Poor sharks. It’s already bad enough that their numbers are dwindling daily; they also have to be slandered by Hollywood as voracious killing machines.

It’s not their fault, so much as it is evolution’s that they happen to be the apex predator of the oceans, with a fearsome appearance to match.

And now, sharks have to contend with one of the most dangerous, cruel and merciless creatures that has ever existed in the history of the world: an Englishman.

More specifically, one bald Englishman in the form of Jason Statham, who sets his eyes on taking down Megalodons, the gargantuan ancestor of sharks.

Statham first played Jonas Taylor in the 2018 sci-fi action monster film, “The Meg”, which was a surprise hit.

This year, Statham is back in the saddle as Taylor in “Meg 2: The Trench”, a direct sequel to that cheesy but entertaining film.

What’s the story about? Wait, there’s a story? “Meg 2” could have easily existed without one, since audiences for this sort of film only want to see victims getting munched on.

Well, there is a semblance of a story. Set several years after the events of the first film, Taylor is now an eco-warrior, fighting climate change with his fists.

That’s literal, mind you. His introduction scene has him facing off against a ship’s crew that dumped toxic waste into the sea.

He eventually reunites with the little girl from the previous film, Meiying, still played by the same child (teen?) actress, Sophia Cai.

Turns out her mother, Suyin died somewhere offscreen and she is now being cared for by her uncle, Zhang (Jacky Wu).

Zhang is a marine researcher exploring an uncharted trench deep at the bottom of the ocean, and hires Taylor to lead the expedition.

Of course, nothing’s ever that easy. There’s megalodons down there, along with some other nasty creatures who like nibbling on humans.

One thing leads to another and there are megalodons roaming free in the oceans once more, with Taylor being humanity’s only saviour.

Some people have previously described “The Meg” as a B-grade film with an A-grade film budget. That is still the case with “Meg 2”.

It does work to the film’s benefit that director Ben Wheatley was aware he was not making an Oscar-worthy project; it’s just a dumb popcorn film to watch and laugh at.

And laugh at it, you will. There are just so many ridiculous scenes in the film’s 116-minute runtime; all of which demand you turn off your brain to enjoy.

Already, the trailers show off the opening scene where a Tyrannosaurus Rex gets pulled into the sea by a hungry Megalodon.

Another scene brings the recent Oceangate disaster to mind. Remember how at great depths, the pressure is so intense that it would crush a human into pulp almost instantly?

Well, in this film, Taylor swims out of an underwater facility at the bottom of the ocean, with nothing but a swimsuit… and doesn’t immediately get squashed. No amount of scientific mumbo-jumbo is going to convince anyone that this is realistically possible in any situation!

Funnily enough, another character, with a damaged helmet, suffers a scientifically accurate fate and though it’s not outright confirmed, it’s implied her head is no more afterwards.

Needless to say, if you have a scientific background, just throw your books out the window. Otherwise, you will want your head to implode as well.

Assuming you are able to suspend your disbelief, you should be able to enjoy just how ridiculous everything in this film is.

And to add to the ridiculousness, you have dialogue which seems to have been copied from every B-grade film in the last hundred years.

“He’s the only one who can do it,” says one character as a door slowly closes, with Taylor posing heroically on the other side.

Speaking of characters, while there are several, you really shouldn’t attach to most, except for a handful of the named ones.

Of course, Taylor gets the most plot armour, being protected from literally everything the movie throws at him.

The fact that he’s never realistically in danger could take away from the tension, but you might just want to stick around to just see how ridiculous things get.

If there are any issues with the film, it’s probably that “Meg 2” could have actually used more of the titular creatures onscreen.

Yes, they do show up and are present for the finale. But there’s also way too much screen time given to pesky human baddies with guns.

People came to watch “Meg 2” to watch people get eaten by sharks, not get chased around by gunmen! Less guns, more guts, please!

As of press time, ‘Meg 2: The Trench’ is screening in cinemas nationwide.