Ian West’s review published on Letterboxd:
Super solid and unnerving, Orca hits its gruesome sad note early on via the disturbing and grotesque inciting incident... and quickly turns into a straight up stop at nothing killer whale revenge jam—and it’s really good!
Moody atmos, somber icey landscapes, a killer little cast, a GREAT Morricone score, and that gloomy nihilistic ending gives off somber vibes. I’m sure this was probably put out to capitalize on the JAWS train, but Orca is nowhere near a blatant ripoff—this thing goes for its own narrative and I dig that. I love how they show a great white being taken out by the Orca as a way to say we mean business... then JAWS 2 has the dead killer whale on the beach with a bite mark the size of a Buick taken out of it lol—friendly competition I guess.
Anyways, this still packs quite a punch—like each whale attack escalating in insanity or the stinging emotional plotline that any mammal could relate to.
It’s almost as good as JAWS 2... but way better then Dickshark.