Shark Movie Review: 'Pool Shark' (2017)
Pool Shark
Much is made of the attention span of the young generation of any given era. Many believed that Baby Boomers could not cope with more than three minutes of music and thus ensured that singles were around that length in time (although this was actually forced upon that particular generation by the technology available which couldn't really hold more than around three minutes of music).
The release of Bob Dylan's 'Like A Rolling Stone' in 1965 caused some consternation at Columbia Records, due in no small part to it's length being in excess of six minutes. In fact the label was reluctant to release it. Happily for anyone with even a passing interest in music, Like A Rolling Stone was released and done so in full despite the label considering the idea of splitting the song in two and having the A side and B side feature a half each. The result was one of the most enduring and highly acclaimed songs ever written.
The computer age has brought it's own technology that affects how we consume and interact with media. GIFs, Vines and shorts on video platform sites are perhaps a modern equivalent of the 7 inch single – cramming our consumption into a neat little package that can be hoovered up rapidly so that we can move on to the next thing. This was even the basis for one of the arguments for the existence of a Super League in football. The story went that fans weren't interested in watching 90 minute games any more when they could just watch clips of the goals on Twitter. Obviously Real Madrid's resident Harold Bishop lookalike Florentino Perez thought Match of the Day was a recent development.
Whilst many of these developments are about technology (and those that aren't are often just insulting to the majority of us) there are some benefits to shortening some concepts down. In the case of 2016's Pool Shark, director Pat O'Malley and writer F.P. Handerson have taken the humble shark film and cut it down to around 6 minutes (the length of a Dylan classic). After reading my review of Shark Bait, a comment was left pondering the necessity of 'spending more hours on shark films.' It was a fair point - although a website that attracts fans of shark films is perhaps not the place that it shall be best received. If they aren't your thing wouldn't there be a better use of your time? Perhaps it was that sort of thinking that led to the creation of Pool Shark. (For the record I think every film I've reviewed other than The Requin had something to recommend it. Even Cruel Jaws was comical in it's craptitude).
Pool Shark actually won the award for Best Short Film at the San Diego International Kids Film Festival in 2017. It features two children sunbathing in and around the pool in their backyard, something I for one would love to be able to do if it wasn't for the Irish Sea and it's associated weather and climate being nearby. It isn't hard to see why the film won an award at a kid's film festival as, like any shark film, it preys on a deep seated fear of sharks and the unknown whilst also having an element of imagination and comedy that perhaps isn't always there in a lot of shark films. With that in mind, let's see if Pool Shark drops the ball or if it clears up.
Plot
We open with some wind chimes rattling in the breeze, a sound that is more menacing than perhaps the inventor of the wind chimes meant for them to be. Tyler, played by Garrett Johnson, is relaxing on a lilo with sunglasses on. Overheard is an aeroplane. Presumably they're on a flight path for it to be flying that low. Or maybe the planes are a portent of DOOM!
Nearby, his sister Lisa (Sicily Fontaine) is playing in what I think is a sandbox, despite the fact that she looks a bit too old for such shenanigans. Tyler looks to see what she is doing and, perhaps as perplexed as I am by his sister's actions, gets back to his relaxing as another plane flies overhead. This time we get a plane's eye view of the pool and we see a shadow beneath the water. Did someone put it there? Are these fish even native to backyard swimming pools? Before we can start to fret about the implications and questions that a shark in a pool might bring about we cut to a very short title card.
Tyler eats some crisps but a nudge from under the water means they fall out of his hands and into the pool. He looks around and gets nudged again, this time losing his sunglasses. Understandably irritated at the idea of wet crisps Tyler peers over the side of his lilo and sees the shadow. He shouts for his sister saying that something is in the pool. Lisa is having none of it as Tyler has cried wolf before. She pulls a tongue and leaves Tyler to his fate.
Realising he is in big trouble, Tyler apologises for pushing his sister in earlier and tries to convey how serious the situation is. Still, Lisa takes no notice and simply rolls her eyes. This is bad news for Tyler who is nudged again, sending him into the water. Most of the shots we have seen of the shark have either been overhead or fast cuts but now we begin to see what the shark looks like although only a side on shot showing the gills and an eye.
Tyler hasn't yet surfaced and Lisa has noticed he is missing but is still annoyed by his little prank earlier and gets back to whatever it is that a kid of her age does in a sandbox. Eventually her conscience gets the better of her and she goes to investigate why her brother isn't visible. Tentatively calling out to him Tyler finally surfaces. She is annoyed with him for scaring her but the terror is about to be ratcheted up because Tyler asks his sister if she can see it and, after looking around the pool, sees what it is.
A fin is heading towards Tyler and we get our first proper view of the shark. I'm guessing it is based on a mako shark and all it was after was Tyler's crisps. When the shark realises that Tyler has actually eaten most of the crisps its hanger gets the better of it and it turns it's attention to Tyler's legs, dangling invitingly even when he manages to get back on to the lilo – lilos being renowned for their use in fending off shark attacks.
Lisa fetches a net and tries to pull Tyler to safety but the shark goes on the attack and suddenly both the kids are in the pool. Tyler helps his sister on to the lilo and asks her to distract the shark for him. Lisa is quite happy to sacrifice her brother as she makes a feeble
attempt to distract the shark from the splashing of her brother who is swimming for another lilo. Her plans works as the shark begins to chase Tyler. Tyler manages to get on to the lilo but the shark tries to jump onboard a la Bruce with the Orca. He even tries to chew his way to Tyler.
Finally finding her courage, Lisa splashes a bit harder and this somehow distracts the shark from the meal right in front of it. The shark repeats the trick and even makes a sort of roar albeit not the Godzilla-esque one from Jaws: The Revenge. Tyler dives into the water just as the shark succeeds in knocking Lisa into the pool. A chase ensues with the human swimmer staying just out of reach of the notoriously fast fish and Tyler has even managed to catch up. He reaches out his hand and....
....pulls the valve out of the inflatable shark. Bleeding, or should that be airing, out the shark gives a groan whilst the two children escape the pool. They lie next to each other, 90s style, as another plane goes overhead. The shark is now well and truly deflated as are the two lilos. There is an appearance from the kid's mother, played by Michele O'Malley-Daly, who remarks on the state of the inflatables and the children explain that the shark bit them. Lisa credits Tyler with saving her life as the mum laughs before leaving them to it.
Tyler and Lisa pull a lilo over to them, being careful not to get in the pool completely. In it they find a large tooth which is so sharp that when Tyler puts his finger on it he has to withdraw with a yelp. Or maybe the tooth is just hot. Was it all in their head?
The mum is back with another inflatable that the kids can play with – a giant crocodile. They pass, having had enough of marine life for one day, and the short film comes to a close with the end credits and a laughing shark.
Ratings
Quality of the shark/s: The shark was pretty good considering the small budget. There were times it looked a little fake and it certainly didn't move as fast as a shark should but as it was all in their imagination that is perhaps understandable. There was a decent amount of detail in terms of scratches and marks that you see on a typical shark and it was proof that proper special effects are better than CGI nine times out of ten.
7/10
Underwater Photography: Not much for me to award here. The entire story took place in and around a pool. I'll award some points for the shark I suppose but the only other animal we saw was an inflatable crocodile.
2/10
Suspense: The overhead shot of the pool with the shadow beneath the lilo was nice and there were one or two moments when it seemed like the children may be in peril, particularly after Lisa ended up in the pool in the climactic chase. However, tension and suspense are built over time and when the whole thing including credits lasts about six minutes it is hard to build it meaningfully.
4/10
Characters and Story: Like suspense, characters are something that need to be built over time and this short simply doesn't have long enough to do so. However, an upside of this is that the kids can't be particularly irritating like they can end up being in longer creature features. The two main actors do a good job of showing us their sibling relationship as there is the distrust that comes in any such partnership at the start combined with the willingness to put your neck on the line for them towards the end.
As for the story, there wasn't much of one but the time restraints are the main factor in this. The actors do well with what they have.
4/10
Watchability: I enjoyed this short and have gone back to watch it again. Somehow, the makers have managed to create something that preys on
human's fear of sharks whilst also being comedic and almost philosophical about childhood.
5/5
Other factors: The attack on the lilos were very reminiscent of Bruce and this was a big plus although the second time round it was perhaps not as good. The music also worked well for the piece, in particular the jarring, horror inspired organ note when the children saw the crocodile. In Peep Show, Super Hans claims that, 'the longer the note, the more dread,' but Super Hans never reckoned with shark films.
3/5
Total - 25/50
An enjoyable way to spend six minutes and an unusual take on the idea that our fears of sharks are often made much worse by imagination. We do learn that the kids are never in any danger but seeing the world through their eyes means that we experience the fear they feel when pretending to be in that situation. Overall, I'd recommend watching this short whether you are a fan of shark films or not. If this isn’t to your tastes, listening to Like A Rolling Stone is a good substitute.
The League Table So Far
The Reef – 41
The Reef: Stalked – 31
Shark Bait - 29
Mako: The Jaws of Death – 27
Pool Shark - 25
The Requin - 21
Cruel Jaws – 16
Bull Shark - 15
Words by Jamie Tingle
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