BAIT 3D
Director : Kimble Rendall
Year : 2013
Genre : Horror
Rating : *1/2
I always watch shark films with severe trepidation. 'Jaws' is my favourite film of all time and while others can be good such as 'Deep Blue Sea' and 'The Reef', others can be hideously bad. Unfortunately 'Bait 3D' falls into the second camp and while not as bad as 'Mega Shark Vs. Giant Octopus', 'Jaws : The Revenge' or 'Shark Night' 3D', it certainly is one of the worst films I have seen this year. Full of god - awful acting, laughably bad CG and one of the silliest story lines ever created. 'Bait 3D' really has to be seen to be believed. Or rather, just please take my word for it. Please.
Set mostly in an Australian supermarket, 'Bait 3D' begins with an attempted robbery resulting in a murder of an innocent woman. While the crime is taking place, a deadly tsunami crashes into the coast, submerging the supermarket and it's underground car park. Trapped inside, both the customers and the criminals not only have to try to survive without food or water, but they have to try and stay out of the water to escape from the jaws of 2 hungry great white sharks which have been washed into the store by the tidal wave. Really, that's the plot.
Made for $20 million, 'Bait 3D' recalls the movies made by Troma and Asylum studios; some of which are now considered to be cult classics and in some ways, the film could be seen as an entertainingly bad film which has the audacity to use such a convoluted and insane storyline and for that I praise it. Unfortunately, while the ideas behind the film are perversely interesting, the director Kimble Rendall does nothing to invest in the characters or the plight of the victims of the sharks. Rendall is best known as a screenwriter for films such as Alex Proyas' 'I. Robot' and Mark Steven Johnson's 'Ghost Rider'; one of the worst films I have ever seen. 'Bait 3D' is his directorial debut and unfortunately, the film seems like a totally pointless endeavour due to it's poor characterisations and terrible computer effects. While Rendall can write attention diverting scripts, he can't direct actors or CGI to save his life.
The cast for 'Bait 3D' is filled with many of Australias most famous television stars. Phoebe Tonkin, Cariba Heine from 'H20 : Just Add Water' star as two ditzy teenagers, Lincoln Lewis from 'Home & Away' plays a stereotypical misogynist jock, Xavier Samuel from 'Twilight : Eclipse' plays the lead and Julian McMahon from 'Nip/Tuck' plays Doyle the robber. Many of the characters are typical horror film archetypes and their fates can be predetermined based on their actions and attitudes. Many of them are annoying and this made me just wish for their imminent deaths. For a film with a budget of $20 million, I expect better acting and more a serious approach to the characterisations. Yes, 'Bait 3D' is the definition of a trashy B movie but the actors could at least put something into their performances rather than just wandering like a lost sheep. Only Phoebe Tonkin brings a good characterisation to the screen as a young girl who is willing to sacrifice herself to save her father and friends. However, it must be difficult to act in a film in which the director clearly doesn't care whats happening on screen.
In 2010, British filmmaker Gareth Edwards made 'Monsters', a sadly little seen sci - fi movie for just under £500,000. Despite it's budget, the creature effects in the film were surprisingly good having been made on Edwards home computer. Now in 2013, Rendall has been given $20 million and with it he has created poor special effects which really distract from the horror on screen and instead of generating terror, they generate unavoidable laughter. The gore is horribly fake, the action scenes are plodding and clichéd and the actual sharks are about as scary as a bag of candy floss. To me, Rendall really didn't take this film seriously and if was made for a few thousand dollars, then I wouldn't mind. But when millions and millions of dollars are wasted on garbage like this, it just angers me and just makes me sympathise with other filmmakers who were denied the chance to make their own visions.
The combination of an unbelievably silly plot, poor acting and dreadful special effects proved to be deadly. 'Bait' 3D' failed to recoup it's relatively small budget, only earning just over $10 million. While not as bad as last year's 'Piranha 3DD' which was just a leery, misogynist, horribly trashy film, 'Bait 3D' is just as poorly conceived and I really hope that in the wake of this mess, amateur wannabe filmmakers stop making awful B movies. Recently we have had to endure tripe such as 'Arachnoquake', 'Sand Sharks' and 'Dinocroc' with rubbish CGI and even worse acting. I had hoped that 'Bait 3D' would be different. Alas, no.
In a months time, I will be doing my top and bottom 5 films of 2013 so far. Let's just say that 'Bait 3D' will almost definitely be appearing. There can't be worse to come. Can there?
You will like this if you liked : Shark Night 3D & Piranha 3D
In 2010, British filmmaker Gareth Edwards made 'Monsters', a sadly little seen sci - fi movie for just under £500,000. Despite it's budget, the creature effects in the film were surprisingly good having been made on Edwards home computer. Now in 2013, Rendall has been given $20 million and with it he has created poor special effects which really distract from the horror on screen and instead of generating terror, they generate unavoidable laughter. The gore is horribly fake, the action scenes are plodding and clichéd and the actual sharks are about as scary as a bag of candy floss. To me, Rendall really didn't take this film seriously and if was made for a few thousand dollars, then I wouldn't mind. But when millions and millions of dollars are wasted on garbage like this, it just angers me and just makes me sympathise with other filmmakers who were denied the chance to make their own visions.
The combination of an unbelievably silly plot, poor acting and dreadful special effects proved to be deadly. 'Bait' 3D' failed to recoup it's relatively small budget, only earning just over $10 million. While not as bad as last year's 'Piranha 3DD' which was just a leery, misogynist, horribly trashy film, 'Bait 3D' is just as poorly conceived and I really hope that in the wake of this mess, amateur wannabe filmmakers stop making awful B movies. Recently we have had to endure tripe such as 'Arachnoquake', 'Sand Sharks' and 'Dinocroc' with rubbish CGI and even worse acting. I had hoped that 'Bait 3D' would be different. Alas, no.
In a months time, I will be doing my top and bottom 5 films of 2013 so far. Let's just say that 'Bait 3D' will almost definitely be appearing. There can't be worse to come. Can there?
You will like this if you liked : Shark Night 3D & Piranha 3D
No comments:
Post a Comment