Tentacoli [Tentacles] (1977)

(In French, On Cable TV, July 2022) There were a lot of Jaws-inspired creature-feature films in the late 1970s, but few seem as blatantly calculated as Tentacles, what with its shenanigans revolving around a seaside resort town threatened by the appearance of a sea monster. The other strain of 1970s cinema to be found is the “horror movies at the end of a Classic Hollywood star’s filmography” cliché, with none other than John Huston, Shelley Winters and Henry Fonda all showing up in various roles. It’s not true to insist on this being the end of their careers—all three had a few more good years and significant roles after that—but it puts Tentacles alongside other 1970s horror or disaster films that also provided roles for elderly name actors. Otherwise, there isn’t all that much to say about the film. It does have that stilted quality of Italian films shooting in the United States with American actors—dialogue that feels off, a slap-dash approach to cinematography and directing that suggests a rushed production, and an inappropriate soundtrack. In between the obviousness of the inspiration, the big-name stars wondering what they’re doing there and the unpolished aspects of the result, Tentacles isn’t particularly good despite a sudden burst of energy by the third act. It’s what it says in the title: if you want a movie about tentacles, this is it. Otherwise, keep swimming.