Jaws only gets two stars for accuracy I’m afraid. Let’s break down the main places it loses points.

The shark’s size: The biggest sharks to be reliably measured or photographed are in the 20-21 foot region. The shark in Jaws was claimed to be at least 25 feet.

The shark’s appetite: Sharks don’t need to feed that often, especially after a big meal. In fact they probably only have to eat something the size of a small seal every two or three days.

They also don’t hunt prey for vengeance or amusement - so it doesn’t make sense it would keep attacking people in a short space of time.

The shark continues to prey on and eat humans: When a Great White attacks a human it is a case of mistaken identity. In most cases the shark will let go and swim off.

Unfortunately for some victims,the first bite can be catastrophic, which is where fatalities can occur. Great Whites would much prefer to feed on fat-rich seals. For the shark to continually attack the people of amity, it must have been really stupid, however this is highly unlikely given its lived long enough to get to 25ft.

Quint’s USS Indianapolis speech: Whilst it is a great moment in the film, it’s not entirely true. Most of the sailors died from exposure or drinking sea water. However to be fair, some of the bodies were scavenged by Oceanic White Tip sharks, and it’s possible some sailors that were still alive got attacked. Quint also gets some of the key dates and numbers wrong.

Rogue Shark Theory: Hooper suggests that the shark is a ‘Rogue’, referring to a theory by Australian scientist Dr Victor Coppleson in the 1930s. Coppleson used the term in reference to the 1916 New Jersey shark attacks. To be fair to the film, in 1975 this was still a valid shark theory. However it has since been de-bunked.

Where it does get points though:

The location: Amity Island is a fictional place in New England. Great Whites do frequent the East Coast of the US, although attacks are extremely rare.

Brody mentions that we still have so much to learn about sharks and shark behaviour: Whilst we have made great strides in shark research since 1975 (the year Jaws came out), we still have a lot to learn.

Fear Factor: ****