Unrated. Now playing at CN IMAX Theatre.

You don't have to be a member of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society to decode the message of Sharks 3D. Ever since Jaws washed into theatres three decades ago, the most magnificent fish in the ocean have had a bum rap as remorseless eating machines. This visually cool and ultimately effective IMAX film gives sharks a much-needed PR boost. For example, not all great white sharks spend their days hunting surfers in Australia or terrorizing Roy Scheider. They are more interested in seals, sea lions, other sharks, fish, and turtles. In fact, they often go as long as two months without a meal.

The message that sharks have little interest in humans is driven home again and again in Sharks 3D, directed by Jean-Jacques Mantello and presented by Jean-Michel Cousteau. Unfortunately, humans have plenty of interest in sharks. In just under half a century, we've managed to drive many species to the point of extinction, which is even more appalling if one considers that they've been swimming the seas since the dinosaurs.

The film describes sharks as the lions and tigers of the ocean-predators atop the food chain who keep nature in balance-and it brings us as close to great whites and sawtooths as most of us will ever get. Thanks to the cool 3-D format, the fish seem to literally swim right off the screen. With their scarred gunship-grey skin and rows of razor teeth, the sharks are undeniably beautiful in a captivating way. Even if you're afraid of open water, the sight of dozens of scalloped hammerheads gliding along the ocean floor is enough to make you want to spring for diving lessons.

If Sharks 3D can be knocked for anything, it's for overemphasizing sharks as nonagressive, mind-their-own-business types at the expense of drama. Those who can't get enough of the Fox network's When Animals Attack will be disappointed to learn there's only a single feeding frenzy shown here, and that it's a quick and bloodless one at that. Mostly, this informative and tremendously sympathetic 42-minute documentary lets the sharks be the good guys. But considering all the bad press they've had over the years, even the most rabid Jaws aficionado will admit that it's about time.