Santa Jaws (2018) User Reviews

This isn't the worst movie you'll ever see and I actually recommend horror enthusiasts see it once

[kevin_robbins · 4/10 · 5 December 2021]

Santa Jaws (2018) is a movie I recently watched on Amazon Prime. The storyline follows a high school comic book writer who lives by the ocean who one day receives a magic pen that causes his work to come to life. Wouldnt you know his current work is called "Santa Jaws" and now it isn't safe to go by the water in his town...can the kid and his friends find a way to rid the town of his shark before it kills everyone?

This movie is directed by Misty Talley (Shark Island) and stars Reid Miller (You), Courtney Lauren Cummings (The Collection), Jim Klock (The Underground Railroad), Carrie Lazar (The Magnificent 7) and Scott Allen Perry (Keeping Up with the Jonses).

The storyline for this is actually pretty fun and I liked the comic book aspects in this. The kill scenes are better than you'd expect, sudden and has some jump scare value. There are some scenes where you'll say, "That was a pretty awesome kill scene." The storyline itself is awful; and funny enough, the kids acting is much better than the adults acting, which is consistently awkward and painful.

Overall this movie is as bad as you'd expect but also has more entertainment value for horror enthusiasts than you'd expect. This isn't the worst movie you'll ever see and I actually recommend horror enthusiasts see it once. I'd score this a 4/10.

Great title, okay movie

[pmtelefon · 5/10 · 3 January 2021]

You get what you pay for with "Santa Jaws". It's a silly but mostly fun movie. The location is nice and the cast is good. The shark scenes are worth the wait. I have nothing bad to say about "Santa Jaws". I don't think it will become a Christmas tradition but that's okay. It was a fun watch last night. Honorable mention: a dreamy Haviland Stillwell.

Better than you'd think it would be.

[Aaron1375 · 4/10 · 27 November 2020]

I was expecting this to be totally terrible film brought to us by the SyFy channel, home to the terrible shark film. However, it turned out to be a bit better than I was expecting...I reiterate a bit. As you can see, I rated the film a four out of ten so while it is better than most of the shark fare on the channel, it still in the end rates as a bad film. It did have a different premise and it did poke fun at the other shark films at times, but it also got tedious to watch in areas as like most films on the channel the shark looks quite bad and they show it as minimally as possible.

The story is the high point as it gets praise from me for trying to do something a little different. Most of these shark films on SyFy and everywhere else will usually use global warming as the reason behind the crazed sharks and the father in this one jumps to this conclusion. This time, though, the shark is a comic written and drawn by two kids. One of the kids gets a mysterious pen for Xmas and uses it to enhance a pic of the shark and this in turn brings the shark to life. It begins its killing by taking out the boy's grandfather and soon more will fall to this vicious killer unless the kid and his friends find a way to defeat it.

What is wrong with this one? Well, it is very obvious how to kill the beast, with the pen, but for some reason they deduce the thing was brought to life by the pen, but it takes them several dead people later to figure out the pen is the key to victory. Stupid chase seen ensues with the comic shop owner who is willing to help the kids by giving them weapons, but just has to steal the pen a bit later. Then at the end, the boy wakes up with the it was all a dream or was it thing and shows no concern for the one boy who helped him create the title character.

So, while it is better than a lot of the films seen on the SyFy channel, it still suffers from a lot of the same faults as it tries to be funny but has actors in the kids who mumble most of their lines. The shark looks bad, sure, but I would still like to see it kill a bit more often as I am not watching this for the pointless subplots like the one where the writer of the comic and the older brother of the one who drew it talk about how each sees the other as a stereotype or something and this literally had no build up. Just boom! Here it is! Boom! There is goes. Still, it had a few good moments and a few funny moments just not enough to make this a good shark film which I believe something that will forever elude the SyFy channel.

Ok, sarcastic 10/10's aside...

[Alondro · 3/10 · 16 August 2018]

This might have worked as some skit on SNL for 5 minutes every Christmas, or as an episode of "South Park" poking fun at terrible shark and Christmas movies simultaneously.

But good lord this was stupid. And it tried to take this incredibly stupid concept absolutely seriously. And the CGI... it's a SyFy original, you all know what to expect. And you will not be mistaken. There was also very little of it. There was very little... anything. I don't think the creators had either the budget or creativity to do anything even amusing with their one-note concept.

Two stars are for the actors, who tried their very best through one of the dumbest ideas in cinematic history. I think several of them deserve a shot in something better-made. And one is for the primary camera work which at least looks modestly well-done.

On the Cheap

[Grouch39 · 5/10 · 16 August 2018]

O.K., honestly all these SYFY movies are done with a very limited budget. but this one didn't even spring for any background extras. I don't remember seeing even one person in the background. For a town celebrating Christmas it was completely deserted. Otherwise this was a typical Christmas shark magical pen fantasy film. (And where DID Papa get that pen?)

Seriously?

[bettysgirl · 1/10 · 15 August 2018]

Just...no...this movie was so bad. Yet I still had to watch til the end.

Terrible

[elmoslively · 3/10 · 9 December 2018]

This ridiculous action horror/comedy for the tween set makes the "Sharknado" movies look like Oscar winners. Why are there so many positive reviews for this Jingle Bells trash?

Someone tried to make a good movie ...

[McQualude · 2/10 · 1 November 2018]

From a joke plot. If you get dealt something called Santa Jaws about a Santa hat wearing killer shark you gotta roll with it. Get down in the mud with that pig and wrestle. Movies like Sharknado and Trailer Park Sharks embrace their B movie plots and come out entertaining but this movie seems ashamed of what it is and dreams of being a feel good 80's kid's movie that happens to have a Santa hat wearing shark born from a comic book that eats people. It doesn't work and it's boring.

If you're watching a movie called "Santa Jaws," you'll get what you're looking for.

[kevinmcourtney · 7/10 · 29 October 2020]

Very skilled actors performing a poorly written script, which is exactly what you're expecting (and admit it, hoping for) from movies like this.

Dreck the halls with boughs of folly...

[tophicles · 1/10 · 21 November 2023]

If you have the opportunity to view this film, please consider roasting your chestnuts on an open fire instead - it will be less painful.

There are movies that are so terribly written, acted and filmed that it's a pure joy to cackle at their absurdity (I'm looking at you, Birdemic, Operation Golden Pheonix, et. Al.) but this one couldn't even make that grade. Whatever laughter surfaced seemed forced and accidental with the exception of the obviously rubber crocodile with vermillion-red blood, props that change size without explanation and terribly tiny turkeys (more on that in a moment).

Featuring dialogue written by one million moneys - obviously high on eggnog, emotionless delivery so bland it makes English cuisine seem flavourful and pacing that allows for ample bathroom breaks between lines for you to hurl your Christmas cookies.

I think we can all accept that this offering only exists as a commercial for the local comic book shop - as our protagonists spend more time there in awkward dialogue than anywhere else. It's here where our plucky heroes stock up on dollar-store Hallowe'en "weapons" to fight our CGI shark - from a flaccid-fire crossbow, plastic spear and mace, to a turkey-tossing-trebuchet fashioned out of the dockside picnic tables.

There are numerous attempts to craft some "catchphrases" all of which fall on their faces about as flat as their delivery. The most memorable of which is "bells on shark tails ring". Yes, you read that right, unfortunately.

I spent 5 hours watching this 1 1/2 hour flick which was one half "Home Alone", one half "Jaws" and one half "Simon In The Land of Chalk Drawings". Yes, that's three halves because the math in this review should match the ridiculous absurdity of the film.

Whomever green-lit this Christmas turd should face a firing line of wooden soldiers. If you ever wondered what happened to the discarded snips of film from the cutting room floor of the Sharknado series - they were swept up and compiled into this holiday train wreck.

The real gift to the cast of this "movie" is that they'll never have to appear in another.

The new gold standard in Christmas Shark movies

[MyFriendsCallMeDirt · 8/10 · 16 August 2018]

"Santa Jaws" sounds preposterous, and it is.

But it's also exactly what it needs to be.

The director (Misty Talley) was able to keep this together pretty well instead of sending it straight off the rails, and managed to include the appropriate camp-to-family ratio that makes Christmas movies work. The script was creative. Some of the casting was excellent (Ritchie Montgomery, Haviland Stillwell, Hawn Tran all did great character work here). The result was a movie that is every bit as family-friendly as "The Meg" aspired to be without losing any of the qualities that make the best of the Sy-Fy shark movies work.

Yes, it's still a "bad shark movie". It's as ludicrous as the title suggests, but it still managed to be a really good, really fun "bad shark movie".

7.5/10. Bravo!

One of the better of SYFY's Shark films.

[MikeHope44 · 7/10 · 16 August 2018]

The concept of the film makes it obvious it shouldn't be taken seriously and once that is realized it's actually a fun entertaining film. The acting was pretty good from everyone and the film's lead Reid Miller (Play by Play, A Girl Named Jo) carries the film nicely.

The emotional moments of the film came off as genuine and there's definitely some laugh out loud moments. I actually wouldn't mind a sequel to it (as long as it doesn't go on too long like the Sharknado films) and i'll definitely be adding it to my playlist of Christmas movies this year as well.

If you like cheesy but entertaining movies definitely check this one out!

The most unintentionally hilarious movie ever

[donavanweaver-66631 · 1/10 · 25 December 2019]

I would like to start off by saying that before this movie I didn't have account. I have never reviewed a movie and didn't think I would ever need to. But this film was so bad I decided to take time out of my busy Christmas Eve to create an account and share my thoughts. This was by far the worst acting, directing, writing, and special effects I have ever seen in a movie. This movie is so bad I can't remember a 1 characters name. While everyone in this movie makes hallmark actors look like academy award winners, I would like to give a special shout out to Reid Miller who is the main character in this movie. This dude is by far the worst and best part of this movie. His performance is so bad and cringeworthy it makes this film worth watching because it is hilarious. I would also love to give the writers a shoutout for providing the most awful and hilarious one liners in movie history. In conclusion, if you want to crap yourself laughing at an hilariously bad movie that takes itself too seriously I suggest you watch it. But if you actually respect film making and would like to not have suicidal thoughts, don't give it a go. Happy Holidays!

There is room for a better holiday shark movie.

[doctorsmoothlove · 2/10 · 2 August 2019]

"Santa Jaws" is yet another goofy shark movie to come out from SyFy lately. We have seen Nightmare Sharks, Ghost Sharks, and Jersey Sharks so why not a Christmas Shark? Unlike any of the other films I've mentioned this one gives you the feeling that it was just a funny conversation between the director Misty Talley and writer Jack Kiernan. Ms. Talley directed Zombie Shark which is much better than this film, so it's disappointing to see her make something this poor quality. That film at least has a plot which is more than can be said here.

Nothing really happens in this film. Cody, the main character receives a pen from his grandfather which can bring alive anything it animates. Cody is drawing panels for his friend Steve who created the titular character. Of course Santa Jaws comes to life and goes on a rampage. The script missed an opportunity to establish a connection between Cody and Santa Jaws. Why is she just a monster that reaches out of the water to boringly eat people? Cody describes her as having super powers. What does she do with them? I would have liked to see some of the comic's story play out in real life. Instead, Cody, Steve and several other people we don't get to know or care about hunt her for the movie.

There is a lot of pointless running around from Cody's house to a comic book store and a dock. It's almost as if the budget didn't permit any more than those locations and Cody's house. The direction in these sequences is flat without anything to break up the tedium. Some scenes are poorly edited. When one character is attacked, you cannot tell how far away from her Santa Jaws is. It looks like she just sinks into the eater. The scenery gives away that this Christmas movie was filmed in summer.

For some reason, the script makes some characters to be as annoying as possible. Steve constantly likes to brag that he is the person who wrote the comic. Cody is just the animator. Cody's mother never believes him kind of like how the mother didn't believe the main character in Zombie Shark. Maybe Ms. Talley doesn't get along with her mother?

The film does attempt to mesh its two unusual themes together. Cody's grandpa is your stereotypical movie grandpa who gives good advice about talking to girls before being eaten by Santa Jaws. The scene between them while they are fishing would fit into any Hallmark Christmas movie. Santa Jaws can only be harmed if she is struck with Christmas-themed objects. The christmas light attack sequences that follows is amusing. She is a comic book character so giving her a Superman-style weakness makes sense. The ending is a huge ripoff of the first Goosebumps movie. That film is a better version of this one. There, the characters are dumbfounded by all the shenanigans coming to life from a novel.

This is a gimmicky trailer movie that lasts too long and under delivers in all aspects. The movie is so self aware that any sense of fun is sucked out because you feel like even the main characters are in on the joke. I suggest watching the trailer and trying any other film on Mill Creek's Shark Bait set where you would be most likely to see this film.

Good movie

[heavenslittleblueangel30 · 5/10 · 27 September 2018]

I gave 5 stars because could not find a copy of this online that was not out of sync for audio. Otherwise from what I saw was very good.

Yuletide shark attack

[TheLittleSongbird · 4/10 · 9 September 2018]

Have been on a roll watching many killer shark films made on a low budget recently. A few tolerable ones but most have been lame at best and often terrible, even when knowing what to expect and taking it for what it's meant to be.

Am well aware, just to make things clear right now, that films like 'Santa Jaws' are not ones to be taken seriously, have been well versed enough to not expect that. Have seen my fair share of low-budget shark films, and any other kind of low-budget creature film, and will admit to finding some guilty fun in some of them (i.e. the first two 'Sharknado' films). There are definitely worse shark films than 'Santa Jaws', which compared to many killer shark films is one of the more watchable ones. Despite being cheesy, not well made and ridiculous, there were signs of a little effort and didn't feel like my intelligence insulted.

Some of the scenery is semi-decent and some of it is reasonably nicely shot.

Did feel that there was the odd amusing and heartfelt moment, but they were too far and between. The lead performances are surprisingly credible.

The acting from everyone else is pretty poor, with the usual mix of overplaying and blandness. Any few attempts to develop the characters results in padded and pointless scenes, development is at best flimsy and it's all overwrought and does little to make the characters endearing or care or learn enough about them.

The execution of everything else is severely underwhelming, not just being visually cheap and poorly acted and written even worse but what seemed like a decent, and fairly inventive for a killer shark film, idea was executed in generally typically shark film fashion, with no imagination whatsoever, everything is so ordinary, and only occasional splashes of fun.

Faring worse are the effects, story and writing. 'Santa Jaws' is at times sloppily edited, but it's the truly abysmal special effects that are the worst. As the shark was made on a low-budget it would have been forgiven a little if it was not great, but when the effects for the shark looks as if no effort was given in making it without looking so goofy and unfinished-looking that is hard to ignore or forgive.

Can say no better about the portrayal of the shark either. It exudes little personality either, no menace, not even any unintentional goofiness. Generally the shark action, apart from the odd mild amusement and moments of ferocity, is sloppily edited and devoid of suspense or sense of horror by holding very few surprises, being excessively predictable. Any gore is cheaply cartoonish and adds nothing, instead being gratuitous.

Writing ranges between incredibly bad to appalling. Any comedy mostly is incredibly forced and is so cheesy it is enough to make the eyes roll in disbelief, while the more serious moments are very awkwardly written and as trite as anybody can possibly go, complete with some truly muddled parts. The silliness goes well overboard as the film progresses and it becomes intelligence insulting in spots even when one tries to take it for what it's trying to be.

Really wanted to like the story here because the concept was intriguing slightly, but while it starts nicely the further the film progresses the lazier, cheesier and more formulaic it gets, also making the mistake that most killer shark films make of trying so hard to be over the top and stupid but in a painfully predictable and less than fresh way that it becomes tiresome. With the dramatic elements, it also tries to take itself seriously, but the credibility-straining, overwrought melodrama and lack of sense makes it difficult to take it at face value and gives the impression the film was not sure what to do with itself. There is not much warmth for a film set at Christmas and it feels somewhat mean-spirited. The stupidity gets stale quickly and the film is a little flabby pace-wise.

Overall, tolerable but rather mediocre as well. 4/10 Bethany Cox

Why not..

[brandywreath · 3/10 · 29 November 2020]

Just erase the shark? If erasing "parts" work, why not erase the whole thing? Draw a whole and its guts.coming out? Why does the kid have to be such an a-hole to his parents? Horrible.

Best shark movie I've ever seen

[tristantr · 24 December 2019]

This is should be in the oscars but oh well... I love the Santa hat on the shark too

Not Quite a Shark Flick, Not quite a Christmas movie

[kagethemagetwitch · 5/10 · 17 June 2022]

This movie attempts to merge two genres, and it doesn't quite pull it off. It feels like a decent movie made by high-schoolers or college freshman, but could have used a few more adults involved. The movie was made with the same level of maturity of much of its cast.

It wasn't the worst movie I have ever watched, but that's not a very high bar to pass.

So campy it was actually enjoyable...

[paul_haakonsen · 6/10 · 3 September 2020]

When I found this 2018 movie titled "Santa Jaws", I must admit that I was immediately intrigued. Sure, I knew this movie was most likely going to be an abysmal B-movie, but still it sounded like something that might actually just turn out to be one of those rare gems that are so cheesy and bad that it is actually good.

And guess what? It was. Yeah, it was. "Santa Jaws" was indeed a super campy and cheesy movie, a spoof almost, and it was actually so far out there and so bad that the movie was entertaining and enjoyable to watch. There is just something oddly appealing about movies like "Santa Jaws". And I do love it when these bad movies are so bad that they actually being enjoyable.

The storyline in "Santa Jaws" is pretty straight forward and very predictable, of course. But still, writer Jake Kiernan had managed to put together something very unique and oddly memorable. And the concept of the movie was just so far out there that it actually worked wonderfully. And director Misty Talley did a good job in bringing the movie to life on the screen.

One would think that a movie such as "Santa Jaws" would be befuddled by atrociously bad CGI and special effects. But it wasn't. Sure, this was not special effects that will blow you away, but the CGI and special effects were actually surprisingly good for a movie such as this. Sure, there were some cringeworthy moments of CGI as well, but hey...

"Santa Jaws" had a nice ensemble of actors and actresses on the cast list. Most of these performers were unfamiliar faces to me, which is something I enjoy in movies. Ritchie Montgomery, however, was the only familiar face to me in the entire movie.

I am rating "Santa Jaws" a six out of ten stars. Yeah, I found it to be oddly enjoyable. If you have the time and opportunity, then you should sit down to watch this 2018 movie, as it might actually have some entertainment value to you, if you enjoy goofy and campy shark movies.

B grade but fun and kinda smart in a silly way

[ktennyson-08186 · 5/10 · 15 April 2022]

Watching this as a part of a collection of shark movies that were on syfy..found this one as an absolute intentionally funny and camp shark movie...would recommend to anyone who just wants to see silly and entertaining shark movies.

A Campy Delight!

[sscialli · 9/10 · 16 August 2018]

It's a fun campy movie that too many people take too serious! If you watch it for the fun that it is, you will enjoy it as the characters are stereotypical of what you expect as well as being well directed. I look to more movies by this intriguing director, Misty Talley.

Christmas horror...a fun watch

[michaelRokeefe · 7/10 · 16 October 2018]

Well, SyFy did it! This is a holiday themed movie that is worthy of watching quite a few times. How often do you get to see a shark wearing a Santa hat on its fin? Cody (Reid Miller) and his best friend Steve (Hawn Tran) are a couple of teenage comic book freaks that have created a new comic, Santa Jaws, just in time for the holidays. Cody isn't really in the spirit of Christmas with all the family hoopla and would rather be alone. He gets his wish by getting grounded. Cody makes a few additions to his new comic with a pen given to him for Christmas by his grandfather. The mystical pen brings Santa Jaws to life and the shark goes into a killing frenzy. The shark is not necessarily a merciless killer, but is attracted to Christmas and anything associated with the holiday...like music and decorations!

SANTA JAWS is directed by Misty Talley, who also directed OZARK SHARKS and MISSISSIPPI RIVER SHARKS. I personally give this movie more merit than those SHARKNADO films. Obviously not a lot spent on sets, special effects or script; but the acting is pretty decent, although at times a bit silly. Also featured in the cast: Courtney Lauren Cummings, Jim Klock, Carrie Lazar, Ritchie Montgomery, Haviland Stillwell, and Scott Allen Perry.

As cute and as dumb as a 3 week old puppy.

[kqbr · 6/10 · 22 December 2021]

If you're looking for a serious action movie, well then I don't know why you're here, looking at reviews for a movie titled "Santa Jaws". Move on now.

If you enjoy cute, campy movies with bad CGI, welcome home. This is your movie and we are your people. Lower your expectations and enjoy the ride.

Two talented boys create a comic book character that comes to life after the illustrator is given a magical pen. Wacky hijinks ensue. With the exception of the bad CGI, this movie is good. Campy but good. It looks higher budget on the screen than it should. Everyone does their job well.

I gave it 6 stars instead of 7 because I felt like the ending missed the mark a little. Close but it fumbled the landing by a step.

Masterpiece.

[uglymushroom · 10/10 · 15 August 2018]

In my opinion, this is the greatest film of the decade, and possibly, of all time.

Incredible acting. Characters you can relate to. Highly believable storyline. (The shark wears a Santa hat on his dorsal fin... sooo cute!)

I can't wait to watch this again! And maybe even every day, for the rest of my life. 10/10