Night of the Sharks Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		2.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		2.5

Night of the Sharks Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov January 20, 2026

Tonino Ricci's "Night of the Sharks" (1988) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films. The supplemental features on the release include promotional trailer and complete motion picture soundtrack. In English or Italian, with optional English and English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The beach bum

Mexican diver Ramon Bravo did with sharks what French stuntman Remy Julienne did with cars. These men were indescribably brave, slightly mad, superprofessionals whose work remains in a category of its own. If you remove the work the two did between the early 1970s and 1980s, the best period for European genre films, you will destroy more than ninety percent of the genre films that are now considered cult classics. Bravo and Julienne both had teams full of other professionals who did very particular things, too. However, Bravo and Julienne always crafted and executed their most dangerous stunts alone. Also, and perhaps most importantly, everything they did was free of SFX.

Tonino Ricci’s Night of the Sharks is worth seeing for Bravo’s adventures with two sharks. It is not a lot of content. However, there are a couple of segments that will send chills down your spine. Or at least they should, because what Bravo does with a giant, obviously extremely dangerous shark can only be described as suicidal work. Bravo approaches the shark and engages it in an unmistakably aggressive manner, forcing it to react, while bumping his camera into it. The shark reacts, and none of what it does is in any way predictable or even remotely safe. There isn’t a cage nearby where Bravo can quickly hide if the shark decides to kill him because he has been too aggressive.

Everything else in Night of the Sharks is a typical low-budget Italian mish-mash of ideas borrowed from various places, virtually all of them bigger and better American films. At his posh Miami mansion, Rosentski (John Steiner), CEO of the Inosco Corporation, learns that an ambitious opportunist (Carlo Mucari) has recorded many of his illegal negotiations with the President over the last five years and gathered them on a CD. Rosentski can have the CD, but he must pay two million dollars in diamonds. If Rosentski agrees to have a deal, his right-hand man, Warren (Stelio Candelli) must deliver the diamonds to a pre-arranged spot.

All goes as planned, but as planned by Rosentski. A tracking device is hidden among the diamonds, and Warren successfully identifies the opportunist. However, moments before he is to be taken out, the opportunist outsmarts Warren and his associates and disappears with the diamonds. Shortly after, Rosentski correctly predicts that he would reach Mexico, where his brother, David (Treat Williams), and a friend (Antonio Fargas) operate a small bar, and Warren activates a local sniper to put a bullet in his head. When the opportunist dies, David, not fully understanding what his dead brother has been a part of, goes on the warpath.

Williams is treated as a big star, and it is obvious that he was supposed to legitimize everything that happens after the shady businessman discovers that his blackmailer has thought of plenty. However, neither his clash with the gangsters nor his rivalry with a one-eyed shark creates proper fireworks, which is exactly what a low-budget Italian genre film like Night of the Sharks needs to appear legitimate.

Ricci’s director of photography was Giovanni Bergamini, who lensed the cult firecracker The Inglorious Bastards and the graphic shocker Cannibal Ferox.

*Severin Films' release introduces an exclusive new 4K restoration of the fully uncut version of Night of the Sharks, sourced from a rare 35mm print.

Night of the Sharks Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.66:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Night of the Sharks arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films.

The release introduces an exclusive new 4K restoration of the fully uncut version of Night of the Sharks, sourced from a rare 35mm print. Unfortunately, the presentation is very disappointing.

Unsurprisingly, the 4K restoration produces very healthy, wonderfully detailed, and often rather strikingly vibrant visuals. The ones emerging from the daylight footage can be particularly attractive. Sadly, the entire 4K restoration is very poorly graded -- it covers the entire film with teal, alters its native color temperature, and makes it look like a monochromatic contemporary production. I suspect that the grading job was done by the same party that compromised The Shark Hunter because many of the same anomalies are replicated. The one major discrepancy here is that the tealing is significantly stronger, so in addition to collapsing various native primaries and supporting nuances, it destabilizes the dynamic range of many visuals. For example, in darker areas, unnatural flatness is frequently very easy to observe, and plenty of nuanced details are lost. All of this is extremely frustrating because it is painfully obvious that the raw 4K scan is magnificent and easily could have produced a definitive release. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

Night of the Sharks Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH (for the English track) and English (for the Italian track) subtitles are provided for the main feature.

I viewed the entire film with the original English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. It is a very healthy and occasionally surprisingly active lossless track. Stelvio Cipriani's soundtrack produces several surprises as well. The dialogue is always clear, sharp, and easy to follow. I did not notice any balance issues either.

Night of the Sharks Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - presented here is a trailer for the new 4K restoration of Night of the Sharks. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Soundtrack - the original soundtrack for Night of the Sharks is presented on a CD. 22 tracks. Total length: 58.22 min.

• Lobby Card - a reproduction of an original lobby card with vintage poster art for Night of the Sharks.

Night of the Sharks Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

A sea of difference. It is the only way I can describe the gap in quality between Severin Films' Rats: Night of Terror and Slave of the Cannibal God, both gorgeous, definitive releases, and Night of the Sharks and The Shark Hunter. I admire what Severin Films does, especially with cult and rare Italian genre films, and it breaks my heart to see how poorly Night of the Sharks and The Shark Hunter turned out. If the right people had graded them, they easily could have been definitive releases as well.