Blood Beach (1981)

Jeffrey Bloom directed this land based copy of "Jaws I & II" that stars John Saxon as Captain Pearson, in charge of investigating a series of disappearances along a beach in California, where it seems people were sucked into the sand. When mutilated remains later turn up, it is obvious that some unknown creature is living under the sand, and now it is a matter of finding and destroying it. Burt Young costars as Sergeant Royko. Disappointing film has a distinct lack of imagination in its story, with far too much talk, though some atmosphere. Famous for the tag-line "Just when you thought it was to go back in the water, you can't even get to it!" Not yet on DVD; Perhaps Shout/Scream Factory is the most likely to make that happen?

Blood Beach is just another example, of how cheesy movies were back in the eighties. This is just Jaws in the sand. A crustacean like monster is pulling random victims into the sand on a Californian beach, some denied the opportunity of going for their last dip dip. I haven't seen this movie for a while. I remember one victim, barely escapes, legs covered in yucky blood. It's rather bland and drones on here and there. The movie's actually shot like as Jaws, as we do get it's Jaws feel. But where Jaws was very suspenseful and alive, this is just plain dull, with hardly any suspense, yeah bring on that dark music, which minutely helps. Overall it boils down to, it's just a corny idea. The suspense is mostly in guessing what it is, that's pulling people under the sand, and when revealed we pretty much know, how they're gonna kill it. And what is John Saxon and Burt Young, doing in this dribble. W.E.A.K

After several people mysteriously vanish from a South Californian beach, authorities begin the search for whoever or whatever is responsible. Believing some kind of ravenous subterranean creature to be the cause of the disappearances, harbour patrolman Harry (David Huffman) and ex-girlfriend Catherine (Marianna Hill) begin looking for the beast's lair.The cleverest thing about this predictable early 80s monster movie is surely it's amusing, Jaws-inspired tag-line 'Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water - you can't get to it.'; but even though Blood Beach displays very little else in the way of originality, rarely rising above routine B-movie fodder, there's just about enough fun to be had with it to still make it worth your while.Huffman and Hill are forgettably bland, but the presence of seasoned character actors John Saxon and Burt Young more than compensate for the lacklustre leads, both guys giving enjoyable performances, Young as an uncouth copper from Chicago with zero tact, and Saxon as his tough but fair superior. Also worthy of mention is the lovely Lena Pousette, who shines as Marie, Harry's sexy blond air-hostess 'friend with benefits'.The film also features several well executed deaths scenes, victims swallowed up by the sand in convincing fashion, and there's some fun to be had with the gore, including a would-be rapist having his junk chewed off by the monster and a cascade of dismembered body parts tumbling onto the unfortunate Catherine. Blood Beach's jump scares are about as clichéd as they can get (eg. a screeching cat leaping into frame) but they are still effective. Sadly, the monster is only revealed in the film's closing moments, and isn't all that impressive, looking like a giant papier-mâché plant (quite how that thing burrows underground, I'll never know!).In an ending typical of 70s/80s monster movies, the creature is blown to pieces, but as the closing credits roll, new activity under the sand suggests that the horror isn't over yet (although a sequel has yet to surface).5.5 out of 10, rounded up to 6 for IMDb.

Believe it or not, Blood Beach actually surpassed my expectations. Of course, I didn't go into the film expecting a masterpiece; but I decided if it was half as fun as the other beach related John Saxon film that I've seen (Umberto's Lenzi's Nightmare Beach), then I'd be happy. Despite being a schlocky eighties mess of a movie, Blood Beach is a lot of fun to watch and the idea of monsters living underneath the sand of a local tourist beach is fairly original. The film takes more than its fair share of influence from the classic film Jaws, and I was actually surprised that it wasn't produced in Italy - given how adept the Italians are at making Jaws rip-offs. As mentioned, the plot focuses on a tourist beach, except this time the danger isn't in the water but in the sand. After several people disappear into the sand, it is up to the local law enforcement to keep people off the beach. There's also a rather superfluous sub-plot about a couple of long-lost lovers bumping into each other and rekindling their relationship...but you've got to expect a bit of filler with a plot this thin! The film's main asset is undoubtedly the fact that it features a performance from prolific cult actor John Saxon. Unfortunately, Saxon isn't the star of the show, but he makes his presence felt in every scene he's in. The main roles go to David Huffman and Marianna Hill, and while neither impresses; their performances at least fit with the film. The main reason why this film fails as a 'good' horror film is down to the plotting - it's never really all that interesting, and it seems obvious that writer-director Jeffrey Bloom knows this as he continually throws in yet another sand death scene every time things are getting boring. Unlike a lot of eighties horror; this one is practically bloodless, and while I'm not a big fan of that fan of that fact; I have to respect the film somewhat for not throwing in a bucket of gore, which wouldn't have fit with the tone and theme of the movie. The ending doesn't really resolve much, and while the conclusion is typical of this sort of film; it does at least work fairly well. Overall, Blood Beach is hardly a must see film - but it's certainly worth seeing if you manage to get your hands on a copy.