¡Tintorera! (1977)

User Rating:

3.6/10   

Director:

René Cardona Jr.

Writers:

Ramón Bravo (novel)
René Cardona Jr. (screenplay)

Release Date:

15 September 1978 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

There's a monstrous killer churning up the sea... Tintorera ...Tiger Shark

Plot:

Two shark hunters flirt with an attractive British lady while hunting down a large tiger shark terrorizing the Mexican East coast. |

Plot Keywords:

Shark | Fishing | Swimmer | Underwear | Nude Woman

Cast

Susan George	...	Gabriella
Hugo Stiglitz	...	Esteban (Steven)
Andrés García	...	Miguel
Fiona Lewis	...	Patricia
Eleazar García	...	Colonado (Redhead) (as Eleazar Garcia 'Chelelo')
Roberto Guzmán	...	Crique (as Roberto 'Flaco' Guzman)
Jennifer Ashley	...	Kelly Madison
Laura Lyons	...	Cynthia Madison
Carlos East	...	Mr. Madison (as Charles East)
Priscilla Barnes	...	Girl From Bar #1
Pamela Garner	...	Girl From Bar #2
Erika Carlsson	...	Anita
Manuel Alvarado
Alejandro Ciangherotti		(as Alexander Chianguerotti)

Also Known As:

Tintorera - The Silent Death
Tintorera... Bloody Waters
Tintorera... Tiger Shark

Runtime:

126 min | UK:89 min | USA:85 min

Country:

UK | Mexico

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Argentina:16 (re-rating) | Argentina:X (original rating) | Italy:VM14 | Finland:K-16 | Mexico:D | Norway:15 (re-rating) | Norway:16 (original rating) | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico

Company:

Conacite Uno

Movie Connections:

References Jaws (1975)

Soundtrack:

It's Too Late Now

Not your average Jaws clone

I expected a Jaws clone and got a movie about threesomes. After I got over the initial shock I actually found Tintorera to be a sweet, almost classy, little male fantasy. Tintorera is actually a sex/beach-flick, and thus perfectly captures the feel of the seventies take on sexual revolution; an era of hedonistic disco parties, sexual experimentation and short, loveless sexual encounters. Rene Cardona Jr. regular Hugo Stiglitz looks great as a wealthy boy on vacation, Esteban, who "finds himself" in a three part relationship with the cute Gabrielle and his former sexual competitor Miguel, the Shark hunter. Meanwhile the feared Tintorera, a big-ass tiger shark, is having a feast on the sexed-out beach community. The "f***-and-die" concept, usually seen in slasher films, is clearly visible and you could say that Tintorera's attack on the swimmers are really an attack on the sexual revolution. If you want cheese you'll have no trouble finding it (the Darth Vader-like breathing of Tintorera or the underwater conversations between Esteban and Miguel directly springs to mind...), but don't look to hard since the larger parts of the movie is actually pretty well-made and totally undeserving of its bad reputation (which I think is more due to the whole idea of a shark/sex movie, than the movie itself). Chances are you might actually enjoy it, as I did.

Also, if you are a gay man interested in exploitation cinema you are bound to like it: the homosexual overtones between Esteban and Miguel are painfully obvious and there are numerous shots of Hugo Stiglitz cute little ass.

7/10 on a regular scale