When a midnight swim ends in a terrible accident for a young woman, police chief Martin Brody's first instinct is to close the beach to swimmers, as he suspects a shark attack. But it's gaining to be a long, hot summer in the small town of Amity, Long Island, and the mayor expects holiday makers to flock to the beaches - in any case, sharks are rare in these waters. Then a young boy is killed. The distraught mother puts a prize on the shark and Amity is soon inundated with bounty hunters. A local fisherman, Quint, offers to trail it, and joined by marine Matt Hooper, and Brody himself - for him, and his conscience, hunting the Great White feels personal
