I was singing the Hall and Oates hit of the same name all through this, which rather clashes with the loud, threatening trailer music.
That music is as doomy as can be, as is the whole trailer. I can’t work out whether Maneater is going to be absolutely awful or a genius over-the-top mash up of every single shark movie cliché to the nth degree.
The gorgeous women in bikini tops and denim shorts, the tension-breaking cute dolphin just before the big guy appears anyway, the repeated shots of the beast’s carnivorous, toothy mouth, the huge underwater shadow. There’s even a character attacked in the water who then desperately pull himself up the beach, minus his legs.
Though I can find out soon enough as I do in fact have a screener to watch (top tip for those of you unable to go on holiday this summer, shark movies are a great antidote to FOMO jealousy when frenemies start posting their idyllic getaways on social media, their perfect sprogs contrasting nicely with your own semi-feral anklebiters. You could even photoshop a fin into the backdrop of their best sea ‘n’ sand photos then send it back to them).
Here’s the synopsis:
Jesse and her friends’ idyllic island vacation turns into a gruesome nightmare when they become the target for an unrelenting great white shark. Desperate to survive, she teams up with a local sea captain to stop the vicious man-eater before it strikes again in this heart-pounding thriller.
In its favour Maneater stars Nicky Whelan, who was the best thing (and no I’m not damning with faint praise here) in the otherwise ropy hospital thriller Trauma Center. If anyone can make yet another low budget movie about a man/woman eating shark worth watching, it’s her. And at least as the heroine she won’t be getting chomped early on.
Maneater is directed by Justin Lee and co-stars Jeff Fahey, Trace Adkins, Porschia Coleman and Shane West.
Here’s the trailer, sadly Hall and Oates-less (and scroll down for more images from the film):
Maneater images
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