Night of the Shark (1987)

Cave of the Shark
La Notte degli squali
Bermuda: Cave of the Sharks
Cave of the Sharks
Cueva de los tiburones
Night of the Sharks
La Noche del tiburón

Cast:

What the box says:

An ex-adventurer (Treat Williams) is living a peaceful existence in a Mexican fishing village. But there is turbulence withn hm as he plots to seek revenge on the corrupt corporation that murdered his brother on the night of the sharks.

Plot:

A shark is swimming as weird 80s “suit up” music plays. A diver takes the plunge. David watches from the shore.

The boat dumps chum in the water.

David gets his partner Huggy Bear (Antonio Fargas is Paco in this movie. I can’t let a Huggy Bear reference get by me. )

David gets his share of money from Huggy. David heads to his little power boat.

The divers have spear guns and are after a shark. Suddenly, the shark munches on a diver like a person stick. David dives in for the rescue and brings the guy back. The peasants rejoice.

Credits roll over the background of a city like Miami.

A limo lets out Tony and his goons. They are packing heat. James gets away from his apartment with a small package. Tony finds a CD.

James mails the envelope.

Tony plays the CD fro his Boss. James is blackmailing Boss. He knows about government and corporation deals. The price is 2 million dollars in diamonds. Boss wants Tony killed.

David and Huggy are chilling. A shark is the shore and starts to drag David’s boat off. He manages to get in the boat as the shark hammers against it. He falls into the water and barely gets in the boat to keep from being a shark snack.

Villagers bring up shark to the local bar. Huggy bets about putting his hand in the shark’s mouth for so long.

David gets a call from his brother, James.

Huggy wins the bet. The villagers discover he cheated. A barroom brawl breaks out. David is able to keep it quiet enough to talk with James a little longer. The brawl resumes. David is sure that James is scamming him again. He hangs up and gets in the fight. He eventually ends the fight by buying drinks for everyone.

Number topless chicks hang around the Boss’s pool. A tracking device is placed with the diamonds.

At an aquarium, Tony is in a helicopter watching the drop. James gets the diamonds and gets in an RV. It drives off. The limo follows them.

James flees with the diamonds. We get a limo trying to force an RV off the road. When the RV pulls over, goons storm it and can’t find James. He’s disappeared.

James is in a taxi and will take a plane to Cancun where David lives.

Rosenski, the Mafia don, hears the CD. James has a copy to keep them from going after him. Tony is sure he went to Cancun. Rosenski just wants James stopped not killed. If anything goes wrong, the propeller will be encased in fecal material.

David pays a visit to Father Mattia. He gives David a letter. When it is open, it has a note and a CD. David is angry about James getting him in involved in whatever he’s planning.

A seaplane is approaching. Huggy Bear will pick up James. A water landing ensues.

Suddenly, a crosshairs appears onscreen. A gunshot is heard. The sea plane explodes.

Italian ripoff of the James Bond intro...

David dives in to find James. The shark is approaching, too.

David is able to get James to Huggy Bear’s boat. David is trying to distract the shark away from the boat. Coral reef hide and seek ensues. Huggy drops an air tank for his partner.

David and Huggy bring James ashore. The dying James reveals the plane held 2 million in diamonds.

That night, the villagers perform a fire dance on the beach. David is off by himself. Huggy and Father Mattia check on him. David ponders what James was involved in that killed him.

Stock footage of a village celebration ensues.

Rosenski sends Tony to retrieve the CD. He gives the goon a dossier on David. Later, Rosenski meets with Liz, David’s ex-wife. He thinks she’ll be able to “convince” David retrieve the CD.

Huggy wants David to return the CD. David heads back to the sea, pouring blood to lure the shark. Later, he’s gutting a shark on the dock.

Huggy spots Liz. She talks with David.

Huggy tries to explain Liz to the thoroughly hot and angry bikini-clad Juanita, David’s girlfriend.

That night, Liz and David have been having some long, drawn-out discussions that require continual give and take in bed. Apparently, James was wiretapping fro the mob for 5 years. A reconciliation of differences ensues also in bed.

The next morning, Liz finds David is gone. Rosenski calls her.

What do you mean I don't look like a criminal mastermind? David hasn’t agreed to give up the CD, but Huggy will get it for her.

Huggy and David drives off in a jeep and is followed by a mob guy.

They pay a visit to Father Mattia. Getting a package, they drive away.

Liz deposits a package in the hotel safe to be picked up.

Tony learns of the CD at the hotel. He wants David taken care of regardless of Rosenski’s orders.

David and Liz take the big boat on the sea. Unfortunately, they don’t know about the bomb. Liz wants David to run off with her to Panama. Somehow, David spots the bomb and get off before the explosion. On the beach, villagers rush to help.

David and Liz swim away, trying to avoid the shark. David cannot lure the shark away from Liz. This shark prefers a varied diet, and the blonde, Nordic Liz is the spicy Swedish meatball on the menu.

Grieving David ensues on hammock. A gunman approaches. David gets the drop on him. It’s Father Mattia bringing a gun for him. He tries to warn David to get away while there is still time.

Tony arrives in Cancun and brings his gunmen. They are gunning for David now.

Tony gets the CD.

David sends the very hot bikini-clad Juanita away. He wants Huggy to watch Father Mattia.

The gunmen head to David’s beach shack.

David is fixing a batch of Molotov cocktails to greet the unwelcome guests. Huggy returns to fight, too.

The gunmen and Tony search the cabin. David and Huggy lead them off on a chase.

Molotov cocktailing ensues. The gunmen can’t find our wily heroes.

Tony leaves his men to search for David. He has another plan from the Snidely Whiplash University of Villainy.

The gunmen search the jungle.

Tony’s boat docks at the pier. Father Mattia and the bikini clad Juanita are prisoners. Tony needs David to get the diamonds and get past the shark.

The gunmen are still searching. David uses his jungle combat skills to eliminate them.

Huggy and David head to the beach. Tony opens fire on them. David gets to a boat. Tony gets another boat and is in hot pursuit.

David has cut his hand to spill blood in the water to bring the shark.

The shark attacks Tony’s boat and has a person mc-nugget.

David sneaks aboard the boat. He struggles with the guard and frees Father Mattia and the bikini-clad Juanita.

Later, Father Mattia calls Rosenski.

David and Huggy ready the scuba gear. David dives after the diamonds. Plane wreckage search ensues. The shark approaches. David gets the diamonds to Huggy.

David hides from the shark as Huggy lowers several spears to him. Finally, the shark is closing. The first spear seems to have no affect on the predator. David crams a couple more spears into the shark.

Huggy finds David’s breather floating on the surface.

We see a man finishing David’s burial.

Rosenski arrives. Father Mattia explains how the shark killed David.

A small boy puts some flowers on David’s grave.

Father Mattia gives the CD to the mob don. Huggy talks with the don, too. Rosenski drives away.

Father Mattia, Huggy, and he bikini clad Juanita talk about how glad they are David is dead. They are all smiling.

We see the gravedigger lift his hat. It’s David. Everyone is happy.

What I say:

The recommended soundtrack is going to be invoked for this review. LL Cool J's song "Deepest Bluest" may be one of the most reviled songs according to my fellow Rogue Reviewer, Albert, of Agony Booth. I will admit the song is stupid and ridiciulous. Its complete insanity seems appropriate for a watered-down killer shark movie.

If there was a country that loves American movies, it is Italy. George Romero's Dawn of the Dead brought about the infamous Italian zombie subgenre. Conan the Barbarian brought back the sword and sandal into more of a broadsword and breast subgenre. Mad Max was an Australian picture but helped create the post-apocalyptic genre. Jaws did its fair share, too. Though a number of Jaws ripoffs were sequels, The past 5 years have been a literal feeding frenzy for direct to video shark movies and such theatrical releases as Deep Blue Sea. However, on the heels of a giant great white shark, many exact copies featured the same plot as Jaws. For the number of exact copies, there were at least twice as many that were indirect. Although, how could an original shark movie be made at this point?

Treat Williams has a common guy vibe about him. This is the guy that sells car insurance in your town. Well, maybe not that a common a vibe. He seems more believable than most of the action stars. Can you picture Stallone standing in line ahead of you at a deli? Unfortunately, Treat Williams followed this movie was Dead Heat with Joe Piscipo. A movie so reviled it set Joe Piscipo back 10 years so far back to pop up as a villain in the Chuck Norris kid-flick Sidekicks. Treat Williams got knocked into several low budget movies and into some WB family drama series.

Treat Williams is an ex-adventurer living in a Mexican fishing village in Cancun. He has a hot bikini clad girlfriend who wants to cook for him. He also is super best friends with Huggy Bear. For some unknown reason, he's got a feud with a nearby shark, not a giant shark capable of traveling from Maine to the Bahamas in 12 hours. A million of dollars worth of diamonds in a nearby coral reef isjust begging for his attention and being only guarded by the shark he wants dead for some mysterious reason that is never revealed. That's a pretty good life. Although, many especially I would consider the hot bikini clad cooking girlfriend and chilling with Huggy Bear a good enough life.

Was Antonio Fargas needing movie to pay back taxes or owed some money to the kind of people that wished to be paid immediately? Why was he in this movie? Remember him from far better movies: Cleopatra Jones and his bit role in Shaft. He is basically play the street informer in a small Mexican fishing village. Although, I didn't know Mexican fishing villages needed street hustlers always looking to make a big score.

I didn't recognize Christopher Connelly from Django Strikes Again. If I had really recognized him, I would have been wondering why he wasn't evil. He'd have done a better job as a mafia don than the nerdy Australian looking guy. He didn't really do much than walk around and offer prayers. Well, a priest isn't expected to battle sharks. However, a priest battling a shark would be kind of cool. Imagine Father MacGruder from Dead Alive and the zombie shark from Fulci's Zombie. I don't mean to keep getting distracted honestly.

The director is using a stage name to hide the fact he's Italian. Why would the movie want to try to hide its very Italianess from us? Among B-movie fans, it is acknowledged fact about how Italy has stolen from a number of popular genres. During the 80s, it wasn't known like it is now. Hidsight is truly 20/20....Tonino Ricci had a rather American sounding pseudonym with my copy of the movie. The true beauty of the IMDB is revealed. Many secrets of movies cannot be kept unlearned.

The shark elements could be cut from the movie without really losing a single thing. Yes, there are a number of Jaws ripoffs. However, by 1987, the Jaws ripoffs had pretty much been abandoned with a number of new genres to ripoff. Apparently, the fishing village has a shark come around and harrass them. This shark enjoys dragging small fishing boats away from the dock. Treat has taken it upon himself to get rid the shark. The guy has an almost Ahad like obsession with the shark without any reason why.

Supposedly, another cut of the movie exists that is 95 minutes long instead of the standard 87 minute cut. I'm not sure what was cut out. With the uncut VHS version selling for more than $20, I can't see how 8 minutes of footage would really improve this movie. I'll stand by reviewing the $1 version I picked up. Some gore may have been toned down. I know they had a couple of topless sunbathers present in my copy. Considering it was rated PG-13. An Italian ripoff of a popular American movie that isn't rated R. The sword and sandal, post apocalyptic, zombie, and the other subgenres always were given R ratings and deservingly so. However, the mind is still boggled with a PG-13 version.

This movie was released in 1987. I can't help but think this movie was sitting on a shelf for a couple of years at least. It may not have the early 80s vibe with the bad haircuts, fashions, etc... I can't shake the early 80s vibe nonetheless. With the shark and mob elements, it is almost brings to mind the Tomas Tang method of combining 2 different movies together. Not quite, Night of the Shark is a bit too coherent for that type of insane editing. I'm trying to compare the coherency of an Italian ripoff of Jaws with Tomas Tang. If that isn't a sign I've written about as much as I can about Night of the Shark, what would be?

Quotable Dialogue
"Let's hope he's the last of the Cyclops hunters."
"It could be dangerous. I'll pray for you."
""Compliments of the chef."
"Without you, it was living hell."
Morals of the Story
Sharks are excellent tow trucks.
One shout will delay a barroom brawl.
Liquor stops large fights.	Priest carry guns.
Priests don't take an oath against violence.
Ramming pointy objects into a shark is a good idea.