10 Great Movies That Scared You Without Showing Anything

While Jaws does show the shark heavily in the second half, its most effective moments rely on seeing absolutely nothing.

For the first hour or so, you never see the shark at all. It's not like you don't know it's a shark that's attacking people, but it's physically left unseen. In the horrifying opening sequence, instead of watching a shark eat this woman, you're watching her being pulled underneath the water by an unseen force. That's a whole lot scarier than any special effect.

The same can be said of the initial beach scenes. When the boy on a float is killed, the shark doesn't dramatically jump out and eat him like a typical monster movie. Instead, his float tips over, blood fills the water, and he's gone. 

Not actually seeing what's doing the killing makes Jaws so tense, and as a result it's even more effective when the shark finally does appear. The second half isn't as scary and it becomes more of an adventure film from then on, which certainly isn't a bad thing. But the first hour is downright haunting, making you fear not only sharks, but also all the unseen forces lurking in the water.