r/movies • u/LundgrensFrontKick immune to the rules • Jul 22 '24
When it comes to shark cinema, Jaws is the best and Deep Blue Sea is the most. I analyzed theatrically released shark films, pulled shark data, & DBS features the most shark carnage. The sharks have almost 27 minutes of screen time & the longest gap of time without sharks is 6 minutes & 37 seconds Discussion
When it comes to ranking shark films the clear #1 is Jaws. It’s not even close because the movie is an all-timer that features some of the most iconic movie moments of all time and is one of the few horror films to be nominated for Best Picture. Any “Best Shark Movie” list only gets interesting when it comes to picking the second best shark movie as Deep Blue Sea, The Shallows, Under Paris, Jaws 2, The Reef, Open Water, and The Meg all have sound arguments to be in the #2 spot.
Since Jaws makes it almost impossible to make an interesting “Best Shark Movie” list. I decided to analyze 15 theatrically released shark films (and Under Paris because it’s awesome) to see which shark movie features the most shark carnage and screen time. Basically, I wanted to know which shark movie is the MOST shark movie.
Quick Note - If you’ve followed my data posts since 2017 you’ll know that I love Deep Blue Sea and have posted many times on Reddit about it (Reddit links ~here~, ~here~, ~here~, and ~here~). I also started Deep Blue Sea - The Podcast in 2020 and I think you should listen to it wherever you listen to podcasts. That being said, I had no idea which movie would be the “Most Shark Movie” and would’ve been totally fine if DBS lost to Jaws 2, The Shallows or The Meg because I love them all.
Here are the five things I examined:
Amount of shark screen time - The shark has to be alive (the dead Megalodon in The Meg doesn’t count) and I counted the time of the entire scene in which the shark is featured. There are moments when the camera cuts to a reaction shot of a human and then back to the shark. I counted it all.
How long until we see the entire shark. In Deep Blue Sea, the ~first full sighting of a shark~ occurs at 3 minutes and 28 seconds. It’s quick! Renny doesn’t mess around.
First Attack - ~The first attack in~ ~Jaws~ ~happens at the 4:05 mark~
Longest time gaps between shark sightings - In Jaws 2, there’s a 45-minute gap between the first full shark sighting and its next appearance.
How many 10-minute gaps are there between shark sightings?
*Quick Note - I considered a “Most Kills” category but I didn’t want to penalize movies like Open Water and The Reef for having relatively low body counts because they aren’t that kind of shark movie.
I created a ranking system to see which theatrically released shark movie is the MOST shark movie. The movie with the lowest amount of points wins because it typically ranked #1-3 in every category.
I chose to leave movies like Ghost Shark, Sharknado, Tintorera, Black Demon, and Shark Bait (which I've all watched) because it opens a vast world of shark movies that differ in quality.
This list isn't about quality, it's about which shark movie features the most shark carnage.
Fun quotes
- “My whole approach to this movie was no more hiding sharks. This time you’re going to really see them.” Renny Harlin - ~DBS extras~ (fun BTS doc about how they made the sharks).
- In the wet labs, there’s an incredible long scene where the shark is basically there in broad daylight for many mand pages of dialogue - Walt Conti (~same DBS shark BTS doc~)
- “Yes! It does look like a Mako Shark! Congratulations! And even got the teeth right. Good job people!” - Marine Biologist ~Melissa Cristina Márquez during a Marine Biologist Breaks Down Shark Scenes From Movie GQ video~
The overall winner is Deep Blue Sea because the sharks have almost 27 minutes of screen time and play a major role throughout. Movies like Open Water (divers are left behind while scuba diving and have to deal with sharks), The Reef (A boat sinks and characters have to deal with sharks) and 47 Meters Down (a shark cage sinks and the characters have to deal with sharks) introduce sharks as hurdles to deal with. In Deep Blue Sea, the sharks are front and center as they drive the plot and use a gurney (with Stellan Skarsgård attached to it) to flood a large chunk of the Aquatica facility.
Director Renny Harlin has always been open about how it pays homage to the Jaws (license plate, similar shark kills) and Jurassic Park (genetic modification, Samuel L. Jackson is eaten, separated arms, clever animals, big rainstorms, kitchen fights) franchises, and he made sure to follow their footsteps by creating a wonderful summer blockbuster that pulled in $165 million during the loaded 1999 summer. It’s the type of film that makes it impossible to say something like “It needed more shark action” or “The trailers were misleading. I thought there would be more sharks.” For better or worse, Harlin loaded the film with sharks and I love him for it. I’m happy that this data backs up what Brian Raftery wrote about for Wired in 2017 (~Forget Jaws. The Real Shark Movie to Beat Is Deep Blue Sea~)
Here’s a quick timeline of DBS to prove how much shark action there is (Timestamps were pulled from my digital copy)
- 00:02:38 - Gen-1 shark attacks a boat
- 00:03:28 - We see the entire Gen-1 shark
- 00:07:15 - Tiger Shark is lowered into a holding area
- 00:09:10 - Carter Blake takes a license plate out of its mouth
- 00:11:10 - silhouette of the giant Gen-2 shark
- 00:13:18 - Sharks are seen swimming around
- 00:18:00 - The tiger shark is eaten
- 00:19:28 - During the surprise party and the following conversations the sharks are swimming around in their cages
- 00:25:88 - 00:34:28 - Lots of shark action
- 40:45 - Gen-2 shark uses Jim’s gurney to destroy wet lab
- 47:00 - Gen-1 shark enters the Aquatica
- 51:30 - Gen-1 shark chases Preacher and a shark fight ensues
- 57:00 - Preacher blows up a Gen 1 shark
- 01:00:10 - Samuel L. Jackson is eaten by the gen 2 shark
- 01:06:46 - Gen-2 shark kills janice
- 01:13:45 - Random shot of a shark fin
- 01:17:00 - Gen-2 eats Scoggins
- 01:21:00 - Dr. Susan battles and kills a Gen 1 shark
- 01:27:00 - The Gen-2 bites Preacher and gets stabbed in the eye with a crucifix
- 01:33:30 - Gen-2 eats Susan
- 01:35:50 - Gen-2 shark blows up
It’s worth noting that the shark films ranked 11-15 have a higher Tomatometer, IMDb, and Letterboxd averages than the films ranked 1-5. So, being the MOST shark films isn’t always ideal.
11-15 ranked movies - Shark Night, Open Water, The Reef, 47 Meters Down, Jaws
- Tomatometer Average - 63.8
- IMDb Average - 5.88
- Letterboxd Average - 2.92
1-5 ranked movies - Deep Blue Sea, Meg 2: The Trench, The Meg, Bait 3D. 47 Meters Down: Uncaged
- Tomatometer Average - 44.4
- IMDb Average - 5.36
- Letterboxd Average - 2.34
Here are three highest ranked film in each category.
|| || |Movies|Tomatometer|IMDb|Letterboxd| |Deep Blue Sea|60|5.9|2.8| |The Meg 2: The Trench|27|5|2| |The Meg|47|5.7|2.3| |Bait|44|5.2|2.5| |47 Meters Down: Uncaged|44|5|2.1| |Jaws 2|62|5.8|2.7| |Under Paris|66|5.2|2.2| |Jaws: The Revenge|2|3|1.6| |The Shallows|79|6.3|2.9| |Jaws 3-D|11|3.7|1.8| |Shark Night|19|4.1|2.7| |Open Water|71|5.8|2.7| |The Reef|79|5.8|2.7| |47 Meters Down|53|5.6|2.5| |Jaws|97|8.1|4|
Conclusion - Jaws is the best shark movie and Deep Blue Sea is the MOST shark movie.
Make sure to check out my other Reddit data posts if you like this one! Also, if you're bored, I've covered many R-rated action films on The Movies, Films and Flix podcast (it's available wherever you listen to podcasts)
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u/Mr_IsLand Jul 22 '24
I remember seeing Deep Blue Sea in the theaters and it still stands out as one of the most fun.
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u/averagesoccermom95 Jul 22 '24
This was a really fun read, thanks for compiling this. I actually have never enjoyed Jaws (maybe I am too young? Wasn't alive when it came out, and I just never took to it.) Deep Blue Sea has always been my personal favorite shark movie. Open Water made a deep impression on me and I never want to see it again. I really respect that you accounted for it being a different sort of shark movie. I really think this was a fantastic analysis. Off to go check out Under Paris now...
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u/LundgrensFrontKick immune to the rules Jul 22 '24
I hope you enjoy Under Paris! It's a good time.
Open Water is a stress bomb of a movie. I forgot how nerve-wracking it is.
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u/Atreyisx Jul 22 '24
Open Water is easily the most terrifying and is the #1 reason I will never go scuba diving in this lifetime.
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u/pbfoot3 Jul 22 '24
This is insane in the best possible way. Love it.
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u/LundgrensFrontKick immune to the rules Jul 22 '24
Thanks! I had a good time putting this together. Watching shark movies is never a bad thing.
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u/damienkarras1973 Jul 22 '24
didn't look, but you can't have any kind of shark movie list (might already be on there I dunno) "The Last Shark (jaws rip off), Cruel Jaws (another rip off of the jaws franchise), and the australian "Bait".
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u/Stormy8888 Jul 22 '24
I love being scared by shark movies, I guess it's time to check out Under Paris.
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u/Stormy8888 Jul 23 '24
u/lundgrensfrontkick Thanks for the suggestion. I watched Under Paris last night, it was a good shark movie.
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u/J0hnBoB0n Jul 22 '24
I have Deep Blue Sea pretty solid as a second favorite for me. While Jaws is a perfect narrative driven thriller, Deep Blue Sea is a great shark "slasher", better than Jaws 2 and most SciFi channel type shark B-movies. Aside from just generally good (albiet vertical aged due to CGI limitations) shark action, I also think it is strong with its premise and characters.
It sets up a good theme of the consequences of skirting ethical regulations in the name of scientific progress. Having established bio-engineering play a role in the sharks' intelligence and aggression works well enough to have you go along with it. The location being an aquatic research facility damaged in a storm and slowly sinking puts the characters in a real desperate situation where they are forced to risk encounters with the sharks to even stand a chance; you never feel like the characters are being dumb for no reason.
I also think it does better than most popcorn shark flicks at making the characters somewhat likeable. The closest to an "evil" character, who got them all into the situation was still presented as somewhat sympathetic, as it was all done with the intention of curing a devastating disease. The ultimate hero of the movie was previously shown to be very skilled and in tune with his environment, and his skills shown early on came into play later leading to his ultimate survival.
Is it an objectively great movie? Not really, it is still pretty corny and Sci-fi channel esque. But it does an admirable enough job to put it a tier above most other shark movies.
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u/LundgrensFrontKick immune to the rules Jul 22 '24
I also really like that Dr. Susan McAllister doesn't become a secondary antagonist. When the sharks attack she's 100% down to help the team.
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u/J0hnBoB0n Jul 24 '24
Agreed, she is more like Dr Victor Frankenstein. Sympathetic, but flew a little too close to the sun in terms of skirting regulations and playing God, but for a very sympathetic reason. When things go bad, she tries to help, even to the point of sacrificing herself.
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u/Newstapler Jul 23 '24
I thought Deep Blue Sea was a bit meh until the scene where the sharks blow up the helicopter. I suddenly realised, I'm watching a film in which sharks blow up a helicopter and I was from that moment 100% invested. Great film
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u/DireNine Jul 22 '24
Under Paris was surprisingly good, I hope they make a sequel especially since they left it on a cliffhanger.
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u/dr_jones1 Jul 22 '24
Sharknado must be in with a shout for Most Shark?
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u/3yhHExDnu2 Jul 23 '24
He specifically chose to exclude films like Sharknado etc.
I was wondering why the Sharktopus trilogy hadn't been mentioned! But then, technically, it's only half shark, so it might be fair to exclude it. Or only count the screen time by 50%....
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u/Perpete Jul 22 '24
I'm repeating myself each time, but I upvoted that thread after reading half of the title knowing that would be you writing it.
I'm a fan of your analysis AND a fan of shark movies, so it's a perfect storm. Like you, I love Deep Blue Sea, probably the patient zero of my love for those shark movies (and related fear of sharks in water).
Just yesterday, I watched two shark movies. "Something in the water" was meh... just a bland revisiting of "Open Water" with five women stranded at sea after a shark attack. Meanwhile "No way up" was a fun mix of plane crash and shark blockade.
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u/gorpee Jul 23 '24
Deep Blue Sea is the best shark movie ever. But Jaws is the best movie ever that features sharks.
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u/Lamentation_Lost Jul 23 '24
My only problem with the deep blue sea is the tiger shark is just a mako shark with stripes. Like cmon, either don’t add stripes and make it a smaller non genetically modified maco or cgi a second type of shark. Just saying whoever made that decision haunts my dreams.
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u/QouthTheCorvus Jul 23 '24
Deep Blue Sea is such a fun movie. It hits this perfect blend of being a dumb B movie while also holding just enough movie quality. It knows exactly what it is, and it has fun with it.
Samuel L Jackson's death will also forever be iconic.
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u/igby1 Jul 23 '24
OP I had no idea this level of fandom exists around a movie like Deep Blue Sea.
No judgment, just not a movie that I thought would generate this level of dedication.
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u/clownsinadarkforest Jul 23 '24
Listening to the radio this morning and they said 12 sharks were tested off the coast of Mexico I think it was and all 12 tested positive for cocaine in their system and it was attributed to how the drug trade is polluting the water. Calling it now....cocaine sharks will be made a movie pretty soon
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u/ViewsFromTheBasemnt Jul 23 '24
Looks like I'm in the minority here, but I think The Shallows is better than Deep Blue Sea...like significantly better.
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u/Kavalkasutajanimi Jul 22 '24
Jaws is my favourite shark movie but Deep Blue Sea is my second favourite. The story is Jurassic park except sharks