SHARKTOPUS (2010) *1/2 Roger Corman sticks with the trinity that's been so, ahem, successful, for decades now: bikinis, booze and ridiculous monsters. But...what's this?...we don't get the signature quick look at the monster once or twice early on, but instead it's there throughout! And it's pretty cool, actually. Oh, it's not as ubiquitous as the bikinis-what other producer has such a readily identifiable style? I mean, in the credits when someone is identified as "bikini girl with bum," how are we supposed to have any idea who they're talking about? It will look good on a résumé, anyway. The only readily identifiable character is Corman himself, you just know it has to be him, even if you've never seen his picture, which I don't think I had, or at least not much. What's a Miss Missouri crown worth? In a mere eight years Shandi Finnessey parlayed it into a speaking role in a film of this magnitude. And she even gets a name, she doesn't have to get billed as "bikini girl with bum II," even though... Well played, well played. So silly plot, characters ranging between 2D and inseparable from everything else, and a funny monster. If it's your thing, you'll be able to take it; if not you probably won't go there anyway.
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