Plot: What’s it about?
In the remote, isolated stretches of the bayou in Louisiana, all kinds of dangerous creatures lurk in the waters. But the water is more perilous than ever, as a school of killer fish is on the loose, though Mother Nature isn’t responsible. These fish were engineered, though no one knows that outside of those involved in the experiments. An eccentric, wealthy man is behind their creation, as he loves to hunt vicious prey. These fish are as vicious as can be, able to chew through steel and attack not just in the water, but on land as well. That’s right, thanks to the experiments the fish can venture into land and not just survive, but attack whatever they come across. But no one knew about these fish, until someone ran into them out in the bayou and never returned. After the corpse is recovered, the authorities are baffled as to what caused the death, so a medical examiner is brought in to investigate. Sam Rivers (Tory Kittles) is dispatched to solve the mysterious death, but even he is unprepared for what he finds. As more bodies begin to surface, the pressure mounts to learn the truth and find a way to end the deaths. But as the tension bears down, can Kittles put together the pieces to the hideous deaths?
Frankenfish. The title alone is enough to make genre buffs at least give the case a look, if not plunk down the cash for a rental. But does the film live up to such a cool moniker, or this is yet another disappointment for fans of aquatic horror cinema? I’ve seen a ton of “when animals attack” movies and of late, a lot of productions have come down the pipe with some featured creature, only to be total let downs. I mean, bargain basement computer graphics, minimal violence, and even less blood and gore. Frankenfish doesn’t cure all of those ailments, but it is a fun movie and was much better than expected. The special effects are a notch above most direct to video films in this genre, but still don’t measure up to the major movies. Even so, the visuals have a nice amount of polish and come off quite well, all things considered. The violence and gore are amped up more than a little and as time passes, the kill scenes get better and better. So you’ll witness geysers of blood, torn limbs, and blood drenched stumps, all par for the course, with killer fish involved. So in the areas that count in a movie like this, Frankenfish delivers on most counts. The storyline is wafer thin and the cast is mediocre, but be honest, that doesn’t matter in this case. I recommend Frankenfish to all those who love to see fish tear people to pieces.
Video: How does it look?
Frankenfish is presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen. The image here is clean and very sharp, with no inherent defects to speak of. The print is in terrific condition, with minimal flaws to mention, though shimmering is evident at times. The detail is very high however, so even subtle visual textures come through well, a strong presentation in terms of sharpness. The colors are bold and vivid also, while flesh tones look natural throughout. No troubles on the contrast front either, as black levels shine and provide well balanced visual presence. Not much else we could want here, as this is as good as Infested can look on DVD.
Audio: How does it sound?
You’ll find a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround option here, but the audio comes off as somewhat reserved at times. There is some decent use of the surrounds, but not as much as you might expect, save for whenever the insects swarm and attack. Even in those sequences however, there isn’t much to praise, as the audio is more active, but lacks creative or immersive presence, which is a let down. But there is some surround use and while unimpressive, it never sounds forced, so not all is lost with this soundtrack. The music sounds good and dialogue is smooth & crisp however, so don’t assume this is a bad treatment. I just think it could have been better, given the killer fish and all, but this track is still more than acceptable. This disc also includes a Japanese language track, as well as subtitles in English, Spanish, French, Japanese, Korean, Thai, Chinese, and Portuguese, should you need those.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes the film’s trailer.
