SR Pick [Video]: ‘Shark Pool’ Trailer

Here’s one of the better parody trailers we’ve seen in quite some time. The production quality and trailer editing is good enough to trick some people into thinking this might be a trailer for an actual upcoming film (or at least a direct-to-DVD B-movie). We wouldn’t blame you if you thought this was “real,” because Shark Pool is a movie concept that is so absurd that it would fit right in with today’s B-movies like Piranha 3DD and Shark Night.

It’s no secret that these actual films have become a parody of themselves. At first they served as comedic nods to their predecessors (like Jaws). But as audiences crave more and studios bare it all, these films have reached the point of total lunacy. It has become increasingly difficult to tell the difference between a film made by a major top five studio and one by the knock-off masters at Asylum.

Shark Pool comes out of nowhere, like a shark in a bathtub might (sequel title?). There does happen to be a recognizable name in the trailer, though. Jonathan Lipnicki, known as the cute kid from Jerry Maguire, makes an appearance as one of the overheated frat boys itching for some pool time. That’s the true beauty of this parody: It isn’t the obvious nod to the ridiculous animal attack movies hitting theaters – instead, the hilarity of Shark Pool comes during the subtle stabs at today’s youth.

Watch the trailer below and see if you have what it takes to stay out of the pool.

The casting seems perfect for this fake movie. All of the guys look like over-confident frat boys and the women are straight off the casting couch for Michael Bay’s next blockbuster. The guys just want to hit on girls and swim in the pool, but when something terrifying appears in the water, nobody knows what to do. Stuck in a backyard with a shark-infested pool, the tough guys lose their senses with the rising heat and the dangerous waters.

Of course, there is one character who continuously alerts the others to a simple solution: don’t go in the pool. One has to think, though, how did that brainiac sneak into this party? And if he were not there, would we have gotten the frustratingly absent bloody mess we hoped for?

A few moments in the trailer are just too perfect. For instance, when one of the main characters makes an announcement for all those in the pool to “be careful” rather than “get out now.” The “marine’s biologist” line was pretty solid as well. But it’s the sound design and camerawork that sell this as a potentially real film, even though it is obviously(?) a parody trailer.