BLOOD TIDE [1982]

 "THE BEATEN PATH IS FOR BEATEN MEN." 

I'm beginning to sound like a broken record but here's yet another one that's much better than I expected it to be.  Surely what some would call on the slow side but I found myself absorbed into the goings-on mainly because of the fine cast.  Neil Grice and his new wife Sherry sail to Greek island Synoron in search of his sister Madeline who has gone incommunicado.  The Mayor of the island, Nereus, says she not there and no one recognises Madeline's photo . . . and yet there she is on the island found in the company of a reprobate named Frye and his . . .companion. . . Barbara. 

Neil is warned by Barbara that the locals don't like anyone having diving equipment and "taking anything from the sea"; however, Frye is secretly diving to an underwater cave which has a bricked-up doorway in it.  Frye uses explosives to open the door.  Later, while out for a pleasure trip on Neil's boat, they hit something which damages the prop; although they are in 300 ft. of water and there is nothing they could've hit.  When they come back to port, the locals and the Mayor are waiting for them; a local woman has disappeared in the ocean and they suspect Neil of having hit her with his boat.  Local authorities take custody of Neil's boat.  All this time, Madeline has been acting a little odd which concerns a nun named Sister Ann.   

Madeline, an artist,  seems obsessed with discovering what's painted underneath a religious icon which seems to date from the 1500's B.C.  Meanwhile, Barbara goes for an ocean swim and is pulled under and killed by what locals call a shark; although no sharks seem to be in the area.  Frye tells Neil that it was Madeline who brought him to the island and discovered the undersea cave:  "And then something got to her."  Frye suggests they get outta Dodge.  While out on his boat, Frye sees a group of children up on a cliff doing some SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER/THE WICKER MAN shit resulting in a young teenage girl named Lethe flying off the cliff into the sea.  Lethe's mother has been searching for her and, seeing her fall, plunges into the sea after her.  Frye jumps in too and brings the girl to his boat but the mother is pulled under and killed, filling the water with blood.  Frye looks underwater and sees some sort of sea monster gnawing on her bloody leg.  What has been released from the sealed cave?!?

BLOOD TIDE stars two of the greatest voices in show business:  Jose Ferrer as Nereus and James Earl Jones as Frye and both gives top notch performances; giving no inkling that they aren't actually in a Hollywood A picture.  Badass Martin Kove (VFW, THE KARATE KID, LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT, DEATH RACE 2000) and Mary Louise Weller (Q: THE WINGED SERPENT, THE EVIL) are also excellent as Neil & Sherry Grice as is Lila Kedrova (Hitchcock's TORN CURTAIN, Polanski's THE TENANT and her Oscar-winning performance in ZORBA THE GREEK) is also very good but with not much to do here.  Lydia Cornell (TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT) as Barbara is wonderfully fun & charming bringing a great sense of humour to her portrayal.  Nico Mastorakis (who directed Video Nasty ISLAND OF DEATH) produced and co-wrote with director Richard Jefferies (known for . . . uh . . . this) with some nebulously-unclear input from Brian Trenchard-Smith (DEAD-END DRIVE-IN, BMX BANDITS, THE MAN FROM HONG KONG, TURKEY SHOOT).  For something co-written and produced by the maker of a Video Nasty, BLOOD TIDE is surprisingly sedate with an unexpected polish and I had a good time with it.