Jaws (1975)

When a gigantic great white shark begins to menace the small island community of Amity, a police chief, a marine scientist and grizzled fisherman set out to stop it.

Director:

Steven Spielberg

Writers:

Peter Benchley (screenplay), Carl Gottlieb (screenplay),

Stars:

Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfuss

Top 250 #144 | Won 3 Oscars. Another 9 wins & 14 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Roy Scheider	...	Brody
Robert Shaw	...	Quint
Richard Dreyfuss	...	Hooper
Lorraine Gary	...	Ellen Brody
Murray Hamilton	...	Vaughn
Carl Gottlieb	...	Meadows
Jeffrey Kramer	...	Hendricks (as Jeffrey C. Kramer)
Susan Backlinie	...	Chrissie
Jonathan Filley	...	Cassidy
Ted Grossman	...	Estuary Victim
Chris Rebello	...	Michael Brody
Jay Mello	...	Sean Brody
Lee Fierro	...	Mrs. Kintner
Jeffrey Voorhees	...	Alex Kintner
Craig Kingsbury	...	Ben Gardner

Storyline

It's a hot summer on Amity Island, a small community whose main business is its beaches. When new Sheriff Martin Brody discovers the remains of a shark attack victim, his first inclination is to close the beaches to swimmers. This doesn't sit well with Mayor Larry Vaughn and several of the local businessmen. Brody backs down to his regret as that weekend a young boy is killed by the predator. The dead boy's mother puts out a bounty on the shark and Amity is soon swamped with amateur hunters and fisherman hoping to cash in on the reward. A local fisherman with much experience hunting sharks, Quint, offers to hunt down the creature for a hefty fee. Soon Quint, Brody and Matt Hooper from the Oceanographic Institute are at sea hunting the Great White shark. As Brody succinctly surmises after their first encounter with the creature, they're going to need a bigger boat.

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Plot Keywords:

shark | island | great white shark | mayor | beach | 

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Taglines:

Do you like fish? Well, he likes you too...

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Genres:

Adventure | Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Universal Studios

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 June 1975 (USA)

Also Known As:

Stillness in the Water

Filming Locations:

Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$8,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$260,000,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Zanuck/Brown Productions, Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min 130 min (TV)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Steven Spielberg observed at the first testing screening that the first surprise appearance of the shark got the biggest scream from the audience. But after he re shot the scene at Ben Gardner's boat, the surprise appearance of Ben Gardner's head got the biggest scream, while the appearance of the shark received half the reaction it used to. Spielberg said it taught him a lesson that a movie can have only one major scare moment, because afterward the audience will be on guard against the film.

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Goofs

Some think that when Quint first encounters the shark, he incorrectly refers to the Great White shark as an orca, saying that he's "gotta get a good shot at that orca's head". In fact, as he referred to the great white when first approached by Hooper and Brody inside his boathouse, he is calling it a "porker" - slang term for "big & white" - but with his accent it sounds similar to "orca".

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Quotes

[first lines]
Tom Cassidy: What's your name again?
Christine 'Chrissie' Watkins: Chrissie.
Tom Cassidy: Where are we going?
Christine 'Chrissie' Watkins: Swimming

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Crazy Credits

During the end credits, if you look carefully, you can see Brody and Hooper slowly floating to the shore.

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Connections

Spoofed in Yattâman: Bakademîshou o toruno da koron! (2008)

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Soundtracks

"Spanish Ladies"
(uncredited)
Traditional English shanty
Performed by Robert Shaw

User Reviews

Spielberg turns weak story into a cinematic masterpiece.

Every once in a while the right talented people are at the right place together and come up with a masterpiece. "Jaws" is definitely one of those movies, that is thanks to the amazing cast and the crew the classic masterpiece that it is today.

Let's face it, the story is dumb and silly and in a way very average. Spielberg magically turns the silly story into a tense exciting thriller with brilliant dialogue and classic scene's. Mark my words, "Jaws" is a movie that will never be considered outdated.

Everything in the movie works so well! The acting, the dialogue, the tension, the typical Spielberg humor, the music, everything! It's hard to name just one thing why this movie is such a masterpiece. It is the mix of everything combined that makes the movie work. Probably my favorite thing about the movie would be the dialogue, they are very raw and performed well by the perfect cast. Another thing of course would be the music and I'm not just talking about the main theme but about the entire musical score in general.

The cast is great but they are mainly great together. All of the Scheider/Shaw/Dreyfuss scene's are like three ingredients thrown together and the end result of it is pure gold.

And than Bruce the shark. Yes, he really looks believable even now days.

A real classic masterpiece that launched Spielberg's career

10/10

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