Jaws Film Review

Jaws is really a marvel in filmmaking. Despite the disaster of its production, it spawned one of the most iconic films in history. It’s directed by Steven Spielberg, and stars Roy Scheider as Chief Brody, Robert Shaw as Captain Quint, and Richard Deyfuss as scientist Matt Hooper. The plot of Jaws is when a gigantic great white shark begins to menace the small island community of Amity, Chief of Police Martin Brody must hire scientist Hooper and fishing Captain Quint to stop it. Now when I think about it, this plot is really a “B Movie” plot. It sounds like a straight to home video release, not the big budget summer blockbuster that it is. So why is the film so great despite its lack luster plot?

How can I talk about jaws without talking about the score? The theme song is fantastic, in that it does exactly what a score should do. Which is emotionally manipulate the audience. As the camera is going through the water as the music builds as we get closer and closer to a person, we as the audience get closer and closer to the edge of our seat anticipating the attack. The editing was solid, it used some creative cuts in that enhanced some scenes. The first scene at the beach cuts from Brody sitting on the beach to people in the water by using people walking in front of the camera. It helps make you on edge like Brody is.

Now the writing is what really makes this film. The three main characters, Brody, Hooper, and Quint all have this relationship with the water. Brody had a drowning accident as a kid and becomes terrified of the water. Hooper was attack by a shark as a kid and rather than become afraid like Brody, he becomes enamored with sharks and becomes a marine biologist. Quint is a survivor of a mass shark attack and becomes a shark hunter. Yet it is Brody who in the end kills the shark and has to overcome his fear, because if Hooper or Quint had done it than no one would have grown as a character. In fact, Quint is destroyed by his hate of the shark. 

                Jaws is not without its flaws. There are some shots that last too long and could have been cut. The opening sequence could have moved the credits to improve emotional transitions. And there’s flawed logic in how the shark is killed. But after the credits have rolled the flaws are not what you walk away with. You remember the great characters and dialogue, the incredibly climatic ending, and the intense shark attacks overlaid with some of the most intense music in a film.