Review of Jaws (56)

Plot
When an insatiable great white shark terrorizes the townspeople of Amity Island, a police chief, a grizzled shark hunter and an oceanographer seek to destroy it.

Jason's Thoughts
What makes Jaws a great movie is a tough question to answer.  It really is great on different levels which makes it difficult to pinpoint one exact reason.  One could say the actors or the story made the movie, but so did the camera work and the music.  When rolled all together, it builds so much suspense and fear to the point where you do not want to venture out into the ocean ever again.

Take the story for example.  On the surface it is pretty simple - shark attacks locals and authorities go out to destroy it.  Nothing more, nothing less.  As the saying goes, less is more, and the simplicity of it all goes a long way in building the suspense.  There are no other distractions going on as we are just focused on the single task at hand, and that is to kill the shark before it does any more harm.

What builds the suspense for me, though, is the anticipation of a shark attack.  Throughout most of the movie the threat of a shark attack is there - from standing on the beach looking at all of the swimmers, from the shark ramming into the boat, or when Chief Brody is tossing chum into the water are all examples of when the worst could happen.  Not all of those times involve an actual attack, though, which begins to play with your mind... is it going to happen, or isn't it?

The music and camera work is also a key component in building the tension.  The music in Jaws, which is legendary in its own right, builds the suspense in the right moments while the shark point-of-view camera work does wonders.  One drawback that I had with the music, though, is that at certain times it seemed to be too happy and celebratory for what was going on in the movie.  If you don't believe me, watch it again and pay close attention to the music, which can sometimes to be hard to catch considering what is going on during the movie.

Of course, what would a film directed by Steven Spielberg be without a reference to World War II?  The movie takes place 30 years after the war ended but the sinking of the USS Indianapolis is a key reason as to why Quint became a shark hunter in the first place.

Oh yeah, considering all of the gory shark attacks in the movie, it surprises me that it still came out with a PG rating.  Times sure have changed over the past 30 years and there is no way a movie such as this comes out with a rating like that today.  I don't even think it would pass for PG-13.

Crystal's Thoughts
For some reason, I actually never saw Jaws before it crept up on our list of 100 movies.  I thought at first that perhaps it was because it was a bit too graphic for me to watch as a child (it seems most people saw this in their younger years), but I was allowed to watch Gremlins when it came out, so I don't think that was the case.  After finishing Jaws though, I can't believe I waited over 30 years to watch it!

It was a completely different movie than I had in my mind, in a positive way.  My only negative about the film was those fake looking sharks.  Yes, I know, pretty good quality for 1975.  I have issues though when something doesn't look real.  If it doesn't look real or like it could happen in life, the movie disturbs me, and most times, I won't even bother watching a film, hence Jason having to watch a lot of zombie/horror flicks on his own.  But the storyline of Jaws was believable, and the acting and storyline captivated my attention earning the five star rating I gave it.

The most prominent part of Jaws to me is how the shark held more significance than the victims of the shark.  For the most part, they were just washed up bodies on a beach.  Usually we learn more about the victims or are even part of their lives in films before they are killed by something.  I think it was a different, but good, approach in focusing on the shark and staying away from being caught up with the victims.  In some ways, it made a small little part of you feel a little empathetic with that man eating creature.  So, if you've never seen Jaws, I highly recommend you rent it.  Tonight.

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