'80s Roulette: GREAT WHITE
This week's installment features one of the most egregious rip-offs of the decade.
I have (almost) every single movie released in theaters in the ‘80s in the United States on a hard drive, and once a week, I’m going to hit shuffle and review whatever film comes up first.
Welcome to ‘80s Roulette!
MARCH 5, 1982
Great White
James Franciscus, Vic Morrow, Micky Pignatelli, Joshua Sinclair, Timothy Brent, Stefania Girolami, Gian Marco Lari, Chuck Kaufman, Gail Moore, Joyce Lee, Don Devendorf, Bill Eudaly, Bill Starks, Rita Martin, Lance Hilliard, Massimo Vanni, Ennio Girolami, Alessandro Maspes, John Morrison
cinematography by Alberto Spagnoli
music by Morton Stevens (English version)
screenplay by Vincenzo Mannino
story by Marc Princi and Ugo Tucci
produced by Maurizio Amati and Uno Tucci
directed by Enzo G. Castellari
Rated PG
1 hr 28 mins
There’s a shark. There’s a grizzled shark hunter. There’s a shithead mayor. Man, this seems familiar.
Rip-offs are a big part of the history of movies. They are inevitable, one of the prices you pay for success. There were so many Raiders of the Lost Ark and Road Warrior rip-offs in the ‘80s that they felt like an entire genre. Hollywood chases heat, which is a crazy way of doing things, because any real phenomenon feels like it comes out of nowhere. That’s part of the experience. You can’t do that by ripping off something else, especially not something that just worked. You might make some money. You might even make something entertaining. But it’s always going to be built on one of those genuine successes, and it will always be secondary.