BEAST OF WAR
Starring: Mark Coles Smith, Joel Nankervis, Sam Delich, Lee Tiger Halley, Sam Parsonson, Maximillian Johnann, and Tristan McKinnon
Director: Kiah Roache-Turner
This film has been reviewed by Quentin and Nick as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of Fantastic Fest 2025.
NICK
Much like Overlord did with the undead, director Kiah Roache-Turner attempts to rejuvenate shark films by having Beast of War take place during World War II. It’s a smart way to work around having the shark on screen as the crew works within a seemingly limited budget. The other workaround is the surprisingly well fleshed-out characters in this. With only an 87 minute runtime, it’s impressive how invested I became in them. It’s not without its issues (it can be a touch repetitive, and it’s visually underwhelming) but considering the constraints, it’s hard to complain too much.
QUENTIN
There are several reasons why Beast of War absolutely shouldn’t work, but it might be the best movie I saw at Fantastic Fest this year. Writer-director Kiah Roache-Turner makes the most of his seemingly limited resources to craft a tense and gory survival film that works both as a World War II movie and a shark movie. By deftly balancing typical tropes with subverted expectations, all with Australia’s twisted sense of humor, Roache-Turner keeps the audience fully invested. Most impressive, though, is the way he successfully develops multiple characters to carry a complete, no-nonsense story in just 87 minutes. This is a lean and mean surprise.