Leofwine_draca THE BEAST was one of the big TV miniseries of 1996 and widely heralded as a follow up to JAWS. It's based on another Peter Benchley novel and is very similar in story and structure to the Spielberg classic, with the twist that now it's a giant squid terrorising a small coastal town. The TV movie feel means that this isn't particularly dangerous or frightening, but I found that there was enough interesting material to sustain the three-hour running time and it's pretty entertaining to boot.The film boasts a good mix of characters, half of whom will get inked or swallowed by the climax, and some nice character actors in the mix. William Petersen is the hero who nobody listens to and Charles Martin Smith the antagonist in a suit. Best of the bunch is DARKMAN's Larry Drake as the drunken fisherman who steals all his scenes. The '90s-era CGI effects have dated badly, but the life-size squid effects are pretty decent and overall this is solid enough, if no classic.

badmofu This film first aired on television when I was in middle school. They advertised it heavily and it turned out to be a really great film. It is a well produced television movie that will give you the creeps at certain points. One underwater scene near the beginning of the second half of the film will really get you going. This is the uncut version I am talking about.There are several cuts of the film that are out there that are very incomplete. The version I have is the one that originally aired on t.v. If you are into things like jaws and King Kong, then you will get a lot of enjoyment out of this film. Some of the characters may be a bit corny but they are played well by some familiar character actors. William Petersen is especially good in the lead role. You really buy the weight he brings to the character. He seems like a genuinely good guy.

disdressed12 i wasn't impressed with the condensed version of the movie.however,this extended version(with over forty minutes of added footage) was miles better in my opinion.we get more character development and get to to know the people involved I thought,the the beast was pretty impressive to look at,and would definitely inspire fear in me if i ran across it in real life.the CGI was good for its time.William Peterson(Pre CSI)stars,along with Charles Martin Smith,Larry Drake and Karen Silas.i think this movie was much more exciting than the edited version.the music is used to good effect here.i also liked the fact that they didn't reveal the beast completely right away.we do see glimpses of it before the big reveal,but jut enough to keeps us guessing.for me,this uncut version of the beast is a 7/10

drystyx This movie really outshone "Jaws" in every department, except for hype. In retrospect, had this film been made first, during the early or mid 1970 decade, it would have gotten the respect it deserved. It had much better action, character, plot, and twists than "Jaws," which was a splendid movie in its own right. This movie is about a giant squid. There have been numerous giant squid movies that rate as bombs, but this one was interesting. The characters are all very credible and likable with one noticeable exception, but even in this case, the actor pulls out a remarkable performance to make him more believable. There is a combination of great casting, acting, and directing that make this enjoyable. There is plenty of excitement. And a lot of twists. Believe me, until the end, you will not predict anything that happens. It has no predictability. The characters are well defined. Much like "Jaws", it comes down to a crew assorted at the end. The end may be a bit "Hollywood", and run of the mill, but the rest of the movie makes it worthwhile.