Jaws (1975)

Eric Garcia85 said:The Orca killer from '77. Look, I liked the movie even if it’s been a minute since I sat down with it. It’s hard to put a specific rating on it, but honestly? Totally worth a watch. It really nails how smart those "friendly" dolphins actually are. And man, when they get pissed off, they’ll go right after Great Whites. They can be sweet, sure, but they hold a grudge like nobody else.
My bad, Patrick Martin, had to jump back in there.

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It’s not just about them eating you, either—they basically play games with their food before they do. ☕

Ennio Morricone - Orca Theme

There's just something about this flick... it feels almost epic, I don't know how to put it. Just a massive sense of melancholy regarding animals. It hits hard.

nimblemarlin6 said:I saw "Orca" ages ago... can't really recall much, except I remember thinking it was just a carbon copy of Jaws—if I'm remembering right, you've got your charismatic fisherman and his weird little vendetta against one particularly smart orca...

Ever since Jaws, there’s been a mountain of cheap variations on that exact theme—just endless Italian shark flicks. You've got horror movies about barracudas, then you've got Joe Dante's "Piranha," then those cheap Italian piranha movies... then "alligator"...

And it isn't just water predators, either. "Into the Grizzly Maze"—which is basically a straight-up rip-off of Jaws, just swapping the shark for a grizzly.
Then there's that horror flick about a pack of wild dogs called "Pack."
Or that horror movie with the massive boar titled, well, "Boar."
Rats attacking New York City in "Rats," and so on...

Over time, animal attack movies—especially the ones involving sharks—have turned into a total joke.

But look, there is this tiny niche trend of minimalist animal films. They're often low-budget, but they actually land.
"The Reef" for sharks, or "Blackwater" and "Rogue" for crocodiles... I'd recommend them. Cheap, but they work!👍

Everything you just listed sounds like a bunch of soul-less movies to me, honestly.

For example, this film is on par with Orca; it actually has that certain human connection.☕

Patrick Martin said:I mean, everything you just listed sounds like those "soulless" movies to me, if I'm being honest

like, for example, this one movie actually feels like it has a soul, kind of like how they treated the orca, it’s got that actual human connection☕

I totally agree. Movies like Orca and Link actually give them that spark because they show them having an intelligence that's sometimes right on par with ours—maybe even higher, honestly. It's super rare for a movie to actually show how smart animals really are instead of just treating them like props or something meant only to serve humans. To me, thinking otherwise is just totally disrespecting other kinds of intelligence out there.

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Look, this whole thing about identifying with animals—that’s a completely different conversation altogether...
In movies like Jaws, it isn't really about you feeling a connection to the threat facing the characters... the hook is actually that these animals are part of nature, sure, but they’re framed as something extraordinary. Like, the shark in Jaws seems like just another predator at first, but then it turns out to be this massive, unnervingly clever beast.
It’s the exact same vibe with the bear in those grizzly films or even in Into the Grizzly Maze...

The characters essentially stumble upon these freakish, one-in-a-million specimens of wildlife...
But honestly, in movies like that, the human element is what actually carries the weight.
And let’s be real—we haven't seen a better trio of characters since the crew in Jaws... I mean, you could probably spin off a movie about any one of those three guys and it would still be great, even without the shark.

Eric Garcia85 said:I remember watching *Orca* back in the day, and even though it’s been a lifetime since that screening, the film still sticks with me. I haven't sat down to give it a formal rating, but if you're looking for something worth your time, it's definitely worth a watch. It offers a fascinating, albeit terrifying, look at the sheer intelligence of those creatures. People tend to view them as these gentle, playful beings, but when they decide to turn on you, even a Great White doesn't stand a chance. They can be just as vengeful as they are intelligent.
My apologies, Patrick Martin, I realized I needed to add something else to my previous point.

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I should probably add my two cents here: an orca is actually a whale, not a dolphin. Specifically, it’s a killer whale.
I watched this film when I was just a kid, and honestly, it blew my mind back then. That’s exactly why I’m hesitant to revisit it now; there's a certain dread in knowing that a masterpiece from your childhood might not hold up under the scrutiny of an adult perspective, or worse, lose that sense of pure, unadulterated wonder.

Patrick Martin said:If you ask me, everything you just listed feels completely soulless. To be honest, I’ve watched most of them, and they all feel like they were manufactured in a factory rather than actually crafted by artists. There's just no heart in any of it.

For instance. I don't have much to add here. It’s just one of those moments where there isn't much left to say. The film carries a certain weight to it—it’s right up there with the intensity of an orca. There is this strange, almost unsettling human connection woven into the narrative that you just can't shake. ☕

A I don't follow. What exactly are you asking? If you have a specific topic in mind or a question regarding the previous discussion, please clarify. I prefer to engage when there is a clear point of inquiry. Is this even a film? I have to wonder if IMDb is actually paying people to farm clicks, or if we’re all just witnessing a complete breakdown of basic social decency.
I suspect you’d be jumping for joy if a high-voltage surge hit everyone on this forum the moment they clicked that utterly useless link of yours.

bluecyclist64 said:Honestly, I think most people here would probably jump for joy if they got a massive electric shock every time they clicked that totally useless link of yours.

Man, that'd still be better than them clicking a dead link and getting absolutely nowhere.☕

bluecyclist64 said:I should probably point out that an orca is actually a whale, not a dolphin—it's a killer whale.
I watched the movie when I was a kid and loved it, so honestly, I’m kind of terrified to watch it again.

And WHICH movie? Is IMDb paying you to farm clicks now, or is this just a total lack of basic manners?
I bet you'd be jumping for joy if a massive surge of electricity hit everyone on this forum the second they clicked that completely useless link of yours.

bluecyclist64, I hate to break it to you, but the orca is basically the biggest member of the dolphin family.
You can check it on Wikipedia if you want. Also, if you're actually interested in them, go watch that amazing documentary Blackfish from 2013. That's the movie that made me love them. You really can't trust IMDb. They call some movies absolute trash while hyping others up to heaven. Their ratings are all over the place.

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Eric Garcia85 said:bluecyclist64, I hate to be the one to burst your bubble, but the orca is actually the largest member of the dolphin family.
You can verify that on Wikipedia if you like. If you're interested in them, I’d highly recommend watching that excellent documentary Blackfish from 2013. To be honest, that film is what really made me develop an affinity for them. As for IMDb, I’ve learned you can't take their ratings too seriously. They’ll label some movies as total trash while hyping others up to the heavens; their scoring system isn't exactly reliable.

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I appreciate the correction, though when I was originally looking into orcas, they were still classified as toothed whales. It wasn't until about twenty years ago that they were reclassified as dolphins. (Just wanted to make sure I didn't come across as completely uneducated here😬).
It's funny how things change—even Pluto isn't considered a planet anymore...

Jaws 4 is freaking awesome, so what's your damn problem?

Jaws is an absolute masterpiece, though the subsequent sequels clearly failed to capture that same level of brilliance. I have personally sat through it at least six or seven times.

It is a compelling subject matter for cinema, and I was actually on the verge of watching The Shallows recently.

Orca remains one of the most unsettling films from my childhood.
Deep Blue Sea carries a similar level of intensity.