Jaume Collet-Serra

Nearly everything about the film The Shallows seems to indicate that you wouldn’t be at a loss for missing it in theaters. The premise of an attractive woman in turmoil, coupled with an unbelievably vicious shark – each of these stories on their own has been done time and time again. Yet, somehow, The Shallows manages to just surpass the murky depths that most of those films sink to.

Jaws really screwed up humanity. I mean, we’ve always had monster stories, but Jaws gave sharks a terrifying reputation, one that’s so universal that even landlocked kids like me would jump in a pool and immediately hear the John Williams score in our heads. We knew to fear sharks as if it were instinct, and it was a captivating thrill.