L'ultimo squalo (1981)

User Rating:

4.5/10   

Director:

Enzo G. Castellari

Writers:

Vincenzo Mannino (screenplay)
Marc Princi (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

March 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

A quiet, restful summer in the lazy coastal town of Port Harbor is abruptly about to end.

Plot:

An enormous and angry 35 foot Great White Shark takes revenge on humans when they build a beach just for swimmers by a coastal town...

Plot Keywords:

Shark | Shark Attack | Mayor | Dismemberment | Helicopter

Cast

James Franciscus	...	Peter Benton (as James Francicus)
Vic Morrow	...	Ron Hamer
Micaela Pignatelli	...	Gloria Benton (as Micky Pignatelli)
Joshua Sinclair	...	Mayor William Wells
Giancarlo Prete	...	Bob Martin (as Timothy Brent)
Stefania Girolami Goodwin	...	Jenny Benton (as Stefania Girolami)
Gian Marco Lari
Chuck Kaufman
Gail Moore
Joyce Lee	...	Kelly Michaels, fourth victim
Don Devendorf
Bill Eudaly
Bill Starks
Rita Martin
Lance Hilliard
Massimo Vanni	...	Jimmy (as Max Vanders)
Ennio Girolami	...	Matt Rosen (as Thomas Moore)
Alessandro Maspes		(as Alex Maspes)
John Morrison
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Nick Alexander	...	Matt Rosen (voice: English version) (uncredited)
Fabio Balini	...	(uncredited)
Paul Costello	...	Mayor's Attorney (uncredited)
Gianluca Donnini	...	(uncredited)
Billy Fields	...	Paramedic (uncredited)
Andrea Girolami	...	Kid on beach (uncredited)
Romano Puppo	...	Briley (uncredited)
Susan Spafford	...	Gloria Benton (voice: English version) (uncredited)
Ellen Winsor	...	Young woman watching news crew (uncredited)

Directed by
Enzo G. Castellari

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Ramón Bravo		uncredited
Vincenzo Mannino		screenplay
Marc Princi		writer
Ugo Tucci		story

Produced by
Maurizio Amati	....	producer
Sandro Amati	....	associate producer
Edward L. Montoro	....	executive producer
Ugo Tucci	....	producer

Original Music by
Guido De Angelis
Maurizio De Angelis

Cinematography by
Alberto Spagnoli

Film Editing by
Gianfranco Amicucci

Art Direction by
Franco Vanorio		(as Francesco Vanorio)

Set Decoration by
Stefano Paltrinieri

Costume Design by
Carlo Carunchio

Makeup Department
Giusy Bovino	....	hair stylist
Giancarlo De Leonardis	....	hair stylist
Giovanni Morosi	....	makeup artist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Giuseppe Giglietti	....	first assistant director
Stratton Leopold	....	assistant director

Art Department
Georgio Ferrari	....	constructor: shark

Sound Department
Nick Alexander	....	sound (English language version)
Gianni D'Amico	....	sound re-recordist
Carlo Palmieri	....	sound
Tomas Valenti	....	boom operator

Special Effects by
Antonio Corridori	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Giancarlo Formichi	....	underwater photographer (as Giancarlo Formichi Moglia)
Giuseppe Maccari	....	camera operator
Mauro Marchetti	....	assistant camera
Arnaldo Mattei	....	underwater photographer

Editorial Department
Roberto Amicucci	....	assistant editor

Other crew
Billy Fields	....	set medic
Egle Guarino	....	script supervisor

Production Companies

• Film Ventures International (FVI)
• Horizon Film
• Last Shark
• Montoro Productions Ltd.
• UTI

Distributors

• Film Ventures International (FVI) (1982) (USA) (theatrical) (English-track)
• Succéfilm AB (1981) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• UGC Distribution (1981) (France) (theatrical)
• DIV (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Firebox (2008) (Finland) (DVD)
• Nordic Video (????) (Finland) (video)
• Studio S (2008) (Sweden) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Great White (USA)
Shark
The Last Jaws (USA) (video title)
The Last Shark (International: English title)

Runtime:

88 min | Spain:82 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Norway:16 (video) (1983) | Australia:M | Finland:K-18 (self applied) (2008) | France:-12 | Sweden:15 | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Malta

Company:

Film Ventures International (FVI)

Trivia:

Marketed in America under the title "Great White," the film had a rather large advertising budget of over four million dollars. Shortly before the film's release, Universal Pictures filed suit against the producers claiming the film was too derivative of Jaws (1975). Universal won the lawsuit and "Great White" was pulled very shortly after its release.

Movie Connections:

Edited into Double Target (1987)

Decent cash-in on Jaws

Enzo G. Castellari, once again delivers quite a piece of cinema. The story is rather dull and uninspired (except by JAWS of course), but Castellari remedies that with very energetic direction, an excellent musical score by Guido and Maurizio De Angelis, and a lot of his mouth-watering wide angle use of slow motion. Lots of cult film actors (Including Vic Morrow, James Franciscus, and Giancarlo Prete) and a lot of goofy effects and stock footage, make this film completely silly and enjoyable rather than disturbing or shocking as most horror films set out to be. That's probably the opposite of what ZOMBIE producer Ugo Tucci wanted, but this film is quite fun to watch and worth repeat viewings.