Much like every possession film produced since The Exorcist’s first theatrical run, shark movies have been overshadowed by Jaws since it was released in 1975. There are only so many ways that people can be terrorized by aquatic carnivores without it getting silly, and Jaws used up most of the serious scenarios. This didn’t stop Jerry Dugan and his crew, however. With Shark Lake, they have made a ridiculously over-the-top film that fully embraces the unlikely nature of the story whilst also being thoroughly entertaining.
Believe it or not, Shark Lake stars 80s action hero/villain Dolph Lundgren as Clint, an exotic animal smuggler that releases dangerous cargo into Lake Tahoe in an attempt to escape the police. Local police officer Meredith Hernandez, played by Sara Malakul Lane, must deal with the ensuing chaos while also acting as a single mother to Clint’s child Carly, who she adopted after he was arrested. Aiding Meredith in her hunt for the deadly creature terrorizing the town is Peter Mayes, a well-intentioned biologist played by Michael Aaron Milligan.
The script is surprisingly well-crafted most of the time and the story does have quite a few thought-provoking elements regarding nature and family, but some of it is lost in the sheer ridiculousness of the rest of the film. Of course, no one is going to see Shark Lake for its Shakespearian drama, so that’s not really a fault. All the main characters are interesting and Dolph makes an unexpected yet compelling anti-hero as he tries to win back his daughter’s love. The film even makes you feel for the antagonists, explaining that the shark is acting out of instinct, not malice.
A few moments of exposition did seem excessively forced, almost all of them featuring Peter, but that’s more the script’s fault than his. Considering how the film already jumped the shark (pardon the pun) with the premise and casting, we don’t really need a well-researched scientific explanation for the shark being able to breathe fresh water. There are also a couple of unnecessary plot-points concerning Clint’s criminal past coming back to haunt him that feel like an artificial means of creating conflict.
Jerry Dugan’s direction is great during the calmer, character-oriented scenes, but stumbles during the more action-heavy sequences. This is probably just a product of the limited budget and not his directing skills, so I can’t exactly blame him. The Cgi was handled really well during the majority of the film, which is a rare plus for this genre. A few close-ups did make the shark look like a soft rubber toy, but they were few and far in between.
I can’t honestly say that Shark Lake is a great movie, but my experience watching it was. If you can look past the flaws (of which there aren’t really that many), the entertainment value here is phenomenal. The characters were charming and the action was fun, so I think anyone not expecting it to live up to the original Jaws will have a good time watching this movie. I thought I would never see Drago from Rocky IV in hand-to-fin combat with an angry shark, but this film proved me wrong.