For years Syfy Channel and The Asylum have been churning out the crazed and cheesy monster flicks with sharks seemingly the most prominent focus. While they all have their fans there was nothing quite like the popularity of Sharknado when it debuted in 2013. The film did so well it even got a short theatrical run which is unheard of with these films. Obviously with its popularity a sequel wasn’t far behind with both Sharknado 2: The Second One and Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No! bringing more of the same ridiculous fun. Now the insane fun is back once again with Sharknado: The 4th Awakens, but does it offer up anything more to this silly franchise or is it time to put the weathered sharks to rest?

 

Sharknado: the 4th Awakens follows Fin, his family and the cosmos who have been blissfully sharknado-free in the five years since the most recent attack, but now sharks and tornadoes are being whipped up in unexpected ways and places. The film sports much of the same cast and some obvious new additions including Ian Ziering, Tara Reid, David Hasselhoff, Gary Busey, and Masiela Lusha as well as the expected slew of cameos throughout. This is a hard movie to review for the simple fact that going in you know that it is dumb on every level and usually in the best possible way. This time around they offer up even more ridiculousness taking the idea to new dumb heights. The previous films were just as silly, but managed to still offer up some fun. The new one does the same, but at times goes so far over board that it is even more laughable. The performances are worse than ever across the board with some of the cameos being the shining ones which is an issue since you barely get them. The main cast are starting to look a bit tired with Tara Reid being the worse of the bunch. You can’t really complain I guess about too many of the issues in this film because it is a Sharknado film.

 

I will say that this one takes it the next level of over the top destruction waiting no time to get right to the Sharknado fun. They even mock themselves with offering up a ton of different types of tornadoes to deal with that is a pretty funny running joke. The effects are more of the same cheesy fun with plenty of sharks of all kinds and even a whale thrown around to cause the much loved fun kills. There are so many silly moments that you can’t help but laugh and enjoy the crap out of the film. There is really nothing redeeming about any of these films except that they are mindless fun that isn’t taking itself any more serious than those watching it. They clearly took he Star Wars theme to heart with not only the play on the title, but also numerous references throughout including a cameo from young Boba Fett himself Daniel Logan. The best reference in the whole film comes in a Texas Chainsaw massacre bit that is filled with great one liners and homages to the actors that appeared in the films. There is another film called Lavalantula that offers up similar silly fun starring Steve Guttenberg who makes a cameo here as that character much like Zeiring did in his film. This was a fun little nod setting up for the sequel to that film coming called 2Lava2Lantula.

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In the end this franchise is one that makes no sense on any level and are far from even being good films, but what they do is offer up some silly fun that you can share with your friends. If  you hated the previous films or just these kind of films in general then you will hate this one just as much. If you loved the others you will likely be on the fence as this one doesn’t always work but you cannot deny that it lives up to the ridiculous nature that this series continues to thrive on. The ending is pretty abrupt and clearly setting up for another chapter so it doesn’t look like it is ending quite yet.

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In addition to the film this release features tons of bonus content including deleted & extended scenes, a gag reel, VFX before & after, commentary, the making of the orchestral score and the making of Sharknado: The 4th Awakens that takes you deeper behind the latest installment of the crazy franchise. Grab your copy of Sharknado: The 4th Awakens availalbe now on Blu-ray and DVD from The Asylum Home Entertainment.