As the shark subgenre of horror became increasingly glutted in the 21st century, it became important for a new movie to stand out, to have the animals attack in unusual locations or circumstances. The insane end point of this trend would be the “Sharknado” films (2013-18). But before that, we got the (relatively) more serious “Bait” (2012).
Perusing the aisles
Rather than a tornado depositing sharks inland, this brisk thriller starts with the plausible premise of an earthquake-driven tsunami off the east coast of Australia. A basement-situated grocery store gets flooded with both water and a pair of unwelcome aquatic “customers” who see the place as one big meat department.
I suspected from the large cast in the opening credits the sharks would not starve. They are decidedly greedy, though; they are never satiated, and the corpses bobbing around the store aren’t fresh enough.
“Bait” (2012)
Director: Kimble Rendall
Writers: Russell Mulcahy and John Kim
Stars: Xavier Samuel, Sharni Vinson, Phoebe Tonkin
On Tuesdays this summer, Reviews from My Couch is highlighting classic (and not so classic) shark horror films through the years.
The bait – I mean, cast – is appealing, and writers Russell Mulcahy and John Kim define the flawed characters well.
We have a shoplifter (“The Secret Circle’s” Phoebe Tonkin, whose natural scowl inspires casting directors to make her the “bad girl”), a desperate guy who was robbing the store (Julian McMahon), a slavedriver manager (Adrian Pang), and a couple who love each other but became estranged by the events of the cold open (Xavier Samuel and Sharni Vinson).
‘Bait’ has some bite
Four other writers get “additional writing by” credits. I’m guessing they chipped in on the bickering between young couple Kyle (Lincoln Lewis) and Heather (Carbia Heine, Tonkin’s mermaid costar on “H2O: Just Add Water”).
While much of director Kimble Rendall’s “Bait” involves serious strategies for escaping the store, Kyle and Heather stay in their almost airtight car on the parking level. It’s amusing that they are concerned about uncharged cellphones and the possibility of expensive shoes getting wet as a shark circles them.
A floor above, Dan Wyllie bites out one-liners as the even badder guy who pushed McMahon to rob the store.
But most of the biting is done by these hungry sharks, and we wouldn’t have it any other way. The special effects are mostly strong, starting with a wicked shock in the cold open and continuing with a fin meandering through the grocery aisles.
“Bait” ends with a panning shot of awful CGI as it mistakenly tries to appear big-budget when it had been doing fine with its efficient, two-set budget. Before that, it earns a viewer’s respect. Among shark flicks, this isn’t merely “the one in a grocery store” but actually a good one in a grocery store.
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