2025 is the 50^th anniversary of Jaws. Since there’s not much left to be said about one of the most popular movies of all time, I decided to rewatch one of the underrated gems of the “sharksplotation” genre, Jaws 3D; a movie that would most certainly not be able to be made today. 

• Directed by: Joe Alves
• Written by: Peter Benchley Richard Matheson Carl Gottlieb
• Starring: Dennis Quaid Bess Armstrong Simon MacCorkindale

Bold Location Choices

The main reason for this is the plot and filming location centers Jaws 3D on Sea World Orlando, then known as Sea World Florida.   Between then and now, Sea World has become the focus of animal abuse documentaries and investigations. Sea World has since refocused their mission on conservation, but they still have a long way to go. Back in 1983, audiences were still charmed by the idea of orca shows.  So much so that Sea World was comfortable with the idea of being the villain. At least, their representative is the human antagonist. While the head of the park is the obvious money-hungry, evil CEO type, none of the humans are all that great here.

By modern standards, the entire park is shady, so it is important to keep reminding yourself that this was filmed in the early ‘80s.  That doesn’t make the shoddy construction of the undersea kingdom any more forgivable. It springs a leak after the slightest shark boop. It’s interesting that for a movie that was probably intended to be a large ad for Sea World, the overarching theme is “leave nature alone”.  They don’t understand the animals well enough to keep them alive, and they don’t know the environment well enough to build in it. 

Good Bad

But honestly that’s what makes it fun. Except for the Brody brothers, everyone is acting deeply in their own self-interest. Calvin Bouchard (Louis Gosset Jr.) wants to make money for the park; the photographer wants fame; the doctor wants to raise a baby shark in captivity; Brody Jr. just wants to stay out of the water. This collision of fantastically selfish characters is amazing, as the moment when they are faced with the consequences of their actions. 

I like how quickly Calvin becomes weak and ineffective once the shark destroys his park and endangers people. He’s such a big, blustery character early on, but he goes from “I run the park, I make the decisions”, to “I’ll be in the control room” once it’s established that he has no skills that can help anyone. Not that having useful skills counts for much here. 

The only true MVPs on the team are Sandy and Cindy, the dolphins. These are the most poorly trained dolphins in all of Sea World. They don’t respond to the doctor’s calls. They leap whenever they feel like it, and they are still the only ones with a winning track record against the shark. 

I Guess the People Matter

The actors do a fair job of bringing their uniquely skilled characters to life. It’s a great cast for the ‘80s. Dennis Quaid is the grown eldest Brody son, Mike, now working as an engineer. Long-time character actor Bess Armstrong is the park’s senior biologist. Lea Thomson has a small role as a park entertainer.  No one is delivering Oscar-winning performances here.  For a movie where the focus is on the tech—it’s a 3D movie after all—and the shark, no one is painful to watch either.  

As mentioned earlier, Jaws 3D keeps its connection to the earlier movies by making its lead a member of the Brody family. It brings in the younger brother to make a light B-plot about his trauma.  This establishes the storyline of having sharks hunt the Brody’s for revenge, a plot that filmmakers felt they needed to fully explore in Jaws: The Revenge. I’m not going to cover it anytime soon, but I will say this: While there are a lot of valid reasons to be cautious of the ocean, sharks hunting your family for multi-generational vengeance is not one of them.

Do the Effects Hold up?

Oh no. Not even a little. At the end of the movie, there is a shot I’m pretty sure I could replicate with a toy shark from PopShelf.   The scale of the shark changes from scene to scene, and it never manages to look like a living creature. I’m not watching it in 3D as intended since I streamed it, but I don’t think that would matter much. Nor does it affect my enjoyment.  

About a Shark

Of course, the sharks in the Jaws franchise are not normal sharks. They don’t kill or attack out of hunger. These are creatures driven by spite. It’s fine if you realize the difference between fact and fiction. But, media literacy is dead. So, for decades people have held sharks up as the great killers of the sea when facts and figures don’t really represent that. Much of this is due to the fear that Jaws instilled in us. There’s a great documentary about this too (link).Sharksplotaion on Shudder. 

Final Thoughts

If you love the idea of a shark attacking people at SeaWorld out of revenge, then this might be some fun. It’s low on deaths and real scares, and the humans probably get off light. I guess even in the ‘80s, Sea World had its limits. If you want to see serious blood in the water, maybe check out one of the many, many other shark movies. I personally prefer the ones where the sharks win.  

Jaws 3-D is on streaming, but then again, so is Jaws: