'Sharknado 2' About to Touch Down
by Shannon Keirnan
Because one movie about tornados dropping deadly sharks onto hapless citizens was OBVIOUSLY not enough, fans of the campy SyFy flick can rejoice - "Sharknado 2" drops this Wednesday.
The sequel of the hilariously bad "Sharknado" moves its characters from Southern California to New York. Fin Shepherd (Ian Ziering) and April (Tara Reid) head to the Big Apple for a nice little trip, and so April can promote her new book documenting the freak weather/zoological disaster they recently survived.
You may think that a sharknado never strikes twice (or even once, for that matter), but you'd be mistaken. Fin and April find themselves once again trying to save the day as nature rains down toothy death.
As stupid (or stupidly awesome) as the premise is, "Sharknado 2" is earning a few smiles and nods from critics... at least those willing to look past the fact that it's a movie about tornadoes full of sharks, with a budget of just over $1 million, and a filming schedule of 18 days.
Director Anthony C. Ferrante returns, as well as screenwriter Thunder Levin. There are plenty of cameo roles as well - comedian Robert Klein plays the mayor of New York, who reminds citizens: "When something bites us, we bite back!"
Mark McGrath of Sugar Ray also appears as Fin's brother-in-law, Vivica A. Fox appears as an old school friend, and Judd Hirsch pops up as a cab driver.
Meanwhile, "Today" stars Matt Lauer and Al Roker steal the spotlight for their own scenes, where they provide steely faced coverage of the strange disaster.
"Sharknado 2: The Second One" airs July 30th at 9 p.m. EST on SyFy.