Eye of the Beast

Trailer—Eye of the Beast

I mean... it's not terrible. In fact it's better than one might expect. But some of the acting, plot contrivances, and the practical and computer generated effects leave a bit to be desired. They actually used practical effects when they could. They could have been a lot better but... they're there. And the movie feels really short. I'll watch it again just to pass the time. And I've always loved giant squid. They're a lovely, terrifying animal.

Government scientist Dan Leland (a fine and likeable performance by James Van Der Beek) arrives in a small fishing town to investigate the mysterious disappearances of both fish and people alike. Deland discovers that a local legend about a hideous sea monster is true. Director Gary Yates relates the enjoyable and engrossing story at a constant pace, offers a flavorsome evocation of the sleepy lakeside community, ably crafts a spooky atmosphere, takes time to develop the characters, and generates a good deal of tension in the harrowing and exciting last third. The solid acting by the capable cast keeps this movie humming: Alexandra Castillo as perky cop Katrina Thomas, Arne MacPherson as crusty fisherman Gunnar Thorson, Ryan Black as the vengeful Will Neepanak, Stephen Eric McIntyre as the scruffy Spider, and Erik Fjeldsted as the antsy Jordy. The briefly glimpsed killer squid looks pretty gnarly while the special f/x are perfectly acceptable considering the modest budget. A cool little flick.

A total ripoff of Humaniods from the deep 1980, including the bound at the end between whites and native americans. See the original, skip this. Waste of time.

Of course I was dubious as it was SyFy, but at the same I was wondering if it was going to be among the small handful of tolerable efforts. Eye of the Beast falls short of belonging to the tolerable camp but not bad enough to be among the bottom-of-the-barrel movies. It is decently made, with scenery that does have some atmosphere, the sea is darkly lit but gives a sense of foreboding, and crisper editing than anticipated. The effects are nothing great, but again have been far worse in other movies. The music is suitably haunting, and the acting while not awards-worthy is better than average. On the other hand, the script is stilted with some typically cheesy lines and the monster is under-utilised and not very menacing. I know that sparse appearances can add to more suspense, but when the story and characters don't do much to make the scenes where the monster doesn't appear interesting, you have a problem. The story is dully paced on the whole and with underdeveloped subplots and predictable attack scenes is uninvolving as well. The characters and situations are clichéd and not developed enough to be likable. In a nutshell, a lame movie that could've been better and worse. 4/10 Bethany Cox

Released in 2007, "Eye of the Beast" chronicles events at an island community on Lake Winnipeg when a giant squid decides to utilize the citizenry for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Alexandra Castillo and James Van Der Beek star as the sheriff and marine scientist who team-up to track down the beast once it becomes clear it's for real. Arne MacPherson is on hand as an unfriendly captain of a fishing schooner. While the plot is trite in that it combines Peter Benchley's "Jaws" (1975) and "The Beast" (1996), the movie's surprisingly well-done. The cast is good and takes the material seriously, so you find yourself entering into the world of the characters. Both Castillo and Van Der Beek make for quality protagonists. I guess it helps that Alexandra is easy on the eyes. Moreover, the Lake Winnipeg locations are a pleasant surprise. So, even though you might have seen a thousand similar flicks, "Eye of the Beast" fills the bill if you're in the mood for a decent Grade B monster-in-the-water picture. And, if you're not, why are you reading this? The film runs 90 minutes and was shot in Gimli and Selkirk, Manitoba, at the south end of Winnipeg Lake, with additional stuff done in Winnipeg. It was directed by Gary Yates from a script by Mark Mullin. GRADE: B-

The citizens of an island fishing community in Canada find their livelihoods threatened by the existence of an unlikely predatory animal: a fresh water giant squid! Among the heroes are a young scientist (James Van Der Beek) called in by NORA, and a hottie Fisheries officer (Alexandra Castillo) who had encountered this beast as a child. For such a routine story that displays a complete lack of originality, 'Eye of the Beast' is fairly watchable, and somewhat superior to most of the creature features made for TV. This is because we never see THAT much of the squid - mostly, we see its enormous tentacles. We only see a bit more of it during the finale, when it comes to the surface during the inevitable battle. And even then, this scene takes place at night. Since the body count is actually quite minimal, and the special effects aren't as terrible as people would tend to expect, this is a little more than mere cheese. Rather, the narrative focuses more on the lives damaged by the lack of good fishing in the area. Reasonably competent filmmaking helps, as well as decent if unexceptional acting. One exception is Ms. Castillo, whose bright, engaging presence helps a lot. If you're a fellow Manitoban, like this viewer, the movie will have more resonance, as this was not only filmed entirely on location here (in Winnipeg, Selkirk, and Gimli), but it appears to be SET here as well. Van Der Beek a.k.a. Dawson is really the only true name actor here; other than Chilean born, Canadian raised dancer / actress Castillo, much of the cast are locals. The formulaic tale is groan-worthy at times - complete with supporting characters who remain stupidly stubborn until the time comes for the monster to reveal itself - but it also comes complete with a subtext of racism and intolerance. Naturally, those that head into the final battle with the giant squid are finally able to put aside their differences. Not VERY good overall, but not all that bad either. Six out of 10.

No, this one won't win any awards, but its not too bad either. Anyone who watches this kind of film from time to time has seen much, MUCH worse movies, acting and general film making... The plot is a near identical rip from the 1996 TV miniseries 'The Beast' staring CSI's William Petersen and Charles Martin Smith. If you like that, you'll like this... only less.

EYE OF THE BEAST might not be one of the more original monster movies but it is certainly one of the better films from SCI-FI channel's man eater series, because unlike a few other films that are part of this series it actually doesn't feel like a rush job such as VIPERS or a quickly thought up monster mess like YETI, this one really demonstrates some competent film making and decent effort behind it. The storyline is a lot slower than your average monster movie, this one starts off with a very casual pace taking its time with character development instead of constant attacks every five minutes or so, the acting is also above par, accept for one actor who plays the character Jordy, he over acts a bit. All in all, a good movie even though it offers nothing new in terms of originality and a worthy addition to the series and to its genre.

Out of all the really bad science-fiction creature features that I see quite regularly on the Sci-Fi Channel, there are very few of which I can describe as descent. "Eye of the Beast" is one of those few that is surprisingly good enough to be called descent. The acting is fine, the screenplay is more intelligent than others I can think of, the special effects are better than expected, and since they are mostly shown at night, they are easier to believe. The creature is effectively not shown mostly until the end. Before then, we see nothing of it except for its tentacles (rubber, inflated) that lash out and grab onto people. The plot is kind of ludicrous. A giant squid SOMEHOW gets into a lake and SOMEHOW is not seen until now when it just decides to try human fresh off the docks, but still, it's a B-movie, so can cut it SOME slack. The characterization of the characters is very good, there are some very well-done dialogue and dramatic moments, and the music score really aids it. Ultimately, we have a climax that we really care about, speeches that are actually well-written and don't outstay their welcome (as they do in another B-flick called "Sasquatch Mountain"), and overall, "Eye of the Beast" is a very well-done creature feature. I recommend it for fans of its genre.