Jaws (1975) (Movie Review)

          

  Wow, it’s been a big month full of silly and scary monster movies revolving around animals gone bad, but now it’s Halloween, so it’s time to close the month with one of the most famous horror movies ever made. It should come as no surprise that I saved the 1975 classic “Jaws” for the last film. It’s so famous and it goes far beyond a popular monster movie ... it truly is one of cinema’s most classic and beloved motion pictures. Actually, it’s thanks to “Jaws” that we have summer blockbusters. This is the one that started it all, and no one felt safe swimming in the open water again. Movies revolving around killer sharks may seem incredibly gimmicky and clichéd by today’s standards, but “Jaws” still holds up very well, and is much smarter then all those silly shark spoliation films. Now earlier this month, I commented that “Deep Blue Sea” is personally my favorite animal attack movie, and thus my favorite killer shark movie ... which it still is ... but that doesn’t mean I think its better. While I personally wouldn't call "Jaws" one of my favorite movies, I can absolutely respect why others would label it as such. Obviously “Jaws” is far superior to “Deep Blue Sea”, and the greatest killer shark movie you can possibly ask for ... but why is that? What is it about this simple monster movie that makes it so great? Well, let’s dive right in and find out.

  The movie is based on the bestselling novel by good old Peter Benchley, making this the second movie I’ve reviewed this month to be adapted from one of his books. Now the plot itself isn’t that special, in fact it’s about as generic as monster stories get. The only difference is that it’s crafted so well.

When a rouge great white shark settles in at a local beach, it starts making meals of the tourists, with the first victim being this poor young teenage girl. This opening scene is probably the most famous animal attack scene in movie history, and one of the most iconic openings of any horror movie. We never see the beast on screen during this opening, and the young woman’s bloodcurdling screams that go unnoticed by a nearby group make this situation one of the most frightening of its kind, and a great way to kick off the film. Once the body count starts to rise, three men decide to hit the seas in an effort to hunt the beast down and slay it. While the shark itself looks kind of fake, especially by today’s standards, this film dose at least capture the tension and dread that comes with a predator of this sort. Unlike the Creature from the Black Lagoon, killer sharks do exist, and it’s not uncommon for them to attack humans. There’s also select moments when the movie blends in stock footage of a real shark, which works great.

   Let’s cut to the chase, the best aspect of the film really isn’t the shark at all, it’s actually the human characters that make this movie so appealing. We have excellent performances from Roy Scheider as the towns police chief named Officer Brody, Richard Dreyfuss playing a marine biologist named Hooper, and best of all is Robert Shaw as the tough as nails seafaring captain named Quint, and he steals the show with every scene he’s in.

All three characters have their distinct personalities and charismatic qualities that allow the audience to relate and cheer for them on every step of the adventure. I love their banter, and their simple interactions make them feel like real people instead of actors reading off a script. Also, aside from the opening victim, the movie completely dispenses with any of those generic, cardboard cutout teenage stereotypes that plague these movies now days. At last, aside from their larger then life personalities, each of our three principle characters has a personal story arc that weaves through the film, which adds even more layers to such a simple premise. For Chief Brody, he's facing his guilt, and aims to make a difference after feeling responsible for the death of a small boy at the teeth of the shark. For Hooper, it's an ethical debate between preserving a wonder of nature, or sacrificing this wonder of the sea to save lives. Finally for Captain Quint, it's a personal vendetta, as he views this as a chance to satisfy a lust for revenge over a shark that once killed his fellow comrades.   

 

  I also love the films 1970’s style and setting, because it allows the characters to do things that you just don’t see in movies today. For example, there’s a scene in which Brody researches shark attacks by looking through an old book on sharks.

In movies today, you only see characters researching info on the internet, and I kind of miss that time when people would actually go to the library to find information. It may seem like a small and pointless thing to give so much attention to, but seeing Brody flip though the pages of this old Shark book, and seeing those cryptic illustrations of killer sharks really helps set the mood and builds our expectations for when we finally see the beast. It also reminds us that the threat isn't a supernatural monster of any sort, but a real danger that lives with us on our planet. Of course Steven Spielberg directed this movie, and he treats this film like an Oscar winning picture. In fact, "Jaws" was nominated at the Academy Awards for Best Picture, which is already rare for a horror film, but it's downright unheard of for a monster themed movie. While the story is incredibly basic, it’s the overall execution and presentation of this premise that makes it one of the greats. It's just beautifully crafted, and there’s a sheer sense of terror that keeps things very exciting. Also, while "Jaws" may not have won best picture, it never the less swept through the Oscars and won everything else it was nominated for ... including best film editing, best sound design, and of course John William's won the Oscar for best original music score. It’s almost pointless to mention John William’s classic music score because it’s so well known, but it’s definitely one of the films strengths as it builds suspense, and allows you to feel the sharks presence without showing it on screen.

What personally makes my skin crawl ... even more so then the score ... is the brilliant underwater cinematography. Those underwater-POV shots alone, with unsuspecting people swimming overhead, make the concept of a shark attack seem all the more terrifying as you can’t see what’s swimming beneath you ... but the predator can definitely see you. It’s a rare kind of horror movie that succeeds at building suspense, and forcing you to jump out of your skin with some terrific shock moments. I for one rarely jump at intended jump-scares, and yet ... I'll never forget leaping out of my seat with the decapitated head on the sunken boat.

 

   My favorite scene is when our three hero's sit down for a couple drinks, while sharing their scars and back stories with one another. It's a moment that highlights how different these people are in personality, and yet their mutual love for the Ocean allows them to bond. This leads to Quint sharing an eerie tail in which he encountered a shark and barley survived, and it’s one of cinemas most memorable, chilling, and classic monologues ever. Then the sounds of whale songs get our hero’s to start singing, and we feel a sense of levity. Yet, with one shooting star in the night sky shifting the mood, our heroes suddenly get attacked by the shark ... all of that just in a few minuets ... it’s brilliant! Keep in mind, Steven Spielberg was only Twenty-Seven years old when he started work on "Jaws", and what he accomplished with scenes like this proved he was a filmmaker for the ages. Also keep in mind, this was his first real theatrical movie. He initially achieved success with his TV movie "Duel" in 1971, and had other TV credits for the 1974 picture "The Sugarland Express", but without question ... "Jaws" is when he first kicked down the Hollywood door and said ... stand back, the new Hitchcock is here. On that note, there's a famous homage to Hitchcock's camera work in "Vertigo", in which the effect is reversed when the camera tightens on Brody's reaction to the sharks first kill. 

  

  You could say that the movie is split into two distinct acts, the first half is when the shark terrorizes the beaches, and the second half is when our three hero’s go out hunting the shark. I personally prefer the first half, because I just love how ominous the buildup and atmosphere is as the looming danger of the shark comes into play. The second half has its highlights to be sure, especially the setting which isolates our hero’s in the middle of the ocean, but I find the tone of act two to be a little uneven. There’s a scene when they get the shark to drag a bunch of yellow barrels, and it’s all matched to this upbeat and cheery soundtrack, which spoils the mood a little and the scene itself goes on for way to long. Thankfully things get awesome again as we segue into the climax. It’s a thrilling roller coaster of a finale as the music builds, the shark sinks the ship, and our hero’s slay the beast in one of the greatest creature deaths of all time. Now, Peter Benchley wasn’t too pleased with this ending as it was extremely over the top in comparison to the ending of his novel in which the shark was harpooned by a spear, instead of erupting in a bloody explosion. While I can appreciate his point of view on this resolution, it’s still one of my favorite creature deaths of all time and it’s so triumphant to see that big shark blown sky high.

           

  Of course there were sequels, all of them completely inferior to the original, but not without some merits. “Jaws 2” really wasn’t terrible, but it certainly wasn’t good, as it took a more over the top approach and just came off as an unnecessary follow up. Then came “Jaws 3”, which was stupid, but it at least had an original and slightly inventive setting. It took place in a huge water themed park that the shark terrorizes from the inside, which was at least kind of creative. The series concluded with “Jaws: The Revenge”, which is easily one of the worst sequels in cinematic history. It hit all the low points with a boring pace, a brainless plot involving a shark bent on revenge, cheap effects and lots of really, really stupid scenes.

  While the original “Jaws” is nothing more than a strait forward B monster movie, it’s at least pulled off with class, a brisk pace, it has terrific characters, and even though I personally never found this film to be that terrifying, it still succeeds in creating an eerie mood which accelerates into a thrilling finale. It's always an accomplishment for a movie to go down in history as a classic, but for something as one-note as a movie about a killer shark standing the test of time ... that's down right inspiring, and proof that there's so much more to this then a B grade monster movie. Today’s audiences may find it a little tame, but it was still very influential for the time, and still proves to be one of the most competent, and entertaining animal attack movies ever made, as well as a staple in horror movie history.

Thanks for reading my review of the 1975 Horror classic “Jaws” ... and treat yourself to one good scare this October.    

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!