Jaws: The Revenge (1987)

User Rating:

2.6/10   

Director:

Joseph Sargent

Writers:

Peter Benchley (characters)
Michael De Guzman (written by)

Release Date:

17 July 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

This time... It's personal.

Plot:

Ellen Brody still lives in the island resort town of Amity, and her sons Sean and Michael don't work at Sea World anymore...

Plot Keywords:

Shark | Boat | Sea | Marine Biologist | Christmas

Awards:

1 win & 7 nominations

Cast

Lorraine Gary	...	Ellen Brody
Lance Guest	...	Michael Brody
Mario Van Peebles	...	Jake
Michael Caine	...	Hoagie Newcombe
Karen Young	...	Carla Brody
Judith Barsi	...	Thea Brody
Lynn Whitfield	...	Louisa
Mitchell Anderson	...	Sean Brody
Jay Mello	...	Young Sean Brody (archive footage)
Cedric Scott	...	Clarence
Charles Bowleg	...	William
Melvin Van Peebles	...	Mr. Witherspoon
Mary Smith	...	Tiffany
Edna Billotto	...	Polly
Fritzi Jane Courtney	...	Mrs. Taft

Also Known As:

Jaws 4 (USA) (working title)
Jaws the Return (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

89 min | Sweden:91 min (video version) | USA:91 min (video version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Iceland:16 | Sweden:15 | Netherlands:12 | Australia:M | UK:12 (DVD rating) (2001) (uncut) | UK:15 (video rating) (1988) (cut) | UK:PG (original rating) (cut) | USA:PG-13 (Certificate #28688) | Singapore:PG | Finland:K-16

Filming Locations:

Bahamas

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

There was a crucial subplot involving Michael Caine's character that involved the smuggling drugs onto the island which is actually fully detailed in the film's novelization were actually shot and then deleted during post-production because it took away from the film's main premise involving the shark.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Michael Brody is attacked by the shark and is forced out of the submarine, there is an underbelly shot of the shark proceeding to eat the sub and a large, rectangular hole is visible in the 'shark's' stomach. This is only visible in the theatrical release of the film and the UK television version.

Quotes:

Michael Brody: [when shark's chasing him through tunnels] JESUS CHRIST!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Finding Nemo (2003)

Soundtrack:

Nail it to the Wall

So bad, it's incredible...

If there ever were proof of the law of diminishing returns, the fourth entry in the Jaws series is it. The original was a taut thriller that launched the career of one of Hollywood's most celebrated directors. By comparison, Michael Caine often looks as if he is incredibly upset to be missing his award ceremony in order to appear in this piece. Lance Guest and Mario Van Peebles frequently appear to be wishing to have better things to do, while Lorraine Gary frequently looks stoned in moments when she is supposed to look frightening.

Clearly, the budget spent on this film didn't go into the research, script, or mechanical shark. Exactly why Michael Brody and his pals are putting what are apparently tracking devices on conch shells is never explained. Perhaps any explanation they thought of was so incredibly stupid that they thought it best to give up. An alternate explanation of why Michael is working in the water was never thought of, either. The true Ed Wood moment of the film comes towards the end of the piece, when the shark rises out of the water, and roars at Elaine. This is the first time I've heard of sharks having vocal cords. Given the box office draw this stinker had, I suspect it will be the last.

The shark takes a real beating here, too. The reason the shark wasn't seen often in the original was because Spielberg noticed that if one put it in front of the camera for long enough, the audience would notice that it doesn't move like a real shark. In this edition of the Jaws story, not only do they keep the camera focused upon the shark for more than enough time for the audience to notice the model's flaws, in so doing they make it crystal clear that this shark was made on the cheap. There are some shots in which the support structure of the shark is visible under the outer layer. There is even what appears to be a seam in the back of the shark's main fin.

To its credit, Jaws: The Revenge is well-photographed. While the 2.35:1 frame is often sparsely populated, depth of field is used with great effect in several shots. The fact that even frames with one character in them won't make sense when cropped to fit analogue television is a credit to the director and cinematographer. If only this kind of workmanship could have been seen in other aspects of the film.

Another area where Jaws: The Revenge deserves due credit is the score music. While the score is very much inspired by that which John Williams provided for the original, it distinguishes itself and genuinely works in its own right. In fact, one could almost say that the score music is more than the rest of the film deserves. The music is literally able to inject dramatic tension into scenes that, by all rights granted under the accepted rules of film-making, really shouldn't have any.

When all is said and done, I gave Jaws: The Revenge a one out of ten. It works as a comedy in the sense that it is a stinking pile of crap, but there are precious few moments when the people making it seem privy to the fact. As a result, the film winds up in a class all of its own. It's not just so bad its good, it is so utterly bad it is incredible.