Jaws 3-D (1983)

The sons of police chief Brody must protect customers at a SeaWorld theme park after a thirty-five-foot shark becomes trapped in the park with them.

Director:

Joe Alves

Writers:

Peter Benchley (suggested by the novel "Jaws"), Richard Matheson (screenplay)

Stars:

Dennis Quaid, Bess Armstrong, Simon MacCorkindale

Bottom Rated Movies #58 | 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dennis Quaid	...	Mike Brody
Bess Armstrong	...	Dr. Kathryn 'Kay' Morgan
Simon MacCorkindale	...	Philip FitzRoyce
Louis Gossett Jr.	...	Calvin Bouchard
John Putch	...	Sean Brody
Lea Thompson	...	Kelly Ann Bukowski
P.H. Moriarty	...	Jack Tate
Dan Blasko	...	Dan
Liz Morris	...	Liz
Lisa Maurer	...	Ethel
Harry Grant	...	Shelby Overman
Andy Hansen	...	Silver Bullet
P.T. Horn	...	Tunnel Guide
John Edson	...	Bob Woodbury (as John Edson Jr.)
Kaye Stevens	...	Mrs. Kallender

Storyline

Several years after Amity's former Police Chief Martin Brody electrocuted the shark at Cable Junction, his sons, Mike & Sean, are now working in different roles at Sea World Orlando. Mike is working as a park engineer and considering marriage to his girlfriend, killer whale biologist Kathryn Morgan. Sean is also involved with 1 of the park's water skiers, Kelly Ann Bukowski. Sea World is about to open a massive 'Undersea Kingdom' which will bring visitors closer to marine life than ever before. The park is accessible from the ocean by a series of gates, one of which malfunctions. A young Great White Shark swims through the gate, and when a maintenance diver heads down to fix the gate he does not return. The young Great White is captured & placed in a tank but soon dies despite Kathryn's best efforts to save it. More alarming though, is the young shark's massive, 35 foot mother which has followed the baby shark into the lagoon and killed the maintenance diver, whose body is recovered. ...

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Plot Keywords:

1980s | orlando florida | orlando | florida | orange county florida | 

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Taglines:

The third dimension is terror.

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Genres:

Adventure | Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 July 1983 (USA)

Also Known As:

Jaws 3

Filming Locations:

Orlando, Florida, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$20,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$13,422,500, 24 July 1983

Gross USA:

$45,517,055

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$87,987,055

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures,Alan Landsburg Productions,MCA Theatricals

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This is the only film directed by Joe Alves.

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Goofs

A "mother" shark would not have tried to find or protect her baby. Sharks do not care for their babies after they are born. In fact, they have been known to eat their young. The MOST they will do is to search for a safe place where they can lay their eggs or give birth.

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Quotes

Calvin Bouchard: Was it the shark?
Kathryn Morgan: It was a shark. It was a shark with a bite radius about a yard across.
Philip FitzRoyce: Don't be silly. That would indicate a shark of some 35 feet in length.

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Crazy Credits

In the original 3D version, the Universal Pictures Logo is in 3D. Plus the title "Jaws 3D" comes "toward" the viewer, clamping together as if it was like a shark's mouth.

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Alternate Versions

The UK cinema version was cut by 7 secs by the BBFC to edit closeup scenes of Overman's mutilated body and to remove a shot of a sea worm emerging from his mouth. The cuts were restored in the video version and the certificate upgraded to a '15' ('12' for the DVD release).

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Connections

Featured in Trailer Trauma 3: 80s Horrorthon (2017)

User Reviews

Mediocre, but Oscar worthy compared to part IV.

Saw this one in all its 3D glory in the theater back in 1983, and it really scared the heck out of me. (I was ten) This film furthers the saga of the Brody family as sons Sean and Mike are now fully grown and moved away from Amity Island. Sean does something in Colorado if I recall, and Mike is (heh, heh, heh,) an underwater welder who just finished construction of an undersea kingdom at Sea World in Florida. Just when the park is about to have a grand opening, some uninvited guests show up. They being a 35-foot great white shark and her offspring. Needless to say, some people get eaten.

This film was originally going to be made as spoof of the previous two films. I'm not sure if any type of a finished script to that effect exists, but it would be worth a look. Jaws 3D ends up being another serious monster movie with a disaster movie subplot. Not only does the shark eat a bunch of people, it also traps several others in the underwater part of the park. The race is on to save the people and kill the mother shark. Her baby dies midway through after it is captured and hastily put on display in the park. The conclusion is fairly exciting, and full of bloody carnage.

The cast is one of the stronger points of the film. Dennis Quaid is the fearless Mike Brody. Bess Armstrong plays the park's head biologist and Quaid's love interest. (The real sparks were apparently flying between Quaid and Lea Thompson off camera, though!) Thompson plays a water skier at the park, and John Putch plays Sean Brody who falls for her. Simon MacCorkindale and P.H. Moriarity play a couple of Englishmen who show up and help battle the sharks. By far the best performance is turned in by Louis Gossett Jr., fresh off his Oscar for An Officer and a Gentleman. He plays the owner/manager/president (I'm really not sure which) of the park. He has a terrific moment as he addresses the park guests in the underwater tunnels over the p.a. system. He turns on the fake executive public relations charm and asks them all to calmly exit the park just as the giant shark is bearing down on them.

The individuals who play Dan and Liz left a lot to be desired. Since no other film credits are listed for them, one would have to conclude that they actually worked at Sea World and were given these roles since this is what they do on a daily basis. Maybe they still work there. Anyone know? The sharks look pretty good in most of the scenes. Except at the very end when the shark is lodged into the control room and its tail is sticking out. That looked incredibly fake. In addition, sharks must always stay moving in the water or they'll die. They can't just lay low in huge underwater structures waiting to pounce on their victims. They usually strike from directly underneath their victims in most attack scenarios. The big shark in this film also has the ability to growl and roar, but not as loudly as the one in part IV! The 3D effect looked very good in the theater, but films like this lose quite a bit of their luster on the TV screen. You're only left with a bunch of gag shots that were supposed to scare viewers in the theater, but now look ludicrous and forced.

This film made some pretty decent $ in its theatrical run, and is still shown regularly on television. If nothing else is on, and you find yourself in front of a TV for an extended period, give this film a try. But be forewarned: Part IV is perhaps the worst film ever made. Don't waste your time on that one! 5 of 10 stars.

The Hound.