbor” in case anyone doesn’t get that you can bring your boat in there.

  • Gamera977

    Beware the landshark!

  • Flangepart

    ‘Port Harbor’…kinda like “Howitzer Cannon’ or ‘Female Lady.’

  • The Rev.

    What happened to this movie is kind of sad for two reasons:

    1. There are movies that rip off Jaws more blatantly than this one.

    2. This is actually better than you could possibly expect. (You’ll note that Ken reviewed Cruel Jaws, but not its most obvious source.)

    Plus the whole “Universal being rather douche-y” thing.

    I wouldn’t mind watching this before B-Fest; I’d like to hear several people yelling, “Bernie! Bernie!” rather than just myself.

  • Beckoning Chasm

    Maybe there’s another town called “Starboard Harbor” on the other side of the bay.

  • Beckoning Chasm

    I’d like to see if, only because Enzo G. Castellari directed it. He did the totally awesome “Sinbad of the Seven Seas” with Lou Ferrigno, but not Lou’s “Hercules” films. Say, if Lou was in this film, he could end it by punching the shark into space.

  • Rock Baker

    Too bad, really, as it features a couple of my favorites. One day I’m really going to have to see this, as well as yesterday’s picture.

  • The Rev.

    If you are so inclined, I found it on YouTube, which is how I saw it. I also recently watched Hanuman vs. 7 Ultramen on there, which was wonderfully nutty. Much like this, it would be a great T-Fest movie, if I could get ahold of an actual copy.

  • Luke Blanchard

    I like the poster idea here.

  • Ericb

    Port Harbor’s neighbor must be Town City.

  • bgbear_rnh

    Where can fly into Runway Airport.

  • Beckoning Chasm

    It’s probably the City of Townville.