Sharknado (2013)

Admirable film.

Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Movies that aren't supposed to be good can be a lot of fun, especially if they are unintentionally awful. But setting out to make a bad movie to appeal to the bad movie liking demographic resulted in movie that just wasn't enteretaining

Wait, I really rated this a 7? Yes, I did. Is it a great movie? Absolutely not. But it is definitely fun and funny and sometimes that's enough.

RELEASED TO TV IN 2013 and directed by Anthony C. Ferrante, "Sharknado" chronicles events in the Los Angeles area when a freak hurricane hits and thousands of sharks threaten the waterlogged populace. I stayed away from this movie for over four years before finally viewing it today. Why? Because, although I like low-budget creature features now-and-then, the very name "Sharknado" just made me roll my eyes. But I finally caved because of the surprising hysteria, which led to (currently) four sequels.I was surprised to see that "Sharknado" shoots for a quasi-serious tone and mixes it with occasional camp (e.g. the opening fishing boat sequence with the "captain" and Asian man), fun cameos (e.g. Paul Williams) and absurdly over-the-top moments (especially the "Yeah, right" ending). But, most of the time, the vibe is surprisingly realistic in a fantasy context. Of course you have the typical cartoonish CGI for which movies that debut on Syfy are known. On top of all this is a likable cast, a dynamic pace with consistent thrills/laughs, a rockin' soundtrack and quality score. Speaking of the cast, Ian Ziering plays the macho male protagonist, Fin, and Cassandra Scerbo his jaw-dropping female counterpart, Nova. Tara Reid appears as his ex with Aubrey Peeples and Charles Hittinger as his kids. John Heard plays a good-humored patron at Fin's coastal pub. For me, Cassandra is the real highlight; she shines throughout.Bottom line: The flick's generally entertaining in a thrilling, fun can't-take-it-very-serious way, but there are superior movies that have debuted on Syfy. "Wyvern" (2009), "Roadkill" (2011), "Sasquatch Mountain" (2006), "Jersey Shore Shark Attack" (2012), "Sasquatch Hunters" (2005) and "Flu Bird Horror" (2008) all come to mind. THE MOVIE RUNS 86 minutes and was shot in the Los Angeles area (Santa Monica & Playa del Rey). WRITER: Thunder Levin. GRADE: B-/C+

This is a movie for sure. Every movie has its ups and downs. You know the thing about this movie. It's almost self-aware. The more recent ones take themselves to seriously, but the original is so stupid. It doesn't care about what's possible, and what's not. It just wants to Sharknado. This is a "so bad it's good" movie, reminiscent of Attack of The Killer Tomatoes. Perfect film for film students who want to know how to have more WTF moments than all the seasons of Lost combined.