7. Jaws
Aside from being the quintessential blockbuster that kick-started the trend, Jaws remains one of the most intense and entertaining Hollywood films of all time, and unquestionably one of the strongest entries into Steven Spielberg's filmography. It's a film about a killer shark that thrives on suspense, milking the shark's absence for most of the picture, such that when it does appear, the maximum level of intensity and terror is achieved. This is a testament to Spielberg, the novel's author Peter Benchley (who helped write the screenplay) and Carl Gottlieb, who condensed the book down into a taught 2-hour film, free of fat and brimming with manic energy. Benchley's novel was less a high-concept film about a shark and much more concerned with the personal lives of its characters. Instead, Spielberg makes the family the focal point - as became his staple - but didn't indulge in superfluous subplots, while bringing them face to face with the tireless, frightening, toothed foe.