Review by Gary Tooze

 

Production:

Distributor: The Asylum

Video: Echo Bridge Home Entertainment

 

Disc:

Region: FREE! (as verified by the Momitsu region FREE Blu-ray player)

Runtime: 1:28:43.568

Disc Size: 19,712,152,398 bytes

Feature Size: 19,554,932,736 bytes

Video Bitrate: 25.80 Mbps

Chapters: 15

Case: Standard Blu-ray case

Release date: May 18th, 2010

 

Video:

Aspect ratio: 1.78:1

Resolution: 1080p / 23.976 fps

Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

 

Audio:

DTS-HD Master Audio English 2063 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 2063 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)

 

Subtitles:

None

 

Extras:

• None

 

Bitrate:

 

 

Description: Who will win the battle?
In the melting Arctic, two prehistoric sea creatures have been unleashed from their tombs of ice. Bigger, stronger, and faster than any animal our modern world has seen, they terrorize the ocean with an appetite for destruction that engulfs anything in their path. When Mega Shark and Giant Octopus turn on each other however, a spectacular battle for supremacy of the sea unfolds.

 

 

The Film:

From Asylum Pictures, the straight-to-DVD masterminds behind ‘Transmorphers’ and ‘Snakes on a Train’, comes an ‘original’ story which has gained online fanboy traction on the strength of its name. The title also serves as a handy plot précis: while deep-sea diving in her sophisticated pod (a cupboard with a computer in it), oceanographic whiz Debbie Gibson (yes, her) encounters the eponymous prehistoric duo, frozen in ice for millennia, and unleashed to terrorise the world! Or at least the seaside.

‘Mega Shark’ isn’t as disastrous as it could have been: true, the plot is risible, shots are repeated ad nauseum, no one can act and the effects look like they were knocked up on an Amstrad. But it’s short, sharp and tongue in cheek, and how could one hate a film where a giant shark jumps out of the sea and brings down a plane?

Excerpt from TimeOut London located HERE

 

Image :    NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.
 

On Blu-ray Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus is totally unremarkable. It doesn't have any significant flaws but is single-layered with a moderate bitrate. We don't see the big undersea phantoms too much but the California coastline (Malibu, Long Beach etc.) has some nice sunsets. It was shot on HD and looks it with that glossy smearing that doesn't handle brightness well. It has no grain, obviously, although bumped from 1080i to 35mm and then to 1080P - but there is noise in the darker sequences.  By modern standards this is very tame visually but as a representation of the original - I doubt much more could be done. This Blu-ray is not one you would choose for demo purposes to show off your system but will give a reasonable, less than stellar, presentation on a late Friday night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Audio :

Well, its lossless, a DTS-HD Master at 2063 kbps, but only 2.0 channel as I guess there was not enough effort to establish a surround mix. No bother - it's about as unremarkable as the video. Most of the effect noises related to the 'monsters' are under water and the dampening doesn't encourage any substantial bass or high end. My Momitsu has identified it as being a region FREE disc playable on Blu-ray machines worldwide.

 

 

Extras :

Nutt'in - not even a trailer. Of course, who would have listened to a commentary besides me?

 

 

BOTTOM LINE:
Firstly, there is an impression that any movie starring Lorenzo Lamas must be the "Dog of the Week" - well, this is only a half-truth. I suppose they knew they weren't making 'Citizen Kane' here with Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus and, in general, I am a huge fan of the creature-features of the 50's and 60's - but this is absolute 'drek' in its purest most contemptible form. Effects are extremely poor - not poor enough to be laughable - just plain old bad with repeat shots, lots of haze and not enough of the monsters centered in the frame. And is that ex-pop-star Debbie Gibson? as the most annoying character I've seen in years? I would have thought our behemoths eating planes and bridges would be good for a laugh or two - it just goes to show you how wrong you can be. The only redeeming feature of the Blu-ray is the price. Even at a 10'er, though, you are overpaying! 

Gary Tooze

May 20th, 2010