"Shark Hunter" is another early 2000s unofficial MEG ripoff. Steve Alten's novel from the 1990s has been the source of countess films since its publication. Without knowing history one might perceive the actual MEG film as itself being derivative of these earlier less inspiring works. This film is at least superior to "Megalodon" from 2002 which is an unwatchable mess.
The plot is supremely stupid. An engineer/college lecturer experiences a traumatic experience on a boat as a child. A sea creature of some sort attacks his parents' boat. No joke, the man genuinely believes that this animal was the extinct megalodon. He apparently spent his youth convincing the government that it should spend millions of dollars for his vessel which also happens to be the world's best submersible. Of course, not only is there a living megalodon but it attacks the vessel.
As I have described this movie, you might be thinking it is unintentionally hilarious. It really isn't. Christian Toulali portrays the main character with such sincerity that the man's obsession overcomes the lazy writing. The film may have been lucky but it just works. Grand Bush portrays his rival on the submersible as a sailor with a lack of respect for the egghead professor who doesn't know the ocean. The interaction is derivative of Quint and Hooper yet works in a similar way (though much less effectively due to the lack of interaction.) Antonio Sabato, Jr. Is listed as the title actor but he's really a supporting character who is unimportant to the narrative.
The film's sets are well done. The corridors have the kind of claustrophobic narrowness you expect. The main room where the submersible launches has weird green dye in the water that shouts out "This is a low budget shark movie!" The shark looks terrible and can shrink in size when convenient to rip off the iconic death from Deep Blue Sea.
Should you choose to watch this movie, I suggest rewatching the MEG film from a few years ago first and then comparing how similar this one is to it. It might be more fun that the film is on its own.
The plot is supremely stupid. An engineer/college lecturer experiences a traumatic experience on a boat as a child. A sea creature of some sort attacks his parents' boat. No joke, the man genuinely believes that this animal was the extinct megalodon. He apparently spent his youth convincing the government that it should spend millions of dollars for his vessel which also happens to be the world's best submersible. Of course, not only is there a living megalodon but it attacks the vessel.
As I have described this movie, you might be thinking it is unintentionally hilarious. It really isn't. Christian Toulali portrays the main character with such sincerity that the man's obsession overcomes the lazy writing. The film may have been lucky but it just works. Grand Bush portrays his rival on the submersible as a sailor with a lack of respect for the egghead professor who doesn't know the ocean. The interaction is derivative of Quint and Hooper yet works in a similar way (though much less effectively due to the lack of interaction.) Antonio Sabato, Jr. Is listed as the title actor but he's really a supporting character who is unimportant to the narrative.
The film's sets are well done. The corridors have the kind of claustrophobic narrowness you expect. The main room where the submersible launches has weird green dye in the water that shouts out "This is a low budget shark movie!" The shark looks terrible and can shrink in size when convenient to rip off the iconic death from Deep Blue Sea.
Should you choose to watch this movie, I suggest rewatching the MEG film from a few years ago first and then comparing how similar this one is to it. It might be more fun that the film is on its own.