Product Details

• Actors: Taika Waititi, Joel Tobeck, Loren Horsley, Jemaine Clement, David Fane
• Directors: Taika Waititi
• Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo)
• Subtitles: English, Spanish, French
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Studio: MIRAMAX
• DVD Release Date: January 8, 2008
• Run Time: 88 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000X418V8
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #73,221 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• Learn more about "Eagle vs. Shark" on IMDb

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Since the 1980s, the nerd has triumphed in comedies from Weird Science to Napoleon Dynamite, but what about the female of the species? In Eagle vs. Shark, New Zealand's Taika Waititi presents his offbeat romance from the perspective of the likeably quirky Lily (co-writer Loren Horsley). The Meaty Boy cashier fantasizes about the sensitive yet boorish Jarrod (Jemaine Clement from HBO's Flight of the Conchords). Sporting the worst on-screen hairdo since Javier Bardem's pageboy in No Country for Old Men, the video-game wiz visits Lily's fast-food emporium daily, oblivious to the slouchy brunette with the shy smile. Except for her cartoonist brother, Damon (Joel Tobeck), nobody else notices Lily either. When she crashes Jarrod's costume party--dressed as a shark to his eagle--her fortunes begin to change, but there's a catch: Much like Adam Sandler's tightly-wound salesman in P.T. Anderson's Punch-Drunk Love, Jarrod has a dark side. Not only is he a habitual liar, but he intends to kill his high school nemesis, Eric (David Fane). At first, Lily supports Jarrod's homicidal plan, but their relationship hits a snag when they travel to his hometown for the big face-off (Waititi plays Jarrod’s brother in flashbacks). Suffice to say, no murders take place during the course of Eagle vs. Shark. Stop-motion sequences (revolving around irregular apples), the Phoenix Foundation's electro-pop score, deleted scenes, outtakes, and audio commentary all contribute to the weird charm of Waititi's first feature. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Product Description

Miramax Films presents the wickedly offbeat love story, Eagle vs Shark, a funny, fractured romance between two total misfits woven into an all-consuming quest for revenge and shot through with the strange, sweet hilarity of the human condition. When Lily (Horsley), a lonely, oddball fast-food waitress and hopeless romantic, and Jarrod (Clement), another lonely oddball and video game clerk who has spent the last decade plotting revenge against a bully from high school, connect at a dress as your favorite animal party, it s a match seemingly made in outcast Heaven. But when Lily decides to risk everything for love, her hopes are nearly dashed as, after a brief fling, Jarrod dumps her because he s too busy training for his all-important payback mission. But neither of them can anticipate the grit the steadfastly optimistic Lily will show in her heartbreak. As Jarrod's day of reckoning arrives and everything hits the fan, Jarrod and Lily will find something that goes beyond romantic fantasies and revenge faith in who they are.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant Script January 12, 2008

By SORE EYES

Format:DVD

Lilly (Loren Horsley) works in a fast food restaurant and garners the respect of no one. But she takes it on the chin and remains curiously sweet. She's got a crush on Jarrod, a narcissist geek with a horrible mullet played by Jemaine Clement of Flight of the Conchords fame. Jarrod and Lilly hook up at a party one night. (Do you want to have sex? OK.) Jarrod has a mission-to crush a samoan lad who tortured him in school. He returns home to fight his nemesis. I won't give it away, but the ending to this movie had me laughing hysterically. This is a completely original script absent banal comedy and full of emotional depth. You won't see films like this coming out of Hollywood these days. Thank you Taika and the NZ Film Commission.

Many people have compared Eagle to Napoleon Dynamite, but I find the comparison lacking. Yes, Lily and Jarrod are geeks, but the similarities with Napoleon end there. This isn't a geek revenge movie though the plot may seem like that on the face of it. The movie is titled Eagle vs. Shark but it could be titled man vs. woman. Neither Lily or Jarrod run to each other as solace from the outside world. Lily has a warm home life with her brother and Jarrod is pretty solidly convinced of his stature and his ability with women until the end of the movie. It's interesting to see how Lily turns Jarod around. This film is about the balance of power between Lily and Jarod, not geeks vs the world.

There are a lot of good minor characters in this film including Jarrod's sister and her husband and Lily's brother. Jarrod's daughter is played brilliantly by an eccentric little girl whose name I can't find on the DVD. She's cute to watch. I liked Lorena's performance. She brings strength to her role as Lily but doesn't come off aggressive. It must have been a difficult role to play right.

Good extras on the film including some nice deleted scenes. The commentary with Taika was a little off putting. He seems a bit over it. His girlfriend, Lorena Horsely who plays Lily calls from NZ and they talk a bit about the film, but neither one of them seem very into it. It seems like the commentary was added a long long time after the film was made and maybe thrown in because of the success of Conchords. The most interesting commentary comes from the guy that plays Jarrod's brother in law. Taika says things like "that scene comes from the Sundance film workshop" but doesn't explain what that is or why he was there. Flight of the Conchords fans don't buy Eagle to hear any interviews or commentary with Jemaine. He is curiously absent from all the extras here as he was with Conchords. Jemaine seems more over it all these days than anyone. I doubt HBO will get a season 3 out of him unless they throw him mad mad money.

There are a lot of great views of NZ in this film. Loved the camera shot on the playground with Lily running in the mouse wheel with the bay out the back. Gorgeous. Good music from the Phoenix Foundation Horsepower, Pegasus that works well with the film. The soundtrack wasn't chosen for marketing purposes, it actually works with what's going on in the film.

When I see a good film like this, completed for under a million dollars, you wonder what is going on in Hollywood these days that more films like this aren't made. Hollywood is good at throwing money into a lot of dumb scripts with hot actors, but it takes someone like Taika to come along and demonstrate how a good movie is really about a good script, not special effects and pretty people.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Stop Calling Samoa and Watch this Film! January 9, 2008

By Gloria Cavanaugh

Format:DVD

Being a torturously huge fan of Flight of the Conchords, and Jemaine Clement, I looked forward to this film with a jubilant anticipation I haven't felt since high school. Since my love is full-on, I didn't give much thought to the actual content of Eagle vs. Shark before sitting down to view it. I was deeply surprised at the emotional depth of the story and the pronounced portrayal of the characters. Lily's yearning angst and Jarrod's tenderly obnoxious pain was palatable. I still feel the lump of wax in my chest (perhaps Jarrod, using his noble skills, could create a candle with it!). The hilarity here is fulfilling, as well. Taika Waititi doesn't take you on the predictable path of the lonely losers attempting to find solace in their absurd-yet-natural, brutal world. These twists and unexpected subtleties bring out some eye-bugging, ankle-hugging laughter. This film can hold it's own in any venue, with men and women, chicks and dudes, whether or not you've any knowledge of Clement's other pursuits. If you've ever been wronged, if you've ever felt like an outsider, if you've ever cried out, silently, for attention, you'll be able to identify with this story. If not, and you've lived a glorious life, check it out anyway. You'll love it, if only for the stop-action animation and the be-atching soundtrack. Are you keen, fool?

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Justice Is Waiting! January 5, 2008

By WildSlutAngel22

Format:DVD

This is a sweet little movie starring JEMAINE CLEMENT (of Flight of the Conchords fame) and LOREN HORSLEY (of...being Taika Waititi's girlfriend fame?). Not sure why Amazon doesn't have them listed anywhere as the stars...

The film follows Jarrod (Clement) and Lily's (Horsley) budding romance, from her crush on him as she works at a fast food restaurant he frequents, to their hook-up at a dress-as-your-favorite animal party, to visiting his hometown as he takes revenge on someone who bullied him in school. They are unlikely soul mates, bonded by similar facial moles.

The film includes beautiful shots of the New Zealand coast, a little stop-action animation, and Clement sporting a really choice mullet! Like a lot of stuff that has been coming out of New Zealand lately, it is heavy on the quirk but also has some funny and heartfelt moments. And fans of Clement will enjoy a scene in which he is wearing a Speedo.

You WILL call all of your enemies "foolish, foolish sucka" after seeing this movie!