A group from a TV company, surfers Bog (Dax Miller) and Jeremy (Joel West), cinematographer Cecily (Katie Fischer), and producer Zack (Matt Borlenghi) arrive in Australia to do a show on blood surfing, attracting sharks to a certain area, then surfing in to shore with the sharks in a frenzy. Asking to use a boat piloted by native Sonny LeFrance (Chris Vertido) and his wife Melba (Susan Africa), who refuse, they contact another local, John Dirks (Duncan Regehr) and his helper, Arti (Taryn Reif). He agrees, and they sail out on the first day, but witness a strange phenomenon in the water: several sharks seemingly exploding on contact with this one source in the water. Later that day, Sonny and his daughter Lemmya (Maureen Larrazabal) are attacked and killed by an unseen assailant. Investigating the disappearances, they find the LaFrance¡¦s boat submerged. Retrieving their camera, they also are attacked by a strange creature, only they survive and meet a group of pirates who are protecting their island and misinterpret the group on the island. Getting a free ride away from the island, the creature attacks the boat, allowing the TV crew to escape and run into John, who reveals that he has hunting the creature after them, a monster crocodile. They try to kill it, but the crocodile survives and forces the boat to sink. Only Bog, Arti, and Cecily escape and make to land, making refuge in a small watery inlet. There, the crocodile meets his end and Cecily and Bog return to the mainland.
The Good News: Despite the small budget, the film is highly enjoyable. There is a certain charm to it that other movies of its type lack, and is a rather re-watchable movie. There is a lot of action in the movie, and it envelops the viewer in the movie. The whole last half-hour is exceptionally action packed, as they try to capture the crocodile, then they have to run for their lives, then manage to kill the crocodile. It happens in a realistic manner, and is perhaps the best part of the movie. For once, the crocodile is realistic looking. The animatronics by John Carl Buechler¡¦s group has done an outstanding job at creating the monster, and he steals the show from the human actors, when he finally comes on screen, as he spends half the movie being only a shadow. That brings up the fact that the movie is pretty suspenseful, as the crew is being stalked by a shadowy figure in certain scenes, and you hate to admit it after, but it made you jump. In a small vein, it is a guilty pleasure, a film you hate to admit watching to others, but yet you still do. There is a lot of gore in this movie, as the crocodile attacks are pretty gruesome and detailed. ¡§Blood Surf¡¨ has a lot of blood and bone-crunching scenes. I also have to recommend the director to get Katie Fischer to run around the last half-hour of the movie in perhaps the tightest tank top I¡¦ve seen in many years. That was perhaps the highlight of the movie.
The Bad News: The film is pretty cheesy. The film does manage you to drop enough belief that it becomes a hard task at some points in the movie to do so. The movie has so many scenes that as being utterly ridiculous you have to laugh at it. The scene where Zack surfs into the crocodile, the attack on the LaFrance¡¦s boat, and the whole love plots in the middle are so stupid they should have been completely dropped from the film. The acting is also a tough pill to swallow, as the three main leads, Arti, Cecily, and Bog are certainly not Oscar caliber yet, but seem to be having a fun time. The pirates subplot was so hockey that I¡¦m glad the crocodile killed them off quickly, but if they were going to show it, to make it a little scarier, the croc should¡¦ve stalked them in the water. Small hit-and-miss, and fortunately, one of few.
The Final Verdict: While not among one of the great monster flicks, ¡§Blood Surf¡¨ is entertaining enough to satisfy several different styles of horror film fans for 90 minutes. Do not think this movie will bore you, and it might actually entertain you if you¡¦re not careful.
