Sharktopus is a 2023 sci-fi action horror film about a massive hybrid shark and octopus monster that preys on human beings. The movie was inspired by and acknowledges the 2010 American creature feature of the same name produced by Roger Corman and Julie Corman in 2010. That movie spawned two inferior sequels: Sharktopus vs. Pteracuda (2014) and Sharktopus vs. Whalewolf (2015).
Directed by Xu Shixing (Crocodile Island; Monster’s Battleground) and Hu Dongsheng (making his film directorial debut). Executive produced by Lin Zhenzhao.
The Chinese production stars Michelle Ye Xuan, Luo Liqun, Shen Wenjun and Li Ruoxi.
Blurb:
“The endless sea, the moving luxury cruise ships and the people celebrating in a carnival atmosphere. What seems to be an extremely calm and ordinary night is actually an undercurrent: beware of sneak attacks with tentacles because corners are difficult to hide in and the bloodthirsty monster Sharktopus is hunting humans…”
Plot:
Fan Jingya (Michelle Ye) devoted herself to researching a cure for motor neuron disease to save her son. However, her boss, Mr Chen, used her research to create a sharktopus, a highly intelligent hybrid of an octopus and a shark. Trapped on a cruise, Fan Jingya and her old flame, Lu Fei, have a battle of wits against the sharktopus.
Our review:
Believe it or not, there is a story! A scientist and her madman investor have created a shark and octopus hybrid to find a cure for human disease, specifically, the affliction riddling her young son.
After speeding up the growth of an embryo using some kind of booster, the sharktopus begins to go on the hunt aboard some kind of cruise ship/floating laboratory where a crack team of Interpol agents have also boarded, attempting to arrest the madman.
You know the rest. The monster hunts, people die, revelations of who the child’s father is are revealed and, in the end, no one eats the delicious meat of this magnificent creature.
As far as stories go, this follows an almost identical plot to every other creature feature where a shark is merged with another creature – such as Land Shark. And there are a few good reasons for that. It’s easier to get government approval when the plot is so generic, but also this movie is from the same team who have produced almost all of the best creature features from China over the last five years.
There is also a lot of appropriate humour in this film – the banter between the Interpol agents and even the sharktopus itself, such as when it decides to turn itself into a bowling ball in the nightclub and knocks over a bunch of ravers as if it were bowling pins!
And the effects are quite decent but not mind-blowing. You can tell ropes are holding up the soldier being eaten by the CGI creature, or when the puppet is used in the scene, and the green screening is better than most big-budget films. It just adds to the charm of a movie with a budget 100th the size of Meg 2: The Trench but with far more entertainment than that.
The movie even has its own Wu Jing – well, lookalike anyway. I think this is better than Meg 2 in terms of entertainment, excitement and just its general feeling. It’s a shame that movies like this are not given limited big-screen runs in China. I can’t recommend this movie enough. Watch it ASAP.
The Arty Dans, MOVIES & MANIA
Release:
In China, Sharktopus was unleashed on the iQIYI YouTube channel on October 14, 2023.
Trailer:
Kill count:
Original title:
章鲨
More movies:
action | Asian | Chinese
Related:
SHARKTOPUS VS. WHALEWOLF (2015) Reviews and overview [updated]
Sharksploitation! 160+ shark films from Jaws onwards [updated]
#章鲨 #Sharktopus #ChineseSharktopus #AsianHorror #AsianSharktopus #ChineseMovies #ChineseFilms #SharkMovies #SharkFilms #sharksploitation
MOVIES & MANIA provides previews, our own film reviews and ratings, plus links to other online reviews from a wide variety of trusted sources in one handy web location. This is a genuinely independent website and we rely solely on the minor income generated by internet ads to pay for web costs and cover yet more movies. Please support us by not blocking ads. Thank you. As an Amazon Associate, we earn a very tiny amount from any qualifying purchases.