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| “ | So this is the Sharkslayer. I've been lookin' forward to meeting you. I feel like we're practically family. You know that? Funny, ain't it? I brought my kids into the world, full of love and care, and you took them out. You know who I am? Do you know who I am? I'm the Don. The boss of the Great White Sharks. I've been runnin' this reef since before you was born. And if you thought a guy like me can't get to a guy like you, Guess what? You thought wrong. | „ |
| ~ Lino to Oscar. |
| “ | Oscar: Hey, Don Lino, sir. Listen, it's not his fault, this is between you and me! Don Lino: What did I ever do to You?! You took Frankie away, and you turned Lenny into a dolphin! (becomes infuriated) I'm gonna get you!! |
„ |
| ~ Lino's breakdown, as he starts to chase Oscar after the latter tried to defend Lenny |
Don Edward Lino, or simply known as Don Lino, is the main antagonist of DreamWorks' 9th full-length animated feature film, Shark Tale.
He is the pompous leader of the Great White sharks, the boss of Luca and Lola, the father of Lenny and Frankie, and the former arch-nemesis turned good friend of Oscar.
Lino desired for Lenny and Frankie (both of whom he treats like his henchmen) to take over the business and run it together, having become infuriated at the idea of Oscar getting in the way. In the end, he redeemed himself, after Oscar confesses that he is not a "Sharkslayer" and that it was an anchor that had killed Frankie. He then strongly urged Don Lino not to prejudge people before he knows them properly, and to not make the mistake he made in prejudging his wealth. Following all of the conflict, Don Lino and Lenny reconciled and fully dissolved their issues.
He was voiced by Robert De Niro, who also played Fearless Leader in The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle, Vito Corleone in The Godfather Part II, Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver, Neil McCauley in Heat, Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull, Jimmy Conway in Goodfellas, Ace Rothstein in Casino, and Frank Sheeran in The Irishman. In the video game, he was voiced by Jim Meskimen.
Biography[]
Shark Tale[]
Don Lino is first seen feeding his piranhas in his home, which is a wreck of an old sunken Ocean Liner, and talking to Sykes to prepare his sons Lenny and Frankie to run the reef saying that "today is that day". However, Sykes laughs at Lino and says that Frankie he understands, but Lenny cannot be serious; however, Lino says that he is "dead serious" and said that it takes muscles to run things, he tells Sykes that his youngest son, Lenny "he's got the brains" and said that it's something special. When Sykes tells Lino that Lenny is no killer, Frustrated, Lino orders Sykes fired, as well and demands him to start paying him so nothing happens to the Whale Wash.
Later at a restaurant, Lino questions Lenny over his gentle behavior and tells him that in order to succeed him as head of the Reef, his son has to be an aggressive shark like Frankie. Spotting live shrimp cocktail, Lino grabs one and insists that Lenny eats it. Lenny ultimately refuses and instead releases all the shrimp out the window. Furious and embarrassed, Lino orders Frankie to show Lenny the ropes and tells Lenny that he's "gonna learn how to be a shark! Whether you like it or not."
When he hears that Frankie was killed, and Lenny had gone missing, Lino is devastated. During Frankie's funeral, Don Feinberg tells him about the Sharkslayer. Lino asks where he can find the Sharkslayer to which Feinberg responds "He's from the Southside Reef. That's all we could dig up." Lino nonetheless thanks Feinberg for his help. As Feinberg leaves, Lino vows revenge on finding out who the Sharkslayer is to avenge Frankie's death. He bribes Lola for her partnership on one condition, she has to kidnap the Sharkslayer, which she does by falling in love with her in exchange for his partnership and sends his goons to Southside to take down Oscar, but Oscar easily scares them off by pretending to defeat Lenny.
Later, Lola informs him about Oscar's feelings for Angie, convincing him that Angie is the Sharkslayer's weakness. So, she arranges Lino to kidnap Angie for Oscar's obedience. At the sit-down, Lino reveals Angie to Oscar tied up and gagged and threatens to eat her if he doesn't comply. Oscar insists he doesn't know Angie, but Lola quickly calls him out on his bluffing. Lino then growls to Oscar that "Your sharkslayin' days are over! And there ain't nothin' you can do about it." In response, Oscar has Lenny (disguised as a dolphin) grab Angie and eat her on the spot (grabbing her in her mouth, but not swallowing), but Lenny begins choking and vomits Angie out. Lenny's disgust in fish causes Lino to recognize his youngest son. Lenny, in defeat, sheds his dolphin disguise. Lino is outraged and embarrassed by the situation and accuses Lenny of "taking sides against the family". When Oscar tries to defend Lenny, Lino's sadness turns into a murderous rage, and he begins to chase Oscar, snapping his jaws at him.
As Oscar swims out of a porthole, Edward gets stuck. He then growls "You're gonna regret the day you became the Sharkslayer!". Suddenly the shrimp (the one Lino tried to force Lenny to eat) pops out of another porthole and gets his revenge on Lino by having his swarm attack Lino's face. But as Oscar swims off, Lino's rage keeps him going. Oscar leads Lino towards the Whale Wash. He pulls down a lever to trap him into a whale clasping device, only to discover that he trapped Lenny by mistake. Lino continues to chase Oscar. Eventually, Oscar subdues Lino by trapping him into another machine, leaving him face to face with Lenny.
However, Oscar can't take a false reputation any longer, so he finally confesses that he lied about being a Sharkslayer and that Frankie was accidentally killed by an anchor. Upon hearing this, a confused Lino asks Lenny why he ran away in the first place even when he knew what Oscar was saying was true the whole time, to which Lenny responded that he ran away because Lino never accepted him for who he was and how he pushed him to be like Frankie. Oscar gives Lino a speech of how everybody else accepts Lenny, even Oscar himself admits that he considers Lenny a good friend because of it, asking Lino why he cannot do the same. Oscar also admits that he did not know what he truly had until he lost it and tells Lino not to make the same mistake he made. Feeling remorseful for his own actions and realizing that Oscar is right, Lino asks Oscar to free him so he can undo the big mistake he made on Lenny. Lino reconciles with Lenny by embracing him and apologizing for his behavior, saying that he loves him regardless of whether or not he a killer shark. Lino thanks Oscar for straightening things out and agrees to form a peace between the reef and the mob, much to everyone's delight.
In the end, Lino, Lenny, and their mob visit the Whale Wash. Sykes tries to give Lino a fin-shake telling him he has to snap his fin. Lino insists that he is snapping his fins. Sykes retorts "It's alright a lot of great whites can't do it yo!" Then Sykes keeps saying "yo! yo yo" repeatedly until Lino gets annoyed and threatens Sykes "You say yo one more time, and I'm gonna yo you!". It represented that it was getting annoying; he was supposedly exaggerating with the silly history they have with going back and forth from friends to enemies.
Personality[]
Lino was initially a ruthless, cruel, vicious, aggressive and bloodthirsty crime lord. Unlike his merciful, kind, empathetic, and compassionate son Lenny, he had no qualms about killing fish smaller than him. He was also extremely vengeful, unpleasant, and vituperative, as he tried to get revenge on Oscar for killing Frankie. However, when Oscar explained the true circumstances behind Frankie's death, Lino shows a sense of remorse as he sees that he started a feud against Oscar for nothing. With that in mind, Lino apologizes for his actions and became friends with Oscar, promising that neither he nor his sharks would attack the reef again.
Though he is a fierce, quarrelsome and short-tempered shark with such good looks, Lino does show a softer and more caring side, as he was devastated by Frankie's death. Though he was fed up with Lenny's refusal to kill anything, Lino loved Lenny very much and by the end of the film, he finally accepts Lenny for who he was by saying "I love you, son. No matter what you eat or how you dress." Like most of the other characters in the movie, Lino shows that he can be easily duped despite being a feared mob boss. He never questions how Oscar, a mere fish, could kill Frankie. This is further proof that he is pretty gullible despite his ruthless nature.
Appearance[]
Lino is a very large, broad built, muscular, and rather imposing great white shark and is very handsome and good-looking as well. He also has a mole on his right cheek, just like his voice actor Robert De Niro. Lino also has light blue eyes as well as a full set of big, sharp teeth across his jaws.
Quotes[]
| “ | You see, Sykes, it's a fish-eat-fish world - you either take or you get TAKEN! | „ |
| ~ Lino to Sykes. |
| “ | Hey, Luca... Get Sykes. He knows that Reef better than anybody. I want to know all about this guy. I want to know what he does. I want to know where he eats. I want to know where he sleeps. He pops a gill, I want to know about it. Who is the Sharkslayer?! | „ |
| ~ Lino to Luca. |
| “ | My Lenny is a killer, you hear me? A cold-blooded killer! Look at him! | „ |
| ~ Lino about Lenny. |
| “ | Lino: That's it! That's IT! You are OUT! Sykes: What? (puffs up nervously) What do you mean I'm out? Lino: You're fired! (hits Sykes and the latter lands on the painting of Rose) And on top of that, you are gonna have to start paying me! Sykes: For what? Lino: So nothing happens to that little whale wash of yours. |
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| ~ Lino firing Sykes and having him pay him so nothing ensues to the whale wash. |
| “ | Don Lino: We've been over it times. I don't want to have to say it again. You're really giving me agita, you know that? I don't know how else to say this to you, Lenny. You see something, you kill it, you eat it. Period. That's what sharks do. What's the matter with you? Your brother Frankie, here, he's a killer. He's beautiful. He does what he's supposed to do. (to Lenny) But you... I'm hearing things. You gotta understand, when you look weak, it makes me look weak. I can't have that. Lenny: I know Pop, I'm sorry. Don Lino: This handin' over the business, it's for both of yous, and you're acting like you don't even want it. I need to know that you can handle that. All right. Right here in front of me now, eat this. Lenny: Here's the thing. I'm on a diet. I read an article about these shrimps. They're bad for ya. You know how many calories are in one of those shrimps? A lot. Shrimp: It's true. And the other thing is my sister had a baby and I took it over because she passed away and then the baby lost it's legs and it's arms and now it's nothing but a stump but I still take care of it with my wife and it's growing and it's fairly happy, but it's difficult 'cause I've been working a second shift at the factory to put food on the table, but all the love I see in that little guy's face makes it worth it in the end. [beat] True story. Don Lino: I'm not asking you anymore. I'm telling you EAT IT! Shrimp: No. Have mercy! Lenny: Pop, Please! No! Don Lino: Eat the shrimp! Lenny: No! Please! Lino: Lenny! EAT EAT EAT EAT EAT EAT!!!! Lenny: Don't! Pop! Various shrimps: No No No No No!!!!!! Lenny: PUT THE SHRIMP DOWN!!!!! [snatches all the shrimps] Go now. No one's looking. Get out of here. You're free, now go. Shrimp: You're a good person. Frankie: I can handle the reef, It's not a problem. Don Lino: No. We're gonna do this as a family. Frankie, I want you to take Lenny out and show him the ropes. and Son, you're gonna learn how to be a shark. Whether you like it or not. |
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| ~ Lino forcing Lenny to eat the shrimp before the latter tells him to stop and allowing the shrimp to escape and Don Lino orders Frankie to take Lenny out to kill |
| “ | Oscar: Hello? Lino: "Shut up"? "Shut up"?! You don't tell ME "shut up", I tell YOU "shut up!" (Someone calls on another line) What? Hello? Luca: Yeah, howya doin'? Lemme have a pie with everything on it: anchovies, meatballs, mushrooms... Lino: LUCA! Luca: Oh, hi, Boss. What are you doin' workin' at a pizza joint? Don Lino: GET OFF THE PHONE! Luca: But I'm hungry! Don Lino: My guys are comin' for you, Sharkslayer! They're gonna tear you FIN FROM FIN! |
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| ~ Lino threatens Oscar. |
| “ | Lenny: Hi, pop. Don Lino: Are you kidding me?! Are you kidding me?! Are you out of your mind?! Do you have any idea how this looks?! Giuseppe: (To another shark) This is the best sit-down I've ever been to! Don Lino: What are you doing with this guy? He took out your own flesh and blood! Frankie! Lenny: But pop, just listen! Don Lino: But nothing! You never take sides against the family, ever! Oscar: Hey, Don Lino Sir Listen. It's not his fault. This is between you and me. Don Lino: What did I ever do to you? You took Frankie away and you turned Lenny into a dolphin! I'm gonna get you!! |
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| ~ Lino's meltdown as he realizes that "Sebastian the dolphin" is Lenny in disguise, before Don Lino chases Oscar |
| “ | Don Lino: You're gonna regret the day you became the Sharkslayer! Shrimp: Well... well... well... Look who's stuck in the porthole. Don Lino: Huh? Shrimp: You still hungry big guy? Well, SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE FRIENDS!!! |
„ |
| ~ Lino attacking Oscar before getting attacked by a shrimp swarm. |
| “ | Come here you. I love you son. No matter what you eat, or how you dress. | „ |
| ~ Lino apologizing to his son, Lenny for his actions. |
| “ | Oscar? Yeah, I know him. Just goes to show you that even a little fish can make a splash in a big pond, under the right circumstances. In his case, he's lucky he didn't end up as an hors d'oeuvre at a shark banquet. | „ |
| ~ While being interviewed at the very beginning of the video game. |
| “ | Sure, I'll admit, I went a little overboard. But he's my son! My own flesh and blood! How could he make me lose face like that in front of the other shark families? And that Oscar, all I remember is hearing the other Dons laughing, and then seeing red. Everything after that is a blur until the Whale Wash. | „ |
| ~ While being interviewed near the end of the video game. |
Trivia[]
- Lino's mole on his right cheek is similar to his voice actor, Robert De Niro.
- Lino is the second main antagonist of a DreamWorks Animation film to be reformed, right after The Colonel from Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron.
- Lino's wife is only seen once (sobbing on his left shoulder during Frankie's funeral ceremony).
- Robert De Niro was offered the role of Stinky Pete the Prospector in Disney/Pixar's Toy Story 2 and Rameses in DreamWorks' The Prince of Egypt, but he turned down both of the offers. Interestingly, he accepted the offer to voice Don Lino and Shark Tale is a DreamWorks film. In fact, Kelsey Grammer was cast as the voice of Stinky Pete the Prospector while Ralph Fiennes was cast as the voice of Rameses.
- He is the first animated character to be voiced by Robert De Niro.
- The late James Gandolfini, who portrayed Tony Soprano, was originally going to be the voice actor for Don Lino, but dropped out of the film for unexplained reasons.
- According to the DVD commentary, Don Lino would have hired an electric eel named Polly for the 5,000 clams loan to the racetrack but the filmmakers decided to remove Polly and gave the eel's motives to Sykes.
- Don Lino represents what his younger son, Lenny, would've become if he enforced himself into being a predatory shark, and lost all sympathy for others (including his best friend, Oscar).
External Links[]
- Don Lino on the Shark Tale Wiki
- Don Lino on the DreamWorks Wiki
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