The film that skyrocketed a legendary filmmaker's career and being the first blockbuster in film history despite a notorious production, "Jaws" is still seen as one of the greatest films of all time. As a kid, I had only watched a third of the film and never cared to rewatch it throughly due to the extreme amounts of exposure. However, I have decided to watch the film from the beginning to the end after getting the 4K version. The question I have in my head is whether or not the film has aged well, especially with the change of perspective of sharks and the film landscape. The story is pretty straightforward. A rogue shark is roaming the waters of Amity Island, killing a young woman and even a child. The new police chief, Martin Brody, urges citizens to avoid the beaches as they try to hunt down the shark. The mayor and the majority of the seaside town refuse to cooperate due to financial reasons and trying to hold the reputation of the summer season. As more people are killed and solutions become more problematic, Brody decides to hunt the creature itself, alongside with an oceanographer and a seasoned fisherman who wants to take credit for killing the shark. Based on the best-selling novel, the film has gained the reputation of the fear and mass overfishing of sharks, which I, along with many others, feel bothered from. I won't be too harsh on the content, especially as the author and filmmakers admit that they wouldn't have made the story if they knew about the endangerment of sharks, but it's a bit hard to watch when the people are really barbaric about wanting to kill the animal, even the oceanographer for some reason. With that said, it's mainly an homage to classic stories and horror, but with a modern and grounded context. The tone of the film is what makes the film so memorable. There's both suspense and comedy intertwined and it mainly just relates to the characters and realism of the story. I will talk about it more in the characters segment, but I love how the characters are just people scrambling to deal with the situation rather than stereotypical cliches. There are some tropes involved that makes the film feel a bit over-the-top, but it does stick close to the grounded reality.
Roy Scheider as Chief Brody is a solid protagonist. Despite only moving into the costal town months ago, he's very committed into keeping the people safe, despite the mayor's interference. The best scenes are with him and his family as Scheider is just a charming actor when he plays the husband/father role, especially in the scene where his kid is imitating his every movement at the dinner table. Robert Shaw plays Quint, a crazy shark hunter who constantly drinks and demands a high ransom for killing the shark. Although the character is inspired by Moby Dick, Shaw makes the character of Quint his own and makes him perhaps the most enjoyable character of the film despite his questionable personality. Richard Dreyfuss plays Matt Hooper, an oceanographer who studies sharks and is able to point out what type of specimen they are dealing with. Dreyfuss is enjoyable as Hooper for being the straight-man that has to deal with both Quint and the mayor and confiding in Brody to deal with the issue. Although it's odd that he's not even considering the option of capturing the shark despite his career and passion, the character works for this particular story and cast. The last major character would be Mayor Vaughn, played by Murray Hamilton. While seemingly corrupt and unlikeable due to how he's forcing the beaches to be open despite the killer shark residing in the waters, the viewer understands that it's just due to the town relaying on tourists during the summer to have business owners stay afloat. What's bizarre is that he's honestly even more relatable as we live in a pandemic where politicians try to balance keeping businesses open versus the potential fatalities. Outside of these main characters, there are a few side characters to note. There's Ellen Brody, the wife of Martin, Deputy Hendricks, Brody's bumbling partner, and Mrs. Kintner, the mother who mourns the death of her child and blames Brody for not letting the town know of the killer shark. The kids of Brody and Kintner can be mentioned, but they really don't have much personality to note other than being juvenile boys. The cast is generally pretty good and they actually commit to their roles. There's not one bad performance or unlikeable character. The viewer either gets attached to certain characters or they relate to the more morally-complicated ones.
Steven Spielberg's first theatrical film manages to show that, even in his early years, the famous filmmaker knows how to direct a movie. Despite being recognized as a horror/thriller film, the movie has a slow pace and almost resembles a slice-of-life film at times. The location of Amity Island creates a lively atmosphere and setting with the sunny exterior shots making the viewer feel warm by the artificial sunlight. The interior of Brody's home feels very comfortable that you'd want to stay over. The windows show the beautiful yet deadly beach that gives the viewer a false sense of security, much like the civilians in the film. All of this is primarily thanks to Bill Butler's cinematography, which is simply excellent by the extensive use of long shots. There are so many key examples of Butler's unedited shots and sequences that it's questionable why he hasn't got nominated for his work in the Oscars the following year. Perhaps it's because it was just tied to Verna Field's award-winning editing for the uninterrupted shots and perfectly-timed cuts? The iconic score by John Williams doesn't need any real introduction. Aside from the popular theme where the shark stalks and attacks its victims, there's a bunch of adventure-sounding tracks and even thrilling music as the main trio hunts the shark when they depart to sea. It's a bit odd to hear this music, especially when the scene is more suspenseful as the characters struggle to take down the shark, but it's still great music nonetheless. The last thing to really note is the effects relating to the shark itself. We all heard of the horror stories that the filmmakers had to deal with the animatronic shark that constantly malfunctioned, but the shark itself looks decent for the time and is commendable for their efforts. Aside from a trained sequence where a great white is tossing a shark-proof cage around, the film mostly had either Butler's camerawork that portrays the shark's point-of-view or the mechanical shark that scared audiences back in 1975. Personally, I didn't find the shark to be fake-looking or ridiculous. It's clear that the scenes of suspense where we don't see the shark much is far more effective, but the climax involving the mechanical shark named Bruce is still great to watch and proves to be a spectacle when you realize that the film was not only using practical effects and props, but it was the first major film to be shot on the ocean.
"Jaws" is undeniably a cinematic classic and even a masterpiece by many. From the balanced tone, sense of realism in the story and characters, the likeable personalities and performances by the main trio, the mayor being a surprisingly well-aged character despite the seemingly shallow motives, the actors as a whole never phoning it in, the interior and exterior settings being so comfortable and homey, Butler's fantastic cinematography, Field's editing that keeps shots uninterrupted and working around with the limited production, William's famous score, the effects of the mechanical shark being remarkable and somewhat inspiring for the production and filmmaking in regards to today where CGI dominates special effects, and Spielberg's direction of making a horror film have so much to offer in terms with atmosphere, characters, and filmmaking. The only issue with the film itself is mainly in regards to the dated nature of shark-hunting. Aside from that, it's an issue that's water under the bridge as Spielberg and the novel's author, Peter Benchley, admit that they wouldn't have made the film if they knew of the overfishing of the aquatic creatures. Despite their comments, I will admit that if they never made this film, the world will never experience a magnificent film.
Verdict: 9.5/10. Almost perfect if you can stomach the meat-headed nature of trying to kill a shark. Otherwise, it's an extremely rewatchable film, even 45 years later!
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