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| From http://images.mymovies.net/images/film/cin/350x522/fid12864.jpg |
Dir. Kimble Rendall
Unfortunately, the genre film of
yesteryear, which upstarts like myself, far too young to have grown up with
them, celebrate, are missing from now. For the most part you have two options.
The first, with exceptions, is the blockbuster - B-movies made with too much
money, don't use the budget to their advantage, and worse, have pretentions to
being great art when they barely scrape together a few virtues. Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) rears
its ugly head for me now for example - if there was ever was a film that needed
to have been made in the seventies with less money available and someone like Roger Corman to kick its writing and
presentation up the backside, it's that sort of film. Far from being a
Grindhouse snob, at least some of the Hollywood films of yesterday, like Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), felt like they had more on
their minds and a lush presentation even if the results are failed. On the
opposite end, however, are those films that never take anything seriously.
They're always ironic, they never take anything seriously, they're happy with
their crappy special effects and laugh at them, try so hard to be cool, amused
with how bad they are and/or cram as many references into the material they can
instead of fixing the narrative plots. I.e. The Man With The Iron Fists (2012), The Asylum films like The
Almighty Thor (2011), Troma's Terror Firma (1999), Machete (2010), and Sharktopus (2010), a film unfortunately
presented by Roger Corman. Films
which all belong to the same circle even if they're very different from each
other. With these options, if it wasn't for the exceptions genre cinema would
be screwed and doomed to become the plaything of churned out CGI alligators and
snarky audiences. The most interesting films, in most cases, are those that
dangerously veer to the pretentious but with real artistic value, are divisive,
or from a non-English language country because, even as comedies, they take
themselves seriously. They want to be good films, and even if they're in on the
joke, or suffer from some dodgy effects, they are played completely straight.
They are all sincere, a word
lost in most cinema in general. I can gladly say that I can stick Bait in this category. I will confess
to this being a legitimate candidate for a guilty pleasure of mine for the year,
but it's a hell of a lot more entertaining legitimately than other movies.
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| From http://www.aceshowbiz.com/images/still/bait09.jpg |
I will confess, moments in Bait, done seriously, caused me to giggle,
but it's a film that knows how absurd it is, but unlike a Sharktopus, still makes the drama dramatic, the situation serious,
and tries to be great even with its obvious flaws. If this was the sort of
thing at the cinema more, or what straight-to-DVD meant unless better films
were made, I would actually be a happier man knowing someone was actually
having fun with their work than merely making a product. In an Australian
coastal city, the characters of the film are set up together in a supermarket -
a tragedy in the past, a father-daughter conflict, kinky sex in the underground
car park, a robbery about to go wrong. Then a giant tidal wave hits the city.
People are killed in the supermarket barring a few survivors, the building is
mostly submerged underwater, and there's a great white shark or two stalking
around the isle for cereals. The film is (mercifully) played as a serious
story; even if it's a slight B-movie, where you know how it'll end, this
conviction supports the story more and allows you to drop your hesitance and
actually enjoy a film for once. It's
acceptable and rewarding to empty your mind with Bait because it never dares to claim to be an important message
film or insult your intelligence. No pretence that it never dares to try and actually
aspire to. No insipid political message. No attempt to pander to liberal or
conservative viewers. No attempt to pander to anti-authoritarian teenagers. Not
trying to be high art without any sense of artistry or experimentation. Not
being a jokey film like the films I've mentioned in the first paragraph. The
violence, surprisingly gory for a film that fifteen years in Britain can buy
and see, is never uncomfortably fetishistic like the remake of Pirahna (2010) becomes. It's done sincerely with some budget to it.
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| From http://www.imfdb.org/images/thumb/9/92/Bait_g.jpg/600px-Bait_g.jpg |
And yes, it's a film about sharks
in a supermarket. Yes, this is the premise for a Z-movie let alone a B-movie.
Yes it has a slight plot. Yes, when you see a CGI bird at the beginning, it
shows the computer effects aren't the best. And yes its amusing how wooden one
of the actors' lines are especially when they're all talking about how they
will become shark food and being almost giddy about it. But it's made with quality
for all its flaws, never slouching and is made with entertainment. It sets
itself up quickly and the drama, while well worn, is interesting. It even
includes a very sober moment, in the middle of a lurid and cliché presentation,
that is actually effective. That I could suddenly chuckle or giggle at certain
serious moments as well as the intentionally comedic parts is a positive for
the film, amused that it followed into a moment or piece of dialogue often said
in films before, but delighted by its prescience here rather than annoyed by
it. That the film is structurally well made - bright, put together perfectly,
able to prevent the flaws with the CGI from undermining it - makes it more
rewarding because it was made with consideration. That I came to it with no
expectations helped it, but it's great to see a completely un-jaded film that
does what it sets out to do perfectly. It would be a minor film if there wasn't
as many bad genre films in existence, but I wished films like this existed
more. Those above the middling range that are merely good but have a fun or a
craft to them that make them eventually memorable and virtuous for actually
accomplishing something fully even if the goal is slight. With some of the
awful genre films in existence, it's a lifesaver to be perfectly honest, and I
wish the director can only go higher in quality from here. Considering some of
the awful horror films released this year, this is one I was fully grateful for
even if it'll never get into the Top Ten list.
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| From http://i.imgur.com/YHdfC.jpg |
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