Burt Reynolds plays Caine, a gunrunner who becomes stranded in a small port called Port Sudan in the Red Sea. He meets an attractive woman who propositions him to dive into shark-infested waters off the coast for scientific research. Caine realizes the woman and her partner are actually treasure hunters. Filming took place for nine weeks in 1967, in Manzanillo, Mexico, which stood in for the Sudan. During production, one of the film’s stuntmen, Jose Marco, was attacked and killed on camera by a white shark that broke through protective netting. The attack was captured on film and prompted a photo spread in Life magazine. The title was changed to Shark! to cash in on the controversy. It was later re-issued as Maneater when Jaws came out. A great adventure film!
