Common Sense Media Review
By Brian Costello
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Cheesy '80s sequel has lots of violence, peril.
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Jaws 3
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 13 parent reviews
Based on 25 kid reviews
Kids say this film is a mishmash of poor CGI, unrealistic shark attacks, and overly violent scenes that detract from its potential. While some viewers found it entertaining for its absurdity, the majority agree that it lacks the quality and thrills of its predecessors, resulting in it being deemed unnecessary and poorly executed.
- bad special effects
- unrealistic plot
- excessive violence
- unnecessary sequel
- cheesy entertainment
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
What's the Story?
Now grown up in JAWS 3, Mike Brody (Dennis Quaid) has left Amity in coastal Maine behind to work as a park engineer at Sea World Orlando with his longtime girlfriend Dr. Kay Morgan (Bess Armstrong). Around the time one of his workers disappears under mysterious circumstances, Mike and Kay receive a surprise visit from Mike's brother Sean, a cocky college kid who immediately begins a relationship with a Sea World skier named Kelly Ann Bukowski (Lea Thompson). However, for all his confidence, Sean still has a fear of getting into water, a fear borne from a childhood of shark attacks back home at Amity. Just as he's starting to get over his fears with the help of Kelly Ann, yet another rogue great white shark comes into his life -- this time, breaking through the barriers of Sea World to attack the boaters, skiers, and anyone else who dares float upon the water. When they think they've captured the shark, Kay wants to study it and make it the first great white kept in captivity, an idea wholeheartedly approved by the park's manager, Calvin Bouchard (Louis Gossett Jr.). But when this shark dies in captivity, its mother appears, and that shark will stop at nothing until it has destroyed Sea World's new underwater tunnels and exacted revenge on all the humans who are in her path.
Is It Any Good?
This is a sequel that did not need to be made. Make no mistake, Jaws 3, especially compared with the two before it, is not a good movie. The storyline is preposterous, and the movie itself oftentimes feels like little more than one long commercial for Sea World Orlando. Compounding this is the fact that the 3D effects are so dated that it's laughable how bad they are. The cheese factor of a severed fish head, for instance, floating for a few seconds too long simply to take advantage of the 3D effects, is off the charts. It also, at worst, cheapens the high quality of the previous movies.
Still, with the right attitude, it can fit into a "so bad it's good" mode of entertainment. Think Sharknado, without the self-awareness, and you have the potential of getting into the spirit of the lousiness.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how Jaws 3 was a 3D movie. These kinds of movies were first popularized in the monster B movies of the 1950s. How does Jaws 3 seem similar to those types of movies? With IMAX 3D, how has that technology radically changed since the 1980s?
How does this sequel compare with the original movie? Are sequels ever as good as the originals? Give some examples.
Why do you think movie studios like releasing sequels, even if they aren't all that good?
Movie Details
- In theaters : July 22, 1983
- On DVD or streaming : June 3, 2003
- Cast : Dennis Quaid , Lea Thompson , Louis Gossett Jr.
- Director : Joe Alves
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s) , Black Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Universal Studios Home Entertainment
- Genre : Horror
- Topics : Animals ( Ocean Creatures )
- Run time : 99 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : October 1, 2025
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