Jaws is incredibly well directed, but the screenplay is a model of shuffling expectations to build tension. For instance, a lot of films might have placed the USS Indianapolis speech much earlier in the story. Placed at the beginning of the final act of Jaws, it serves to both humanize Robert Shaws character and is even more disturbing because its told by the 3 characters out on the boat, in the sharks turf.
This video essay looks only at the beach scene in Jaws and analyzes the top-notch filmmaking on display
that list is interesting. American werewolf in London was a cool film. The thing by john carpenter was a favorite. The fly with Jeff goldbloom had a wild ending I would put that on the list
I still love watching it every now and then . It’s probably my favourite ‘Old Time Big Blockbuster Film’ Might of done even better on release if all the posters looked like the one they produced for Ghana.
Do you guys think the LP program accurately represented Williams' score, or do you prefer either of the expanded versions?
I still love it. It’s a fun story with great characters and actors portraying them. Also, I grew up in the area where it was shot, so it’s like going back in time to my childhood (which did not, for the record, have any killer sharks). It’s probably too slow for today’s audiences - popcorn flicks these days are packed with action scenes, with much less character development. Anyone else remember “Orca”, the ripoff released about a year later?
It was a period piece. Great in its time, now not so much. IMHO. Your daughter is very intelligent. Horrendous movie. Absolutely unwatchable. You and I both. Awful, awful movie.
Aw c'mon! Orca is a shlock masterpiece. Between the orca fetus and Bo Derek getting her leg chomped on - in a cast mind you - this movie is a laugh riot.
That is an awesome clip It's all I need from that movie. Richard Harris likes cold water . He dies in cold water from the cool movie smillas sense of snow.
Jaws is a great movie to study and watch because of two things: characters and story. 99% of movies lack any character development. This movie has it all. 3 main characters plus the shark, the chiefs family, the mayor, local government employees, the city residents. And there is a solid story, safety vs local economy tradeoff. And it's got one of the most memorable soundtrack scores ever. No CGI. 10/10.
Spielberg and editor Verna Fields struggled for months to get the structure of the film under control, and this is the best they could do under the circumstances. Bear in mind this was a movie that went more than 50% over budget and something like 3 months over schedule, so it was really, really out of control during production. I think they were happy to get a version cut together than made sense, told a complete story from beginning to end, and had some real shocking moments while holding the audience's attention throughout. I've always said that the secret to Jaws' success was that it was a very funny movie with some real comedic moments, as well as real human characters with great believability and empathy, and that was all part of the rollercoaster that led you to the terrifying moments. The scene where Roy Scheider sees the shark for the first time is a good example. I don't think the "Indianapolis monologue" could have been moved, because the whole point of the scene was that the three guys distrusted and disliked each other but were forced to be together through circumstance, and they needed a moment to bond and become likeable -- to each other and to the audience. Read the script and see for yourself: http://screenplaysandscripts.com/script_files/J/JAWS (1975) Peter Benchley [Final].pdf
Does to me! I saw it in the theater back in ‘75 and I think it’s one of the best movies ever made. The performances of, and chemistry between, Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss, and Robert Shaw have a lot to do with the long-lasting appeal of the film, IMO.
I don't think E.T. is "unwatchable, awful, or horrendous," but I would absolutely agree that it's very dated and looks like... well, a 1982 film. I've remastered a few early 1980s films this year, and it's weird how slow and odd they feel nowadays: the hairstyles, the pacing, the bad acting, the overall style, a lot of stuff that's far more polished today. But look at it this way: this is not too far removed from the experience of watching a 1930s film in the 1970s, and 1930s films are extremely dated (even back then). Still, I think it's possible to just sit down and relax and get into an older movie knowing it's "of a certain era" and accepting certain historical limitations. It doesn't make it awful or drudgerous, and if you let it, it can actually be kind of a fun experience in kind of a quaint, dated way. One of my standard quips is just about any plot in a film made prior to the 1990s would be drastically affected by a cell phone, because the moment the hero can communicate with the other characters (or the police or another significant character), it solves a dozen story problems. So that in itself is a big problem. The moment you see a character run over to a pay phone, I'm like, "hey, remember those?" No internet, no GPS, no phone, no lights, no motorcars... not a single luxury. Things were primitive 30-40-50 years ago, in life and in film. (I actually had a cell phone in 1989, but I was unusual.) Not awful, not unwatchable, but quaint and dated. And sometimes still entertaining if you can get past it. As I said elsewhere, the Spielberg films set in a specific historical period -- like the Indiana Jones films or Lincoln or The Post -- those kind of exist in their own universe and still work. Even the futuristic SF films work as fantasy or another reality. But contemporary films are tough for any filmmaker as time marches on. Hell, I think Close Encounters might be a tougher watch than E.T., but maybe that's because I've seen it at least 50-60 times and there's no surprises left. Still classic films, just hard to sit through.
I've noticed the usual workaround to this is either no service or dead batteries. Yeah, like Robinson Ca-ru-soe, it's primitive as can be.
Wow, just found out that Universal is about to release the 45th Anniversary Edition of Jaws in a few weeks... Universal Bringing ‘Jaws’ to 45th Anniversary Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD in June!
Some good catalog 4Ks coming in June, what with this and the Columbia box that includes "Lawrence of Arabia" and "Dr. Strangelove"!
