Warning- Spoilers Contained Below Jaws 3 was the third film in Universal Studios' shark-thriller movie series. The first film, released in 1975, was a pioneering blockbuster directed by Steven Spielberg. He passed on a sequel, and so Jaws 2 was directed by Jeannot Swarc. Generally considered inferior to the first, it nonetheless made a modest profit at the box office in 1978. Five years would pass before another sequel was madebut perhaps it shouldn't have. 1983 saw a brief revival of 3-D films at the box-office, with minimal results. It was likely presumed that a 3-D Jaws would have more 'bite' to offer filmgoers. It didn't work.
This time (directed by Joe Alves), the action moves from the New England town of Amity to a coastal Florida Sea World amusement park. The film damages its thematic credibility early on by prematurely aging the Brody boys, sons of Chief Brody of the first two Jaws films. Now the 30-ish Mike (played by Dennis Quaid in his 80's zenith) is an engineer/designer of underwater tunnel systems, with Sean college-aged and visiting his big brother for the summer. Bess Armstrong is Kathryn Morgan, the park's head marine biologist and Mike's love interest. Lea Thompson is Kelly, a ski-show performer and Sean's would-be girlfriend.
Louis Gossett, Jr. (who had recently won an Oscar for his role in An Officer and a Gentleman) plays the flamboyant Calvin Bouchard, a New Orleans-reared businessman who has just recently taken over as the manager of the park. Fishy things start to happen when a great white shark apparently mauls an unsuspecting worker near the park's storm drainage tunnels.
Enter Philip FitzRoyce, played by Simon MacCorkindale (TV's "Manimal") an Australian wildlife photographer/hunter who offers to capture the rogue predator. He is successful, and Bouchard orders that the shark be put on display to seize on the publicity. His decision is questioned by Kathryn and Mike, the latter of whom knows all too well that great whites aren't anything to trifle with.
Soon, the shark specimen dieshowever, the recently discovered remains of another shark victim indicate that they couldn't have been killed by the shark in custodythis one would have to be much bigger. Shortly afterwards, the park staff (and their clientele) are face to face with the shark's motherover 30 feet in length and apparently feeling a maternal revenge instinct. From there, shark mayhem starts happening in a major way, as the murderous predator mauls its way through a ski-show exhibition, the bumper boat lagoon, and floods an observation tunnel. The shark is contained only temporarily, setting up the climax where viewers get to see a slow-motion reaction shot from the protagonists as the shark apparently has the presence of mind to charge headlong into an underwater control room to get at those pesky humans.
Quaid is decent enough as a lead and Gossett is always a pleasure to watch, but despite their acting pedigrees this film is still strictly B-grade at best. It is unintentionally humorous that Sea World would lend its brand name to be potentially marred as vulnerable to shark invasion (technically, there are no coastal-based Sea World parks). Perhaps the show dolphins prominently featured in the film (another real-life park attraction) had something to do with the enticementthough it would have been great if at least one of them were sacrificed to the shark. The special effects here are dated, and rendered muter for the fact that the 3-D effect has been removed. Certain scenes show objects heading straight for the camera (like a hypodermic needle, a crossbow bolt, shattered glassoh yes, and 'Bruce'). Minus the 3-D effect, unknowing viewers may question the odd choice of angles. Everyone except a Jaws completist should only rent this film.
This time (directed by Joe Alves), the action moves from the New England town of Amity to a coastal Florida Sea World amusement park. The film damages its thematic credibility early on by prematurely aging the Brody boys, sons of Chief Brody of the first two Jaws films. Now the 30-ish Mike (played by Dennis Quaid in his 80's zenith) is an engineer/designer of underwater tunnel systems, with Sean college-aged and visiting his big brother for the summer. Bess Armstrong is Kathryn Morgan, the park's head marine biologist and Mike's love interest. Lea Thompson is Kelly, a ski-show performer and Sean's would-be girlfriend.
Louis Gossett, Jr. (who had recently won an Oscar for his role in An Officer and a Gentleman) plays the flamboyant Calvin Bouchard, a New Orleans-reared businessman who has just recently taken over as the manager of the park. Fishy things start to happen when a great white shark apparently mauls an unsuspecting worker near the park's storm drainage tunnels.
Enter Philip FitzRoyce, played by Simon MacCorkindale (TV's "Manimal") an Australian wildlife photographer/hunter who offers to capture the rogue predator. He is successful, and Bouchard orders that the shark be put on display to seize on the publicity. His decision is questioned by Kathryn and Mike, the latter of whom knows all too well that great whites aren't anything to trifle with.
Soon, the shark specimen dieshowever, the recently discovered remains of another shark victim indicate that they couldn't have been killed by the shark in custodythis one would have to be much bigger. Shortly afterwards, the park staff (and their clientele) are face to face with the shark's motherover 30 feet in length and apparently feeling a maternal revenge instinct. From there, shark mayhem starts happening in a major way, as the murderous predator mauls its way through a ski-show exhibition, the bumper boat lagoon, and floods an observation tunnel. The shark is contained only temporarily, setting up the climax where viewers get to see a slow-motion reaction shot from the protagonists as the shark apparently has the presence of mind to charge headlong into an underwater control room to get at those pesky humans.
Quaid is decent enough as a lead and Gossett is always a pleasure to watch, but despite their acting pedigrees this film is still strictly B-grade at best. It is unintentionally humorous that Sea World would lend its brand name to be potentially marred as vulnerable to shark invasion (technically, there are no coastal-based Sea World parks). Perhaps the show dolphins prominently featured in the film (another real-life park attraction) had something to do with the enticementthough it would have been great if at least one of them were sacrificed to the shark. The special effects here are dated, and rendered muter for the fact that the 3-D effect has been removed. Certain scenes show objects heading straight for the camera (like a hypodermic needle, a crossbow bolt, shattered glassoh yes, and 'Bruce'). Minus the 3-D effect, unknowing viewers may question the odd choice of angles. Everyone except a Jaws completist should only rent this film.