“I don’t think the law works that way…”
With a title like that, you basically already know what you’re in for: a radioactive shark. And let me tell you, they certainly delivered when it came to that.
Atomic Shark knows exactly what it is. It knows that it is Syfy channel slop. It knows that it is absolutely ridiculous on every conceivable level. It leans into it, which really is the only conceivable and defendable path for the movie to take.
Do you want a side plot where a jerk Guy Fieri-type doing a Dinners, Drive-Ins and Dives spoof eats radiative fish and then explodes? We have it. Do you want a head lifeguard who gets his own aspect ratio whenever he talks about being a great and magnificent hunter? We have it. Do you want epic music cues that know exactly when to cut out for comedic effect? Oh, we have that in spades.
And maybe it was just because I happened to have a couple of cocktails while watching this, but I laughed a lot. It was simply a very funny and very fun time. It’s the little touches, like having a restaurant's rating go down by one star after it explodes. Ridiculous. Dumb. But funny.
Atomic Shark is exactly what it says on the tin: there is a radioactive shark swimming in the waters off the coast of San Diego. A glowing, radioactive shark that leaves behind a trail of smoke and boils the water around it. And if it is out of the water for too long, it will explode with a nuclear detonation that will obliterate all life on the west coast for thousands of years.
It also makes everything in a 20 foot radius burst into CGI flames as long as they aren’t the main characters, because this is a movie that definitely cares about how thermodynamics and radioactivity work.
Our two main characters are lifeguards Gina and Kaplan, who we met in Nightmare Shark. Knowing that does give them a degree of plot armor, but I liked seeing more of them. They still felt like the same characters, and their dynamic was cute. I was happy to spend a whole movie with them.
The other characters were also very distinct, even if their acting could be a little hit or miss. Or at least intentionally over the top. Reese, the head life guard? He was very clearly meant to be over the top, and he chewed through that scenery with zero reservations.
The plot hung together well enough. There were plenty of diversions that really were just excuses to up the body count, but it was coherent. They kept mentioning and showing government agencies and workers responding and trying to cover things up, but we never really delved into that side of things at all.
I’m undecided on how I feel about that. It certainly made the world feel bigger, and you could certainly argue that it was realistic that a group of lifeguards would have no real idea of what secretive government agencies were doing, but it also felt like a plot point that ultimately didn’t go anywhere.
The kills were relatively decent. We had a high body count for this genre, and while most of the kills were quick and mainly offscreen, we did get a few good, gnarly ones. We stayed firmly in the softer end of PG-13 territory, so don’t expect anything too crazy, but between fires, explosions, and shark attacks, we had some variety.
The CGI... okay, it was bad. And added in situations where it really didn't need to be. The shark in particular looked rough, and not just because it was glowing with radiation sickness. Sure, it didn't help, but it was purple. Purple! Great white sharks should not be purple, nor should they growl but I've given up on movies getting that part right.
You know what to expect when you watch a movie like this. Happily, Atomic Shark is one of the better entires in the Syfy channel sub-genre.
Random Thoughts
The movie is listed as Saltwater: Atomic Shark in some places.
I really liked the “Atomic Shark” styling of the opening credits like something out of a 50s movie. Very thematically appropriate.
The parachute people swapped which side of the parachute they were in mid-scene.
I’m not sure who is to blame, but I had issues with subtitles while watching this on Tubi. They were nonexistent despite being turned on.
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An Honest Fangirl loves video games, horror movies, and superheroes, and occasionally watches far too many shark movies.
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