Jaws (1975)

The 1975 Steven Spielberg film Jaws has been called the greatest film ever made by many critics. What makes this simple story about a shark so great? Is it the direction? The cinematography? The soundtrack? I would argue that every element adds up to one of the classic films of the 20^th century.

Steven Spielberg was a young amateur during the making of Jaws. The entire production was incredibly over budget and everything seemed to be going wrong- crewmembers even had their own nickname for the film: Flaws. The mechanical shark was malfunctioning, sailboats were drifting into frame, and cameras were getting wet. Despite all of these hindrances, the film has several stunning and groundbreaking shots. My favorite is the dolly zoom on Roy Scheider's character Martin Brody. Brody realizes there is a shark in the water, and the camera zooms in on him. The zoom was made by using the camera zoom and by physically moving the camera at the same time. The cinematographer Bill Butler made the focus clearly on Brody, and exaggerated the dire straits he was in.

John Williams created the score for Jaws. Although he was a seasoned composer by 1975, Jaws was his first major blockbuster success that made him a household name. Two simple chords repeated over and over again accompanied the startling approach of the villainous shark. The score combined with the other sounds in the film- boats creaking, water splashing- makes for a memorable film experience.

My favorite part of Jaws is the screenplay, something I feel gets overlooked. For most, the memorable scenes are the shark attacks. My favorite scene is when Martin Brody sits at his kitchen table with his son. He is clearly stressed out, and his son mimics his hand and face movements. Brody then leans in and says “Give us a kiss.” When his son asks why, he replies “Cause I need it.” The dialogue here is so simple, yet the scene works so beautifully. The fact that these emotional scenes work just as well as the thrilling shark scenes is the mark of a good screenplay.

Jaws essentially created the concept of the summer blockbuster for cinema. It brought in casual moviegoers but also was a critical darling. I think Jaws definitely deserves to be listed at one of the greatest movies of all time.