Well what did you expect from a movie on Tubi called Bull Shark? Oscar winning special effects? Pacino level acting? Don't leave a negative review saying how horribly bad this movie is if you sat through the whole thing. Couldn't have been that bad if you did watch it all. Is it bad? Yes. Is it horrible? No. You get what you pay for, and since it plays on Tubi don't complain.
22 Reviews
Like a glass of water.
uhafmd12 July 2022
Have you ever been to a wine tasting? You know how between wines, you rinse your mouth out with water and then spit it out? Well, this movie is like that. If you've just watched a really good horror movie and you want to watch something really dumb to get all the scarey thoughts out of your mind so you can sleep at night?
If so, this is the movie for you!
If so, this is the movie for you!
So bad it's good?
petearballo21 April 2022
No, but it's like a true train wreck you can't stop watching.
Basically it's Jaws on a Great Lake. Despite some decent imagery along with a bad cgi shark the poor acting really makes the movie hard to stop watching.
I laughed at parts I wasn't meant to and didn't laugh when I was.
It's a bad movie, but if you can watch with a friend who enjoys a bad movie to laugh at and have fun picking apart this is your movie.
Basically it's Jaws on a Great Lake. Despite some decent imagery along with a bad cgi shark the poor acting really makes the movie hard to stop watching.
I laughed at parts I wasn't meant to and didn't laugh when I was.
It's a bad movie, but if you can watch with a friend who enjoys a bad movie to laugh at and have fun picking apart this is your movie.
Well that was a lot worse than I expected, and I expected it to be awful.
BA_Harrison14 March 2022
Texas Game Warden Spencer Timms (Thom Hallum) battles a man-eating bull shark that has made itself at home in a Texan lake, feeding on unwary tourists.
The title of this low budget shark-in-a-lake horror positively invites the single-word summary 'Bull Sh**', but someone else beat me to it.
Written and directed by Brett Bentman, for whom a Spielberg-like meteoric rise to fame is extremely unlikely, Bull Shark joins the likes of House Shark, Ghost Shark, Sand Sharks, Jurassic Shark and Sharkenstein as one of the worst in a sub-genre that has churned out plenty of stinkers.
The terrible script spends more time on the protagonist's drink problem, his failing marriage, and a totally pointless subplot concerning a corrupt mayor than it does the shark, which isn't necessarily a bad thing given how crappy the titular fish is: the CGI shark effects are dreadful, and more often than not, it's just a plastic fin on a stick poking out of the water.
1/10. Have fun identifying the comments posted by the director's friends.
The title of this low budget shark-in-a-lake horror positively invites the single-word summary 'Bull Sh**', but someone else beat me to it.
Written and directed by Brett Bentman, for whom a Spielberg-like meteoric rise to fame is extremely unlikely, Bull Shark joins the likes of House Shark, Ghost Shark, Sand Sharks, Jurassic Shark and Sharkenstein as one of the worst in a sub-genre that has churned out plenty of stinkers.
The terrible script spends more time on the protagonist's drink problem, his failing marriage, and a totally pointless subplot concerning a corrupt mayor than it does the shark, which isn't necessarily a bad thing given how crappy the titular fish is: the CGI shark effects are dreadful, and more often than not, it's just a plastic fin on a stick poking out of the water.
1/10. Have fun identifying the comments posted by the director's friends.
Please research before commenting.
daveroy2 June 2022
Granted, it's not a great movie. To the people saying sharks don't live in fresh water, do some research. Bull sharks (one of the 3 deadliest "maneaters", can easily transition from saltwater to freshwater, and are found several hundred kilometres upriver worldwide.
Bull Sh**
omendata8 March 2022
From acting of the xylemic variety, suboptimal sfx (not even Asylum level of film making) to the rickety camerawork, woeful script and shark aka a cardboard fin on a lollipop stick; much like the one the schoolkids used in Jaws II - perhaps the director was adding it as a homage to the original? Hmmm perhaps not, as his shark science was also totally inaccurate so I doubt he even watched Richard Dreyfuss in the original and that for me is unforgiveable as so much of the movie was a total carbon copy of Jaws right down to the rifle and bomb at the end; who knows but maybe it was a parody? Sadly the wobbly cardboard shark fin was not even meritorious of a giggle, just base derision with a soupçon of utter incredulity.
This one is a real cinematic stinkeroo, the kind of film you start to peruse the advancing timeline every few minutes and praying for it to move more rapidly - Never a good sign in my book!
The girl in the blue swimsuit with the terrible fake blood dribbling from her mouth at the beginning did have a nice gluteus maximus it has to be said but sadly even that is not enough to merit an extra star.
Just another shark dud movie to join the many others in Davy Jones' locker.
This one is a real cinematic stinkeroo, the kind of film you start to peruse the advancing timeline every few minutes and praying for it to move more rapidly - Never a good sign in my book!
The girl in the blue swimsuit with the terrible fake blood dribbling from her mouth at the beginning did have a nice gluteus maximus it has to be said but sadly even that is not enough to merit an extra star.
Just another shark dud movie to join the many others in Davy Jones' locker.
A few positives hold this one up over its problematic issues
kannibalcorpsegrinder9 April 2022
After a series of strange attacks, the sheriff and game-warden at a small-town lake community slowly realize the stories about a killer bull shark living in the area are true and set out to corral the shark from attacking the community while trying to keep it quiet from the public.
This was a rather problematic indie shark movie. Among the few things this gets right is the generally fun series of attacks here that manage to overcome the low-budget indie setup in place. The initial attacks with the swimmers in the lake, including those that get dragged underwater and chomped on, generate some decent enough sequences to get an idea of what they're dealing with. The realism of the scenes featuring the shark just coming up and chomping on victims in a normal, grounded setting is quite fun that goes hand-in-hand with the equally grounded encounters trying to kill it. Relying on the more realistic nature of keeping the hunters in realistic boats and not going overboard with the stunt-work and action which is a nice touch that gives this some likable features. It's not that much but it keeps this one going somewhat. There are a few issues with this one. One of the main drawbacks here is the rather uninvolved setup that takes quite a while to get to anything interesting due to a flurry of cliches and formulaic setups. The focus on the family squabbling through a divorce due to his drunken habits, or alcoholism that's led to the divorce makes for a troubling start here filled with uninviting and cliched setups with family drama to start the film. The different forms of trouble found at the office, with the different offices attempting his contact him or going through the motions of contacting him for their own means manages to drag this one down even further into a slough that's rather hard to overcome since hardly any of these tie into the other storylines at play with a disjointed appearance. That doesn't take into account the fact that a majority of the story is so disjointed and chaotic that it's somewhat difficult to stay invested. Not only is this beginning tough to get into, but the secondary storylines involving the family strife and cover-ups that try to hide the shark's existence are also equally uninteresting and just fuel cliched setups that affect the pacing. As well, that also doesn't take into account the usual tropes surrounding this one including the highly underwhelming special effects at play. The shark is shown in a rather intriguing anatomically-accurate-yet-obviously-CGI setup that manages to make the shark look quite goofy and cheesy as a result since the focus on continuing the highly aggravating tactics of featuring it looks cheap. Not fitting into the environments, looking out of place due to the insertion into different settings and the ever-prominent dimension changes that take place which keeps it looking pretty underwhelming. Since there's not much in the way of practical effects here or even blood and gore featured here, this all helps to make it feel somewhat underwhelming.
Rated Unrated/R: Language and Violence.
This was a rather problematic indie shark movie. Among the few things this gets right is the generally fun series of attacks here that manage to overcome the low-budget indie setup in place. The initial attacks with the swimmers in the lake, including those that get dragged underwater and chomped on, generate some decent enough sequences to get an idea of what they're dealing with. The realism of the scenes featuring the shark just coming up and chomping on victims in a normal, grounded setting is quite fun that goes hand-in-hand with the equally grounded encounters trying to kill it. Relying on the more realistic nature of keeping the hunters in realistic boats and not going overboard with the stunt-work and action which is a nice touch that gives this some likable features. It's not that much but it keeps this one going somewhat. There are a few issues with this one. One of the main drawbacks here is the rather uninvolved setup that takes quite a while to get to anything interesting due to a flurry of cliches and formulaic setups. The focus on the family squabbling through a divorce due to his drunken habits, or alcoholism that's led to the divorce makes for a troubling start here filled with uninviting and cliched setups with family drama to start the film. The different forms of trouble found at the office, with the different offices attempting his contact him or going through the motions of contacting him for their own means manages to drag this one down even further into a slough that's rather hard to overcome since hardly any of these tie into the other storylines at play with a disjointed appearance. That doesn't take into account the fact that a majority of the story is so disjointed and chaotic that it's somewhat difficult to stay invested. Not only is this beginning tough to get into, but the secondary storylines involving the family strife and cover-ups that try to hide the shark's existence are also equally uninteresting and just fuel cliched setups that affect the pacing. As well, that also doesn't take into account the usual tropes surrounding this one including the highly underwhelming special effects at play. The shark is shown in a rather intriguing anatomically-accurate-yet-obviously-CGI setup that manages to make the shark look quite goofy and cheesy as a result since the focus on continuing the highly aggravating tactics of featuring it looks cheap. Not fitting into the environments, looking out of place due to the insertion into different settings and the ever-prominent dimension changes that take place which keeps it looking pretty underwhelming. Since there's not much in the way of practical effects here or even blood and gore featured here, this all helps to make it feel somewhat underwhelming.
Rated Unrated/R: Language and Violence.
Pathetic
mcrum99122 March 2022
Even with all the stacked 10 star ratings present and climbing this terribly crafted shark movie cant seem make it to a 3. Thats because anybody who watched this load and gave it an honest rating couldnt possibly see fit to rate it higher than a 3. Honestly if youre going to make a movie called Bull Shark then at least make the creature a Bull Shark and not a great white. This has already been addressed. There are of course other Jaws ripoffs in the world but this has got to be the most blatant one of them. To the people who made this you should know that nobody is fooled by your fake ratings. Nobody.
Been waiting for this one
frazenk11 February 2022
Bull Shark didn't disappoint. It's the best shark movie since Deep Blue Sea. Maybe the best one since Jaw's. People have to understand that this movie isn't made on a Hollywood budget. Not even close. If you can understand that then you can know what your going to see a great shark movie done well on a budget of nothing. Good job to this team.
Pretty reasonable movie
fluffchop8 April 2022
There are some cheap shark effects, so that's a given but don't let that detract from the other elements of the film. For something low budget it was shot and edited well and the sound was good. The story is fleshed out quite well with the marine biologist and some other incidental characters. All in all it's a totally watchable movie, that I doubt I could do better than for the budget.
Not the worst shark movie ever
susieqeisus4 March 2022
That title would probably go to the other 2022 shark movie The Requin. Bull Shark seems to be in a competition to top it but just falls short. One can also consider the newly released Beneath the Surface.
The directing here isn't the worst there is but everything about the movie is unfortunately dampened by a hackneyed and poorly developed script that spends most of its time ignoring the threat of the shark to focus on the story of a struggling alcoholic, which could be compelling if it wasn't instead so sloppy. One decent performance might have saved this movie, making it salvageable at least, but try as I might I can't find one to point out.
Schizophrenic cinematography is on display with plenty of pleasing moments for the eye followed with so many others that look like they were done by film students that I wonder if they were shot by the same person. Some decent visual effects on what was obviously a low budget saved this from being a 1, even though the shark we see on screen is a Great White instead of the Bull Shark that the title and characters indicate.
A movie about a Bull Shark let loose in a Texas lake could have been great. Unfortunately it wasn't left in capable hands. Hopefully somebody else may come along and attempt to right the wrongs.
The directing here isn't the worst there is but everything about the movie is unfortunately dampened by a hackneyed and poorly developed script that spends most of its time ignoring the threat of the shark to focus on the story of a struggling alcoholic, which could be compelling if it wasn't instead so sloppy. One decent performance might have saved this movie, making it salvageable at least, but try as I might I can't find one to point out.
Schizophrenic cinematography is on display with plenty of pleasing moments for the eye followed with so many others that look like they were done by film students that I wonder if they were shot by the same person. Some decent visual effects on what was obviously a low budget saved this from being a 1, even though the shark we see on screen is a Great White instead of the Bull Shark that the title and characters indicate.
A movie about a Bull Shark let loose in a Texas lake could have been great. Unfortunately it wasn't left in capable hands. Hopefully somebody else may come along and attempt to right the wrongs.
It was bull alright...
paul_haakonsen7 March 2022
Granted, when I sat down to watch the 2022 action horror movie "Bull Shark" from writer and director
Brett Bentman, then I wasn't really expecting a whole lot. Sure, the movie's cover was interesting, but I figured that it was probably over-selling the movie by a long shot, and that this was going to be one of those dubious shark movies that tends to flood the genre.
But as I hadn't already seen the 2022 movie "Bull Shark", of course I opted to do so. And let me just tell you that this movie was a swing and a miss.
The storyline was so generic and stereotypical for a shark movie that it wasn't even fun. It was such a drag to sit through this stumbling narrative and insanely slow-paced movie. And I didn't for a second believe that anyone was ever in any danger of a shark in the water.
The scenes with the shark were laughably bad, and most often just cut away just before the shark would attack, and thus leaving the audience up to fill in the blanks. Come on Brett Bentman, that is not why people watch shark movies.
The acting in the movie was rather rigid and wooden, so you're not in for an evening of Shakespearian performances here. I've seen worse acting, I will say that, but the actors and actresses that took part in "Bull Shark" virtually had nothing to work with in terms of script or characters.
If you enjoy shark movies, you just have to spare yourself the anguish of suffering through "Bull Shark". Trust me, it wasn't worth the time or effort, much less the money.
My rating of "Bull Shark" lands on a staggering one out of ten stars.
But as I hadn't already seen the 2022 movie "Bull Shark", of course I opted to do so. And let me just tell you that this movie was a swing and a miss.
The storyline was so generic and stereotypical for a shark movie that it wasn't even fun. It was such a drag to sit through this stumbling narrative and insanely slow-paced movie. And I didn't for a second believe that anyone was ever in any danger of a shark in the water.
The scenes with the shark were laughably bad, and most often just cut away just before the shark would attack, and thus leaving the audience up to fill in the blanks. Come on Brett Bentman, that is not why people watch shark movies.
The acting in the movie was rather rigid and wooden, so you're not in for an evening of Shakespearian performances here. I've seen worse acting, I will say that, but the actors and actresses that took part in "Bull Shark" virtually had nothing to work with in terms of script or characters.
If you enjoy shark movies, you just have to spare yourself the anguish of suffering through "Bull Shark". Trust me, it wasn't worth the time or effort, much less the money.
My rating of "Bull Shark" lands on a staggering one out of ten stars.
Shark flick with almost no shark action
mikaelsbjorklund11 July 2022
Watched this with my wife because she loves shark movies. We have seen a lot of bad ones and this one is in that category for sure. Bad acting, almost no shark action and an attempt to throw in some non shark drama. In a shark movie. Go figure. Its just awful.
I ask too much from these
Leofwine_draca8 January 2024
Indie shark flicks seem to be ten a penny these days and BULL SHARK offers absolutely nothing in the way of entertainment or interest. The story is just another bland JAWS variant in which a coastal community finds itself menaced by a shark that's developed a taste for human flesh. There are a few bubbly attack scenes of victims getting chomped on, but for the most part this is padded out with family melodrama which really takes the biscuit. Good if you like endless jawing chit-chat, bad if you like actual plot construction and the careful building of suspense and payoff. But then I ask too much from my indies...
Had some potential but then went off the deep end
stewartlehr28 September 2022
First off this movie was a free release on the net and I got what I paid for...not much!
First the good news. The lead actor Thom Hallum is an experienced actor but his character was so clichéd that it dominated and eventually overwhelmed his part in the movie.
Derek Woodford, the Sheriff was in the same boat (pun intended) but he was underused. He'd pop in and out of the movie and that was pretty much it.
After that the thespian qualities becomes very thin on the water. And here's the rub, I haven't even gotten around to discussing the story itself. The problem here is that there's hardly any story to discuss.
Sure, it was a change to have a shark movie about a fish other than a Great White, which really does get a bad rap in virtually all shark movies. And like the Great White, the Bull Shark (once known as Bronze Whalers) doesn't exactly like human food. And the same can be said about most sharks and humans.
So what shark does have a particular taste for people...it's the Tiger Shark. They'll go for a human and they'll follow until they chomp their way through the targeted food source.
Now you might be wondering why I know so much about sharks? Well I live in Australia and surfed for around forty years and had a shark swim under my board at the age of fourteen. Also, I've done a lot reading on the subject. And therein lies the problem with this production...there was a lack of research.
The movie itself was reasonable until one hour and three minutes and then it completely went off the (boat's) rails. I won't give it away but I seriously cracked up and by the end of the movie I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Now this isn't a spoiler but if you're trying to attract a shark you can do a number of things. One is to throw fish bait into the water. Another is to throw blood and meat into the water and that will have the same results. And a third method is to jump into the water and splash around. See the movie and you can see which one they accurately go for.
OK, so after this analysis there must be someone or something to blame. Well the production company is ITV and they are a low rent mob that are little better (or maybe worse) than The Asylum.
The second blame magnet is Brett Bentman who wrote and directed this woeful story. I mean for crying out loud all he had to do was start off with Wikipedia and then go to some sea world people and possibly approach an expert on the subject. Nah, too much work so he just made it up.
I could go on and on about movie but it's just too painful. So where will this disaster end up? The same place that all ITV productions end up...Tubi of course.
Oh and you have to wait until after the credits for the final nail in this production's coffin. It's a real humdinger.
I gave this movie two stars and that was for the first hour or so and zilch after that.
First the good news. The lead actor Thom Hallum is an experienced actor but his character was so clichéd that it dominated and eventually overwhelmed his part in the movie.
Derek Woodford, the Sheriff was in the same boat (pun intended) but he was underused. He'd pop in and out of the movie and that was pretty much it.
After that the thespian qualities becomes very thin on the water. And here's the rub, I haven't even gotten around to discussing the story itself. The problem here is that there's hardly any story to discuss.
Sure, it was a change to have a shark movie about a fish other than a Great White, which really does get a bad rap in virtually all shark movies. And like the Great White, the Bull Shark (once known as Bronze Whalers) doesn't exactly like human food. And the same can be said about most sharks and humans.
So what shark does have a particular taste for people...it's the Tiger Shark. They'll go for a human and they'll follow until they chomp their way through the targeted food source.
Now you might be wondering why I know so much about sharks? Well I live in Australia and surfed for around forty years and had a shark swim under my board at the age of fourteen. Also, I've done a lot reading on the subject. And therein lies the problem with this production...there was a lack of research.
The movie itself was reasonable until one hour and three minutes and then it completely went off the (boat's) rails. I won't give it away but I seriously cracked up and by the end of the movie I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Now this isn't a spoiler but if you're trying to attract a shark you can do a number of things. One is to throw fish bait into the water. Another is to throw blood and meat into the water and that will have the same results. And a third method is to jump into the water and splash around. See the movie and you can see which one they accurately go for.
OK, so after this analysis there must be someone or something to blame. Well the production company is ITV and they are a low rent mob that are little better (or maybe worse) than The Asylum.
The second blame magnet is Brett Bentman who wrote and directed this woeful story. I mean for crying out loud all he had to do was start off with Wikipedia and then go to some sea world people and possibly approach an expert on the subject. Nah, too much work so he just made it up.
I could go on and on about movie but it's just too painful. So where will this disaster end up? The same place that all ITV productions end up...Tubi of course.
Oh and you have to wait until after the credits for the final nail in this production's coffin. It's a real humdinger.
I gave this movie two stars and that was for the first hour or so and zilch after that.
Rife with inaccuracies
jmsmtchll6513 July 2022
The crazy little Shark film that caught me by surprise
rgonzalez-3925020 February 2022
When I first heard about Bull Shark, I was hesitant. I honestly believed I would not like the film. When I saw it for the first time...I was pleasantly surprised on how good the film turned out. It was way better than I expected. I didn't love the film, but this is a film I would be happy to watch again. I do plan on buying it on DVD when it releases in April. Brett Bentman in my opinion is a truly underrated writer and director.. who does a great job in telling compelling character driven stories. I hope people will give this film a chance if they are hesitant because I think they would be surprised how good the film really is.
Horrible
thesushuclubii8 March 2022
I really laughed at the effect of the shark stabbing. If anyone recommend a shark movie.. I would not recommend this 😐...I can't believe I just waste my time watching this
thinking this is get good...I would recommend jaws. Best movie I ever seen.
Bull Sh***
dfpruden5 June 2022
This movie was so bad that I didn't pause it when I went to the bathroom, did dishes, took clothes out of the dryer and finally after the 2nd victim turned it off. 40 minutes of my life wasted. I've seen better acting in adult films.
Wishing Neil Breen had made it
richkiel24 August 2022
Makes Ed Wood look like Spielberg.
youngsteve8 January 2024
I don't do many reviews lately, but had to reply after watching this load of rubbish. Ignore the massive amounts of 10's, obviously from the director & his family. This film is an utter turd, with shocking acting, & characters, none of which you care a dime for.
If you watch a shark movie, you expect at least some gore in it, but this film has none, & is as frightening as a kids cartoon. Makers should be prosecuted unter the trade description act for false advertising. The main actor is bad in this, with his boring personal issues, but he looks Shakesperian in comparison to the rest of the cast, most of whom can't act to save there lives.
This is one of the worst films I have ever seen, seeing many turkeys over the years, & advise anyone who hasn't seen it, to avoid at all cost.
If you watch a shark movie, you expect at least some gore in it, but this film has none, & is as frightening as a kids cartoon. Makers should be prosecuted unter the trade description act for false advertising. The main actor is bad in this, with his boring personal issues, but he looks Shakesperian in comparison to the rest of the cast, most of whom can't act to save there lives.
This is one of the worst films I have ever seen, seeing many turkeys over the years, & advise anyone who hasn't seen it, to avoid at all cost.
Sharks really do live in lakes, but this isn't a shark movie
elise4421 July 2022
I've seen a few reviews about how unrealistic it is about sharks living in freshwater lakes. There have been sightings and attacks in the Great Lakes, Lake Ontario, Trinity River. Lakes in Louisiana and California. So that part is probably the only true and good thing about this film. The public needs to be educated, but since this movie is more an SNL Jaws parody (without the comedic approach) they really dropped the ball. And really, it's not even about sharks. It's about a small Texas town with corrupt political figures and a game warden struggling with alcoholism, divorce and being a bad father. The sharks have small guest appearances a couple times and then some plastic fins a few other times. Nope. No thanks.
*The people behind this film have a funny stereotype of Texas. But seriously dude, we're not a bunch of beer drinking till we fall over drunk people.*
*The people behind this film have a funny stereotype of Texas. But seriously dude, we're not a bunch of beer drinking till we fall over drunk people.*
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
