Review: Sharknado (2013)

They say never judge a book by its cover – and while this should also largely be applied to DVDs, Sharknado may prove an exception to the rule. The film is every bit as ludicrous and gaudy as its cover (and title, for that matter) makes out.

Those looking for a serious, well made film will probably know to look elsewhere… which isn’t to say the film is without merit. Having already garnered a substantial cult following, this TV movie follows in the wake of similar ridiculous titles (Megashark vs. Giant Octopus et al). Often lurking on the SyFy channel, such movies are praised for their low-budget journeying into the obscure.

Here the fate of Los Angeles is jeopardised when a hurricane somehow picks up a horde of blood thirsty sharks into its midst, the beasts reigning toothy terror on the streets of LA.

Unsurprisingly there’s a lot that doesn’t quite add up here. Just how the sharks are able to live in the tornado is one thing – how the streets go from bone dry to waterlogged and back again in a matter of shots is also a little confusing. That said, if you’re watching the film for its scientific accuracies you may well be wasting your time.

The plight of the city lays in the hands of a small group of survivors (including Tara Reid) who take it upon themselves to rid LA of the flying sharks. An epic battles ensues, with the survivors taking to the sky to detonate bombs in the eye of each tornado. There’s also the now infamous chainsaw scene which needs to be seen to be believed.

Clichéd and potted with plotholes, Sharknado can do little wrong in the eyes of its devoted followers. For those who require a little more story in their movies little can be said about this made for TV outing – if you’re a fan of other low budget monster movies then you’re in luck, if you find such films a baffling journey into absurdity you’d do well to avoid this.