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Rating
Synopsis
The setup is pretty basic, but it works in its simplicity. At the small coastal town of Amity Island, everything is peaceful as the townsfolk prepare for the 4th of July. That is, until a giant man-eating great white shark starts wreaking havoc and devouring skinny dippers and even small children. While Sheriff Martin Brody (Roy Scheider) is trying to close the beaches and keep the people safe, the town’s mayor (Murray Hamilton) wants to keep the beaches open since the town relies on the tourism revenue they get around the 4th of July. Eventually, it becomes clear that this whole shark situation is too much to handle, so the town puts out a call for people to hunt and kill the shark. A shark expert known as Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) arrives and, even though a group of hunters managed to find and kill a shark, he’s unsure if it’s the same shark that’s been terrorizing Amity Island. Turns out he was right, since shortly after, the shark comes back and almost kills Brody’s kids, which leads to the town enlisting the help of local fisherman Quint (Robert Shaw) to take out the shark. Having said goodbye to his wife, Ellen (Lorraine Gary), Brody, along with Hooper and Quint, go out into the ocean to hunt down and ultimately kill the shark.
Review
To say that this is a great movie would not be doing this film justice. This film is an absolute masterpiece of filmmaking, which is especially remarkable considering the numerous issues they encountered during production. While the movie differs significantly from the original novel, I believe that many of the changes made were for the better. For instance, in the book, Hooper was more of a ladies’ man and had an affair with Ellen Brody, creating a love triangle between Sheriff Brody, Matt Hooper, and Ellen Brody. Additionally, the novel featured a subplot where the mayor owed money to the mafia, providing a more compelling reason why the mayor would not want the beaches closed. Honestly, their removal from the movie was for the best, as adding those subplots would have detracted from the movie’s overall quality. Pretty much everything in this movie works: the performances are great, the effects are excellent, there is tons of suspense and dread throughout the film as you’re waiting to see the shark, and the score by John Williams is legendary. What’s funny is how the point-of-view shots of the shark are one of the many things in this movie that work, considering how the animatronic shark wasn’t working, and the filmmakers intended to show it in the film more prominently. The fact that you don’t see the complete shark until the last act of the movie helps ramp up the tension until the finale.
Roy Scheider shines as the reluctant hero Sheriff Brody, a simple family man who wants to keep the townspeople safe and protect his family from the shark despite the mayor getting in his way. As much as people talk about some of his bigger moments, mainly when he kills the shark at the end, he also has a lot of great, quieter moments in the film. One instance is when he’s at home, frustrated, and his son starts mimicking his actions. It may seem insignificant, but it shows how he cares about his family and is just a regular guy at the end of the day. Richard Dreyfuss as Hooper makes for a great partner to go along with Scheider’s Sheriff Brody, but it’s Robert Shaw as the salty sea dog Quint that steals the show. His USS Indianapolis speech is probably one of the scariest monologues ever in a movie, and Shaw delivers it so well that you believe that he went through all of that. It’s also interesting to see how Hooper and Quint disagree and are at odds with one another, revealing a dichotomy between the old ways and the new. While it’d be easy to completely hate Murray Hamilton as the mayor because of how he’s more concerned about tourism revenue than the lives of innocent people, he does come around and become sympathetic when he finally decides to do something about it. Honestly, there are no weak spots in the film, though it is somewhat funny to see the animatronic shark propped on top of the boat at the end and Shaw pushing his way into the shark’s mouth.
If I spoiled the movie for you, I take no responsibility for spoiling a 40+ year old film that you could have and should have seen by now. Even if you’re not a horror movie fan, this is an essential film that everyone should see, especially if you’re looking for something to watch on the 4th of July. With some terrific performances, an iconic score, and tons of suspense that leads to a thrilling climax, Jaws is not only a well-crafted film that helped usher in the age of the summer blockbuster, but it is probably one of the greatest and most important films ever made!
You’re gonna need a bigger boat!
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