User reviews

A villain, lots of gunfire, some girls that need rescue - you have seen it one thousand times before - and 999 of them were probably better than this. I wouldn't waste time and money on this movie if I were you.

Sensei Tava Parker (Mike Stone, American Ninja 2) is having a relaxing life teaching karate to kids in a Hawaii karate school, since the Vietnam war ended. He has a model girlfriend, Karen (Pamela Bryant, Don't Answer the Phone) who is kidnapped while doing a photo shoot in Sudan. Tava's old 'Nam pal Cowboy (John Quade, Every which way but loose) see's the kidnapping and calls Tava. Tava flies over from Hawaii determined to rescue his girl and make the kidnappers pay. The action is a little light on for the first half hour but some of the lines delivered by Cowboy are so funny that you are distracted enough anyway. The second half picks up and there is quite a bit of action with huts exploding, missiles firing, and some good martial arts from Mike Stone. Mike Stone is pretty good here and i'm surprised he didn't do more movies of this type. Definitely a solid piece of 80's Jungle action that is worth hunting down. Tigershark currently has a very low score and i think it is unfairly awarded. It's a movie called Tigershark, what are these people thinking? Look at the poster! This isn't going to be Casablanca folks! Overall a decent action film that is worth a watch.

My review was written in February 1989 after watching the movie on Diamond Entertainment video cassette.

"Tiger Shark" is a Filipino-lensed action pic that rarely rises above the routine but functions adequately as a throwback to the soldier of fortune pics popular in the '50s.

Mike Stone topliens (and collaborates behind the camera too) as Tava, nicknamed Tiger Shark, called from his Hawaiian martial arts academy to help war buddy John Quade rescue Stone's kidnapped girlfriend Pamela Bryant.

A subplot involving a Soviet communist leader (played as a lecherous caricature by Jimmy Fabrigas) providing military aid to rebels goes nowhere. Pic climaxes in a well-staged, to-the-death kickboxing contest, the combatant joined with a steel chain.

Acting is weak except for a very entertaining, salt-of-the-earth performance by Quade, a familiar good ol' boy character actor who rarely gets such a meaty role as here.