Great White – Shudder Review (2/5)

GREAT WHITE is a new Shark Horror movie out in movie theaters and released on Shudder in November. Unfortunately, it’s just not very good. Or rather, sometimes it gets so bad that it’s entertaining. Overall, it was just disappointing. Read our full Great White movie review here!

GREAT WHITE is a new Shark Horror movie that will be out on Shudder in November. Right now, it’s being released in movie theaters though it really isn’t very good. The most entertaining moments came from it being so dumb that it become funny. In other words, it was entertaining due to being very bad. Not what any filmmaker dreams of.

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Unfortunately, this particular shark horror movie just isn’t very good. Or rather, sometimes it gets so bad that it’s entertaining. But for all the wrong reasons.

Continue reading our Great White movie review below before you check it out – I know any fan of shark horror movies will, anyway.

When the sharks roar

No matter how bad a shark horror movie is, it will always draw in viewers. I know, because I’m one of them. I love shark horror movies but they need to be over the top, like The Meg, or at the very least be somewhat realistic. Great White is neither over the top nor is it realistic.

I mean, the sharks virtually roar in pain. Yes, roar like a lion. Underwater. The sharks!

And the most disappointing thing is almost the fact that this movie was made in Australia. The sharks are so misrepresented in this movie, which does try to use the realistic approach – and fails miserably – that it just makes me angry. Sharks are killed by the thousands and are still shown as man-eating beasts. Sure, they are predators but they don’t care much about us humans.

I do know that people are still attacked, but a lion would also try to eat you if you wandered around its hunting ground. Just sayin’. Besides, even calling Great White a “shark horror movie” is a bit much.

It’s more of a survival drama with the occasional shark fin. Also, there is some rather shabby CGI used and practical effects with a shark dummy not unlike “Bruce” from Jaws. If nothing else, the nostalgia from that element made me smile. Then the shark roared and my smile faded away extremely fast.

Watch Great White on Shudder in November or in movie theaters first

Martin Wilson is the director behind Great White which marks his feature film debut. Also, he’s Australian which is disappointing because I honestly expected more from an Aussie. In any case, he didn’t write it and the story is the main issue. The director can only do so much.

If you do want to watch a more entertaining shark horror movie from Australia, then check out Bait instead. That one goes after a more “over the top” vibe. I mean, people are trapped in a supermarket with sharks after a tsunami. The plot pretty much tells you that this is a crazy story.

Michael Boughen is the writer of the Great White screenplay. This is only the second feature film script from Boughen after his debut with Dying Breed in 2008 which starred Leigh Whannell. Previously, Michael Boughen has produced a lot more than written. He produced the awesome Australian horror movie The Loved Ones, which you should definitely check out.

As a screenwriter, he has managed to create a shark horror movie that never scared me. Not even once. And I’m the type of girl who loves being in the water but always hears the Jaws theme play in my head whenever I’m in the ocean. In other words, I was hoping for a lot more from this movie, which it did not deliver on.

GREAT WHITE swims into US theaters, On Demand and Digital on July 16, 2021. It will also be released on Shudder on November 11, 2021.

Details

Director: Martin Wilson
Writer: Michael Boughen
Stars: Katrina Bowden, Aaron Jakubenko, Kimie Tsukakoshi, Tim Kano, Te Kohe Tuhaka