When coming onto a film called Sand Sharks, it's pretty obvious that you're either going to love it, or hate it, depending on how you view B-movies. Being a fan of cheesy creature features, I didn't expect anything but to love this film, and I did.
The film opens with two 20-somethings riding dirt bikes in a desert-looking place who soon find themselves falling victim to, well, a sand shark. One of the victims decapitated heads is discovered by what appears to be the only two cops on the small island of White Sand, John Stone (Eric Scott Woods), and his daughter Brenda (Vanessa Evigan). The two ultimately decide it was indeed a shark attack, but because of how far the decapitated head was from the shore makes them question how. Fast forward about 20 minutes later, and the two decide to call in Dr. Sandy Powers (Brooke Hogan), a scientist who specifies in sharks.
Because of the lack of tourists on White Sand island, the town's mayor's son, Jimmy (Corin Nemec), who happens to be Brenda's ex-love interest, decides to throw a beach party in hopes that it would revitalize the island.
A few shark attacks later, John, Brenda, and Sandy try to prevent the party in fear of more shark attacks, but Jimmy of course ignores their warning, which of course leads to the death of many bad-acting partying college students.
Throw in some decent low-budget effects, lame CGI sharks, ridiculous dialogue, and some B-list actors, and what you get is this beautiful gem, otherwise known as Sand Sharks.
I was actually surprised at how good the movie was, to be honest. Watching this film, I didn't expect much more than another campy B-movie flick, but this movie seemed to deliver a little bit more than most SyFy-esque films.
The characters were very B-movie. You've got the cop with a troubled past, the daughter who isn't over her ex, her heartless ex, and the scientist who is just as clueless as everyone else. To my surprise, these actors weren't too bad for the most part. Yeah, they all had their moments, but how else could you react to a CGI sand shark attacking you?
The effects weren't the best I've ever seen, but they definitely weren't the worst, especially for a B-movie, but, how realistic can you get with a low-budget, anyway? The shark was probably the most unrealistic thing about the effects, which is to be expected anyway, and the bright red blood, of course.
Overall, you're going to either love this film or you're going to hate it, that all depends on your tolerance for these types of movies. If you're looking to have a good time with a few friends, then this is your movie, but, if you're looking for something serious, you're better off checking out something else.
Sand Sharks is set to premier this September on the SyFy channel, but if you can't wait that long, pre-order it on Amazon here.
