Mako: The Jaws of Death Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		2.0
Audio		2.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		2.0

Mako: The Jaws of Death Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 26, 2020

Note: This film is available as part of He Came from the Swamp: The William Grefé Collection.

Anyone who thought Arrow Video had already released the mother lode of Florida based exploitation fare with their gigantic The Herschell Gordon Lewis Feast set from a few years ago had best be prepared to realize that the intrepid folks at this label known for catering to (cinematic) cultists of various stripes may have in fact only been offering an appetizer of sorts. It’s kind of amazing in a way to hear Herschell Gordon Lewis himself singing the praises of William Grefé in the feature length documentary They Came From the Swamp included in this new set devoted to Grefé’s work, but Lewis actually makes a point of stating that he was the interloper on territory Grefé had already staked out, and that Grefé couldn’t have been more gracious in welcoming Lewis to the far south fold, so to speak. It may be a little odd, then, that for at least some fans of exploitation cinema Herschell Gordon Lewis’ name may be better remembered than that of William Grefé, something that may seem especially unexpected given the fact that Grefé was at least occasionally able to muster A-list (or formerly A-list) talent like Rita Hayworth for some of his projects, an accomplishment that probably never would have even occurred to Lewis to attempt.

No exploitation impresario worth his (or her) salt (water?) is going to miss a major hot trend in the movie world, and there was probably no bigger major hot trend in the movie world in 1976 than underwater horrors in the form of sharks, as evidenced by the previous year's blockbuster Jaws. There's very little doubt that the legendary Spielberg opus was central to the creation of Mako: The Jaws of Death, but what's so interesting about this supposed knock off is that it actually makes the sharks kind of sympathetic in its own way, something that is most certainly a different formulation than in Jaws. That sympathy comes at least in part due to focal character Sonny Stein (Richard Jaeckel), who becomes aware he's almost telepathically linked to the giant submerged beasts.

This being a William Grefé film, there are obvious attempts to work in more traditional exploitation angles, including in this case a quasi-strip club as well as Sonny ultimately using his "connection" to sharks to enact revenge against various people (though, again, it's interesting that at least some of the vengeance seems well deserved comeuppance for those not "respecting" sharks enough). Among the villains in the film is one played by Harold “Odd Job” Sakata from Goldfinger, which may add a bit of trivia value to the proceedings. Grefé showed his facility for filming underwater as early as in Sting of Death, and, speaking of James Bond, he actually did some second unit underwater work on Live and Let Die, and he crafts some nicely staged material beneath the depths in this film as well.

Mako: The Jaws of Death Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mako: Jaws of Death is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Arrow's hardcover insert book has a full page devoted to the transfers of each of the films, starting with some generic overview verbiage and then some brief comments on each film:

All the films included in this collection have been restored from the best available materials. Whilst every effort has been made to offer up the best possible presentations, the results inevitably vary according to the condition of the source materials, some of which were in poor shape. We hope that this does not affect your enjoyment of the films.

Sting of Death was scanned from its original 35mm negative. The audio was sourced from a 35mm optical track negative.

Death Curse of Tartu was scanned from a 16mm print. The audio was also sourced from this print. The 16mm print - presumably a TV print - was found to have been trimmed for gore, so these missing shots were sourced from a lesser copy 35mm print and reinstated.

The Hooked Generation was scanned from a 16mm internegative. The audio was sourced from a 16mm optical track negative.

The Psychedelic Priest (AKA Electric Shades of Grey ) was scanned from a 16mm Ektachrome release print. The audio was also sourced from this print.

The Naked Zoo was scanned from its original 35mm negative, which had been recut to the Barry Mahon version of the film. In order to recreate William Grefé 's original director's cut, the footage unique to that version was sourced from a badly faded and warped 35mm workprint. The audio was sourced from a 35mm double edged track print and a 35mm track negative.

Mako: Jaws of Death was scanned from two 16mm prints, which were composited for best quality sections of each. The audio was also sourced from these prints.

Whiskey Mountain was scanned from a 16mm scope print. The audio was also sourced from this print.

All materials used in these restorations were supplied William Grefé , Lisa Petrucci / Something Weird Video, Vinegar Syndrome, Ed Tucker, and AGFA (American Genre Film Archive).

Mako: The Jaws of Death looks pretty ragged in this presentation, with manifest scratching and other signs of age related wear and tear recurring regularly throughout the running time. Some scratches fill the entire frame and last for quite a while. The palette is pretty badly faded a lot of the time, though kind of surprisingly some of the more brightly lit outdoor footage still pops decently if not optimally. The underwater material has some inherent murk which defeats fine detail. Some of the dark material here suffers from really bad crush, and there are some scenes where it's definitely hard to make out what's going on. As befits its 16mm source, grain is pretty chunky looking quite a bit of the time, but resolves naturally.

Mako: The Jaws of Death Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Mako: The Jaws of Death features a DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track that has its own fair share of age related wear and tear, including a kind of low frequency "thrum" that can be heard at times, as well as hiss, pops and cracks. There are amplitude variances throughout, some of which I'm attributing to "live" recording out in the wilds of Florida. Dialogue is generally well rendered. Optional English subtitles are available.

Mako: The Jaws of Death Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

All of the films in this set save for Whiskey Mountain are presented two per disc, and so some supplements are more generalist in nature. This disc has the following supplements:

• The Naked Zoo - Barry Mahon Version (1080p; 1:26:53) is a recut version that comes with a warning that it is not "endorsed by William Grefé, which offers both the rock group Canned Heat as well as some nudity not in the "director's version".


• Beyond the Movie: That's Sharksploitation! (1080p; 7:27) features Michael Gingold looking at films that feature sharks.


• The Aquamaid Speaks! (1080p; 9:49) is a phone interview with actress Jenifer Bishop conducted by Ed Tucker.


• Sharks, Stalkers and Sasquatch (1080p; 10:28) is another phone interview conducted by Ed Tucker, this time with screenwriter ' Robert Morgan.


• Mako Super-8 Digest Version (1080p; 15:06)
• Mako Trailer and Promo Gallery

  Original Trailer (720p; 1:35) also has the "SWV" (Something Weird Video) watermark seen in some other trailers.

  
  

  Original Promo (720p; 10:24)

  
  

  CBS Promo (720p; 00:33)

  
  

  Behind the Scenes News Segment (720p; 2:09)

Still Galleries

The Naked Zoo (1080p; 2:00)




Mako: Jaws of Death (1080p; 8:10)

• Audio Commentaries for both films on this disc are provided by William Grefé.


• Introduction to The Naked Zoo: Director's Cut by William Grefé (1080p; 2:42) can be accessed under the Play Menu for that film. This is authored to move directly on to the feature after it plays.


• Introduction to Mako: Jaws of Death by William Grefé (1080p; 4:06) can be accessed under the Play Menu for that film. This is authored to move directly on to the feature after it plays.

Mako: The Jaws of Death Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Jaeckel is surprisingly engaging in this film, and the underwater footage is also well done. The basic story here is a little smarmy at times, but it's nice to see sharks, to paraphrase Rodney Dangerfield, finally getting a little respect. This presentation has both video and audio issues, but once again the supplementary material is great, for those who are considering a purchase.