Fifty years ago, on June 20, 1975, Jaws surged into theaters, bit down on audiences, and shook. Even its director, Steven Spielberg, was surprised by the movie’s impact. The mechanical shark he used was so inconsistent it only appeared in the film for a total of four-and-a-half minutes. But that was enough time to brand the American East Coast as a place where kids eat ice cream on the beach while Great Whites wait for lunch along the shoreline. Soon enough, shark killing ran rampant globally. In the new documentary, Jaws at 50, Spielberg looks back at the making of this summer classic, which was also the first blockbuster. “The film that I thought would end my career,” Spielberg says, “is the film that began it.” A half century later, the viewing experience is as visceral as ever. —Elena Clavarino