Horror Movie Review: Santa Jaws (2018)

Come on now… admit it. You saw the title and dismissed this movie completely. Not necessarily because it’s called Santa Jaws but because the glut of shark horror over the last couple of years has drained the lake completely. The majority being poorly made, idiotic action-horror hoping to jump on some of the success that Sharknado enjoyed briefly. Yet even that series has *ahem* well and truly jumped the shark now.

Absolutely no-one would blame you for snorting at the title and the front cover image then scrolling on by. However, should you decide to take the Christmassy plunge, you’ll find a surprisingly alright shark-horror movie. One that embraces the silliness behind it. Tries hard to make it feel festive and doesn’t overstay its welcome.

It’s not a good movie per-se but you might find yourself enjoying it more than you would have expected. Have low expectations and you might be surprised by what Santa Jaws has in its sack.

Reid Miller plays the teenager Cody, who along with his best friend, Steve (Hawn Tran) spends his time at the local comic book store. Both are eagerly awaiting the big Christmas Eve party at the store but Cody’s behaviour at school results in a call from the principle to his mother. He is grounded for a week, thus going to miss the all-important party.

Cody is given a gift of a pen by his grandfather and uses it to give his comic creation, Santa Jaws more defined lines. All while wishing that he was alone for Christmas. A terrible idea as it turns out the pen is magic and it brings Santa Jaws to life. With a jolly red hat on its fin, Santa Jaws has one goal now. To take out all of Cody’s family and friends. Along with his older brother Josh (Arthur Marroquin) and the next-door neighbour, Jena (Courtney Lauren Cummings), Cody must put a stop to Santa Jaws’ merry mayhem.

There’s a real concerted effort here to make Santa Jaws a good movie and not just another shark movie. Its story and characters are well-told and well-defined, enough so that you care about what happens and to whom. The cast are game, even if some of the dialogue is a bit ropey. The concept of a Santa-themed shark is a joke that would get old real soon if it wasn’t for the extra rules attached to the beast to make it even more festive. It is attracted by Christmas and things that signify the holiday spirit. It makes it all so much more Christmassy!

What really works in this films favour though is how it hides the shark from view for most of the film’s runtime. In fact, all you’ll see most of the time is its fin with the Santa hat. Which is a good thing as when you do see it, it’s CGI and not good CGI. Par for the course with shark movies though!

Stuff like this is easily forgivable as there was a lot of effort put in to make Santa Jaws memorable. Which is really is.