'The Last Shark' The Most Audacious JAWS Rip-Off Ever Made

There have been many shark movies since Jaws was unleashed in movie theatres back in 1975. Some shark movies have been very good (the Shallows), some have used intriguing storylines to catch our attention (Deep Blue Sea) while most have been just plain ridiculous (the Sharknado series).

But there is one shark movie stands alone as the must-see non-Jaws shark movie, and that‘s The Last Shark (1981). Made by Italian production companies Uti Productions/Horizon Productions, the story sees an enormous and angry 35 foot Great White Shark taking revenge on humans when they build a beach just for swimmers by a coastal town. After several shark attacks, and the Mayor does nothing to stop it, James Franisscus and Vic Morrow sail in pursuit to stop it.

Sound familiar? Universal Pictures (owners of Jaws) sure thought so. Shortly before the film's release, Universal Pictures sued the producers, claiming it plagiarized their classic shark movie, and the Australian distributors, for breach of copyright regarding Peter Benchley's book "Jaws". "Universal" won an injunction, and the film was pulled from theaters. Despite this, the film did well at the box office, grossing over $18 million in its first month in the United States.

After being pulled from US theatres, the film was then released on video in Japan as "Jaws Returns", a supposed "sequel" to "Jaws (1975)." The box cover art contains the same Jaws font and logo used on all promotional materials for the Steven Spielberg film.

Apart from the similarities in story and theme, the last Shark shares two other connection with Haws. The governor candidate in this movie is mentioned as being William Weld. In 1991, ten years after filming, Massachusetts, where "Jaws" was filmed, elected William F Weld as governor.

Despite starring in this ripoff of Steven Spielberg's "Jaws", Vic Morrow would later go on to star in Spielberg's production of "Twilight Zone: The Movie" in 1982 which Morrow was unfortunately killed on set from a helicopter crash.

THE LAST SHARK is not a great movie. It’s honestly awful (James Franciscus' trouser keeps changing from light blue to dark red in the same scene) . And it’s a clear unoriginal cash-in on pubic demand for shark infested cinema. However, the film makers went through a similar journey that Spielberg’s crew went through back on Martha’s Vineyard in 1974. Director Enzo G. Castellari thought about making a sequel, appropriately titled "L'ultimo Squalo 2". It was never made because of the mechanical shark was damaged after shooting.

With this kinship in mind, give The Last Shark a try. It’s a fun way to kill 90 mins and confirmsthat on every level Jaws is a bona fide masterpiece.

Watch ‘The Last Shark’ below: