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| Scene from the top ranked shark movie, Deep Blue Sea (1999). |
Welcome
to our Reel
Fives pre-launch movie rankings for the best shark films of all time.
Our Reel Fives team found 42 ranked lists of the top shark films published
online and ended up with 39 movies that made the list. For each ranked list of
greatest movies for the genre, we have taken the top five ranked films. The
rankings of top shark films we aggregated are included at the bottom of this
post and include the best movies in the genre as ranked by movie experts and
polling sites, such as ranker.com.
Sharks
scare a good number of people, but in reality, shark attacks are pretty rare—so
rare that a person has a 1-in-3,700,000 chance
of being attacked by a shark. The film industry plays upon the fear of shark
attacks and has created a niche genre of shark films, wherein people stranded
in shark-infested waters must fight for survival. Steven Spielberg’s Jaws (1975), ranked second, almost
single-handedly conceived this genre. Police Chief Martin Brody (Roy Schneider)
teams up with fisherman-for-hire Quint (Robert Shaw) and oceanographer Matt
Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) to catch a giant great white shark terrorizing a
small island-community in New England. Steven Spielberg’s film set a box office
record and was the first film to gross over $100 million. One can make an
argument for Jaws being the movie that introduced the film industry to the
summer blockbuster formula: high budget films with wide audience and commercial
appeal accompanied by intense marketing campaigns, bombarding audiences leading
up to the theatrical release. Jaws (1975) brought forth the monster horror genre’s
elements but applied them in a nuanced way, focusing more on character
responses than on the shark in action. And the impeccable score by John
Williams (whose resume includes scores for the original Star Wars trilogy,
Superman (1978), Jurassic Park (1993), and the first three Harry Potter films)
combined with intermingled jump scares perfectly tied together the many
tension-building scenes. These elements
are still at the heart of the shark horror genre.
 |
| Opening scene of Jaws (1975), building tension by presenting the shark's point of view instead of showing the shark. |
In
fact, Jaws (1975) not only conceived the shark horror, but paved the way for
other water predator movies shortly after its release, although most were
b-movies. In 1978, Piranha was released and did not shy away from making it
clear that it was an entry into the genre set by Jaws – even down to its
poster.
Another entry to the water predator b-movies riding on the popularity
of Jaws is Orca (1977), where a male killer whale hunts down a boat captain who
was responsible for killing his calf. Orca (1977) has since gained, and
continues to have, a large cult following.
 |
| The degree of influence that Jaws (1975) [bottom] had on Orca (1978) [top] is apparent when looking at the final scenes. |
But
surprisingly, Jaws (1975) is not the top ranked shark movie. The much more
recent Deep Blue Sea (1999) beat it out, albeit only by a 2 percent margin. In Renny
Harlin’s Deep Blue Sea (1999), ranked
the all-time best shark film based on the aggregation, tables are turned when the
sharks at the center of an Alzheimer’s cure research project decide they are
done being poked and prodded by scientists. One wonders if the slower movie
narrative in Jaws (1975) lowers the appeal to fans of the genre who have by now
become accustomed to the campy b-movie antics of most movies in the shark
horror genre that followed in the wake of Jaws (1975). Even the Jaws franchise itself
delved into this style in the sequels. Jaw
3-D (1983), the second sequel, relied on the 3-D fad, jump scares, and an
over-the-top plot (a giant shark attacking a water park on its opening
day). The campy side of the shark horror
genre continues strong with the multitude of movies from The Asylum productions in the last couple of
years that include Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus (2009), 2-Headed Shark Attack
(2012), and of course Sharknado (2013), which itself spawned four sequels to
date.
 |
| Scene from Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus (2009). |
But
the shark genre also includes some family friendly, non-horror entries. Not all
films portray sharks as hostile, with some family films having seemingly nonviolent
sharks. Finding Nemo (2003), ranked
thirteenth (also ranked sixth-best animated film), suggests that sharks do not
need to eat fish. While searching for his son, Nemo’s father Marlin (Albert
Brooks) and newfound companion Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) encounter a trio of
sharks who proclaim they are vegetarian. “Fish are friends, not food,” according
to shark Bruce. This helps ease the fear of sharks, since they are typically associated
with eating fish and other animals. The mob genre sleeps with the fishes in Shark Tale (2004), ranked tenth. When Shark
boss Don Lino’s (Robert De Niro) son is killed, small fish Oscar (Will Smith) falsely
takes the credit. The film parallels the mafia hierarchy with that of marine
life, and the sharks are close to the top. Both films show a fight for survival
in the sea. From Nemo and his father trying to reunite, to Oscar trying to evade
capture, shark films invoke the survival instinct. Animation has the power to
destigmatize the fear of sharks for younger children and can imagine sea life
differently than a non-animated film, which could be why animated sharks are
depicted more favorably than their non-animated brethren.
The
rankings have a cluster of older and newer, animated and non-animated films.
While most shark films center on survival, the plot can still be used interestingly.
The sea remains a fascinating place and the film industry is not afraid to play
with offbeat plots. The new shark horror film recently released, The Shallows (2016), may have a strong
showing in this list in the near future. It goes back into less campy territory
and, as of one week after the opening, has received much praise – for a shark
horror.
Identifying the top movies is our mission.
www.reelfives.com
https://www.facebook.com/reelfives
https://twitter.com/reelfives
Podcast: https://soundcloud.com/reelfives
| Top 39 Shark Movies based on 42 published rankings | |
| Percent of online top fives movies appear in shown | |
| 1 . Deep Blue Sea (1999): 78.5% | |
| 2 . Jaws (1975): 76.1% | |
| 3 . Open Water (2003): 66.6% | |
| 4 . Jaws 2 (1978): 40.4% | |
| 5 . The Reef (2010): 28.5% | |
| 6 . Sharknado (2013): 23.8% | |
| 7 . Shark Night (2011): 19.0% | |
| 8 . Bait (2012): 19.0% | |
| 9 . 12 Days of Terror (2004): 16.6% | |
| 10 . Shark Tale (2004): 11.9% | |
| 11 . Jaws 3-D (1983): 11.9% | |
| 12 . Sharktopus (2010): 9.52% | |
| 13 . Finding Nemo (2003): 9.52% | |
| 14 . Soul Surfer (2011): 7.14% | |
| 15 . Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus (2009): 7.14% | |
| 16 . Blue Water, White Death (1971): 7.14% | |
| 17 . Sand Sharks (2011): 4.76% | |
| 18 . Mission of the Shark: The Saga of the U.S.S. Indianapolis (1991): 4.76% | |
| 19 . Tintorera: Killer Shark (1977): 4.76% | |
| 20 . Deep Blood (1990): 4.76% | |
| 21 (tied). Cyclone (1978): 2.38% | |
| 21 (tied). The Last Shark (1981): 2.38% | |
| 21 (tied). 2-Headed Shark Attack (2012): 2.38% | |
| 21 (tied). Shark! (1969): 2.38% | |
| 25 (tied). The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl (2005): 2.38% | |
| 25 (tied). Sharkwater (2006): 2.38% | |
| 25 (tied). Live and Let Die (1973): 2.38% | |
| 25 (tied). Cruel Jaws (1995): 2.38% | |
| 29 (tied). Jaws: The Revenge (1987): 2.38% | |
| 29 (tied). Lake Placid (1999): 2.38% | |
| 29 (tied). Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997): 2.38% | |
| 32 (tied). The Host (2006): 2.38% | |
| 32 (tied). Swamp Shark (2011): 2.38% | |
| 32 (tied). Dark Tide (2012): 2.38% | |
| 35 (tied). Ghost Shark (2013): 2.38% | |
| 35 (tied). Open Water 2: Adrift (2006): 2.38% | |
| 35 (tied). Mako: The Jaws of Death (1976): 2.38% | |
| 35 (tied). Red Water (2003): 2.38% | |
| 39 . The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004): 0% | |
| Shark Movie Ranking Sources | |
| PopMatters | List of top 10 (link) |
| IMDb | List of top 64 (link) |
| Den of Geek | List of top 25 (link) |
| List Challenges | List of top 50 (link) |
| Ranker | List of top 43 (link) |
| Listverse | List of top 10 (link) |
| WatchMojo.com | List of top 10 (link) |
| Yell Magazine | List of top 10 (link) |
| Mother Nature Network | List of top 10 (link) |
| Funk's House of Geekery | List of top 8 (link) |
| The Movie Network | List of top 10 (link) |
| JackThreads | List of top 10 (link) |
| Listal | List of top 17 (link) |
| Top2040 | List of top 20 (link) |
| Top 5 | List of top 5 (link) |
| Truly Disturbing | List of top 13 (link) |
| MoviePilot.com | List of top 8 (link) |
| Hit Fix | List of top 10 (link) |
| Terrific Top 10 | List of top 10 (link) |
| Answers.com | List of top 9 (link) |
| BuzzFeed | List of top 8 (link) |
| PhimToday.Org | List of top 10 (link) |
| Radass | List of top 26 (link) |
| Bite by a Shark | List of top 10 (link) |
| Screen Junkies | List of top 6 (link) |
| Mano Byte | List of top 5 (link) |
| The Nerdy Bomb | List of top 5 (link) |
| Chiller | List of top 13 (link) |
| Outdoors 360 | List of top 10 (link) |
| eTopMost.com | List of top 5 (link) |
| TheVideos | List of top 10 (link) |
| Film School Rejects | List of top 6 (link) |
| Kiff Cape Town | List of top 3 (link) |
| Looper | List of top 10 (link) |
| BlueChat | List of top 10 (link) |
| Culture Brats | List of top 13 (link) |
| Chillopedia | List of top 15 (link) |
| Movie Fan Central | List of top 10 (link) |
| TheCelebrityCafe.com | List of top 10 (link) |
| Wapistan | List of top 10 (link) |
| Red Carpet Refs | List of top 10 (link) |
| OMGMoments | List of top 10 (link) |
Identifying the top movies is our mission.
www.reelfives.com
https://www.facebook.com/reelfives
https://twitter.com/reelfives
Podcast: https://soundcloud.com/reelfives
