“Jaws” Review

(From Left) Shark hunter Quint, police chief Martin Brody and marine biologist Matt Hooper join forces to hunt down the killer shark in “Jaws.”

It’s amazing that after every game changing blockbuster, there’s a billion imitators who try to copy the genius of the original work. How many people tried to replicate “Star Wars” or “E.T.” after they soared to the top of the box office heap? But the first mega blockbuster that actually originated the term in the modern zeitgeist of film was the one and only “Jaws.” It’s not often that a film makes you want to avoid 75% of the planet but “Jaws” is a film so powerful that it actually caused people to avoid the water.

Set in the small, vacation town of Amity Island, a villainous great white shark has begun killing swimmers which panics the town since it relies on summer tourists to make the bulk of their money. When the cover-ups by their mayor (Murray Hamilton) and attempts to kill the shark fail, the town’s police chief (Roy Schieder), a marine biologist (Richard Dreyfuss) and a grisled shark hunter (Robert Shaw) go out to sea to hunt down the shark. 

It’s impossible to talk about this film without mentioning the difficult production of the film. Along with “Apocalypse Now” and “Fitzcarraldo,” “Jaws” is a perfect example of a film I adore but would never want to work on. What was originally planned as a 55 day shoot ended up lasting 159 days due to the mechanical sharks breaking down, other boats drifting into the frame (ruining a whole day of shooting) and the fact that the script was constantly being rewritten because the original script, which was a straight-forward translation of the original novel, had the three main characters be so unlikeable that director Steven Spielberg jokingly wanted the shark to win.

However, because of these production woes, the resulting film was an incredibly strong thriller that, by all accounts, should have been a failure. But the film had a great deal of talent who pooled their efforts to create a strong, character-driven monster film. 

Director Steven Spielberg oversaw a troubled production which, among other things, had the mechanical sharks break down constantly.

In a genre that normally focuses on the monster, leaving the humans as blank shells waiting to be gobbled up, “Jaws” boasts a strong cast of characters that more than make up for the fact that the shark is barely seen in the first half of the film. While marine biologist Matt Hooper is a great deal of fun and Quint the hunter adds a fun albeit serious nature to the film, at the heart of “Jaws” is Chief Martin Brody. 

His character is so likeable and he tries to do the right thing by letting people know of the shark, only to be shot down at every opportunity by the mayor and the town who just won’t look reality in the face (or mouth in this case). Some of the best scenes in the film are shark free and focus on Brody with his kids or his wife (Lorraine Gary). While the shark may be on the poster, the film is most-definitely about the people it preys on.

While Richard Dreyfuss is now a well-known actor, his popularity in 1975 was due mainly to starring in 1973’s “American Graffiti,” which was directed by Spielberg’s friend George Lucas. This is the role that cemented him as a likeable leading character which would translate to Spielberg’s next film “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” also starring Dreyfuss. 

Robert Shaw’s performance as Quint is incredibly layered as he starts off the film as the most cliched character and then, with one scene, my outlook of him completely changes. The scene in particular was when Quint tells Hooper and Brody that he was a sailor on the U.S.S. Indianapolis, a real WWII ship that was sunk by a Japanese submarine after delivering the bomb dropped on Hiroshima, and how he and his friends were attacked by sharks for five days. Shaw’s delivery of this speech is unbelievably captivating and all you can do is stand in awe.

Spielberg’s direction is border-line “Hitchcockian” and I’m not just saying that because of Spielberg’s use of the dolly-zoom on Roy Schieder’s Chief Brody. Because the mechanical sharks broke down so much, Spielberg was able to use different techniques to make the shark feel like it’s in the film without actually showing it. 

This includes the use of barrels shot into the shark, the point-of-view shots from the shark’s perspective and, of course, John Williams’ amazing score which garnered him an Academy Award. With just two notes, Williams conveys one of the most terrifying themes ever made for cinema. Because of the lack of a shark, Spielberg is able to convey a level of suspense that wouldn’t exist had the mechanical fish had been properly running.

While a monster film, “Jaws” chooses to focus more on interesting characters, lifting the film from creature-feature status.

Verna Fields’ editing is marvelous to look at because she has a recurring habit in the film where, after the shark attacks or something scary happens, she often cuts to a scene taking place a while later instead of showing the immediate aftermath of the situation. This not only makes the film more tightly paced, but actually puts the audience in the situation of “how would I react to this situation?” The third act of the film is also filled with items that are important, like a tank of compressed air or a few barrels, and Fields knows how to cut together a scene showing all of the little parts that these characters need to hunt down the shark.

The film is very reminiscent of Hitchcock thrillers in both style and theme, particularly with how the film handles the ideas of masculinity among the three main characters. With Quint representing rugged gruffness and Hooper representing intellectualism, which of course results in them clashing, Brody is caught in the middle. Throughout the film, Brody has been metaphorically emasculated as police chief by the mayor and the town, so he must reclaim his masculinity, leading him to save the day. 

Upon release, “Jaws” became the highest grossing film of all time and remains one of the most revered summer blockbusters. While the making of the film was the furthest thing from perfection, the result is the closest thing to it.