Swamp Shark (2011)

When a series of attacks in their waters lead them to believe a shark is responsible and the authorities doubting the claims, a family of restaurateurs heads into the Louisiana swamps to kill it before it attacks more people.Overall this one was a pretty decent creature feature and gets some good points to it. One of the better points here is the film taking full advantage of the situation to make for some really tense moments, as there's a couple rather fun stalking scenes in the swamps. The Louisiana bayou setting is appropriately handled with the swampy marshlands and waterways bringing about some really high-end sequences from the first encounter in the open waterways or it taking out the penned crocodiles before the drunk fisherman. There's also a couple other great scenes here taking great advantage of the setting with the attack on the partying students on the row-boat or the hunting party where the family sets out to hunt the creature out in open waters in speedboats making for some really impressive scenes. These here set the stage for the film's two big action scenes on the attack on the partying houseboat and the rescue attempt later on as she tries to save her daughter as both scenes offer up some bloody deaths, tons of fun with the action to keep the creature at bay as well as the suspense of the creature appearing which are highly enjoyable. As well, the finale is a lot of fun as it's the main attack on the festival where it leads from an exciting chase to start off that there's some fun there, the attacks are quite bloody and action-packed while the final resolution of killing the creature makes for a good time. Lastly, unlike how most of these usually are, the shark actually looks really good and has some scenes where it's a full-live shark, prop and not CGI, although the CGI here does look better than expected but can't compare to how good the shark-prop looks. These here are enough to make-up for it's one weak area is that there's not a lot of actual shark attacks going on, and while it's not noticeable to the plot or pacing, it does lower the gore quotient somewhat since there's not a whole lot of attacks in here. It doesn't have that many attack scenes to really ramp up that factor regardless of graphic the few ones are, but this isn't enough to truly deter this one fully.Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence, Language and Brief Nudity.

I'll start off by saying I dislike a lot of SyFy movies, but the cast on paper didn't seem so bad. The premise was one that could've gone either way. After seeing it last night, I have to say while it is far from a perfect movie it is tolerable compared to a lot of what SyFy have done.My feelings on the computer effects were mixed. They were not so bad underwater, which were quite nicely shot, but looked a little cheap elsewhere. That said though, SyFy have done much worse. The story is quite a decent idea, is well paced and starts off well with some suspense in the build ups, but there are some moments that come across as silly and unbelievable.The script is not award-worthy, but apart from the odd cheesy line, it is not as terrible or as clichéd as I was expecting. The direction is efficient enough and the editing is not too slapdash.Swamp Shark has some nice scenery and is generally well shot. It is also never too cheesy or overdone and doesn't take itself too seriously. The music is serviceable without being exceptional, it sets the mood alright which is something a lot of SyFy movies did not do.The characters are likable, compared to the underdeveloped, stereotypical and annoying characters you often find, and the acting from Kirsty Swanson and DB Sweeney is surprisingly good. Overall, fun if silly, one of the movies in the sprinkle of tolerable SyFy amongst the sea of terrible ones. 6/10 Bethany Cox

This was horrible. A predictable story, like Jaws and all similar type flicks. 2nd rate actors, with poor Christy Swanson, at the age of 40+ pretending to be a 20 year old with a boyfriend half her age. She is cute, but out of shape, excluding the plastic surgeries. A shark that swims at 100 miles an hour and small for the damage it causes is terrorizing a little town in Louisiana. Predictable situations. Teenagers who party, have sex and drink and fall victims to the monster. There is no significant gore, just some laughable decapitations, etc. This is an extremely low budget, made for TV, movie that will likely not satisfy you. It is watchable, if there is nothing else on, but it will remind you of films from the 40's, the only difference being that in the 40's the special effects were better.

Swamp Shark is a SyFy Original Picture, and in spite of not being particularly shocking or scary, it's still highly watchable. The plot concerns a dastardly sheriff who releases a man-eating shark into the bayou, and the subsequent attempts of a brave local family to remove the thing before it eats too many of their establishment's customers. Robert Davi plays the heavy with gleeful malevolence, Kristy Swanson is back in heroic form as the head of the family, and D.B. Sweeney lends his affable charm to a mysterious role that becomes quite clear the first time you see him using a zoom lens.The shark is actually rather effective through most of the first two thirds of the movie. The filmmakers take a cue from Jaws and don't show too much of it, mostly a fin slicing through the water and the occasional dappled view of it (rendered in CGI of course) gliding through shadows underwater. It works, right up until the end when it finally launches itself out of the murk and into clear view, at which point it's as realistic looking as any SyFy Original Pictures CGI monster, which is to say: not in the slightest.But most people who tune in for these flicks aren't there for the thrills and chills anyway. We're there to watch familiar actors chew up the scenery in a goofy monster movie, and on that score, Swamp Shark completely delivers.