Jaws

Jaws

The 1975 thriller/ adventure film titled, Jaws, follows an ex-NYC police officer, Martin Brody, as he moves to a beach town to become the town sheriff. When he finds out that a girl was recently killed by a shark, he attempts to warn the town to stay out of the water. However, the mayor explains that people come to their town for the Fourth of July celebration, which brings in a lot of money. After another person is killed by the shark the Sheriff’s son is driven to shock, the mayor finally permits Brody to track down the great white shark with the help of a marine biologist, Hooper, and a professional shark hunter, Quint. While out on the water, the four men find that the shark is especially large and dangerous. In the end, Quint gets killed by the shark and Martin Brody makes the shark explode with an air tank.

Steven Speilberg’s cinematography is what makes this film so gripping and groundbreaking. One of the most iconic scenes in the film that shows off Spielberg's cinematography is the opening scene where the shark attacks the swimmer. The underwater perspective builds suspense and sets the tone for the rest of the film. Another memorable scene is the beach scene when the camera zooms in on Martin as he realizes the people in the water are in danger. The suspenseful editing intensified the scene and made the audience feel fear. Speilberg brilliantly uses the color yellow to signify danger instead of red because he wanted the red in the movie, to come from blood.

Jaws was the very first blockbuster film because of its marketing, widespread appeal, and cultural relevance. Jaws was one of the first films to use large-scale marketing and advertising. The gripping storyline, interesting characters, suspenseful camera angles, and iconic theme music appealed to a very broad audience. Before the release of the film, there were a large number of shark attacks that contributed to the audience’s heightened awareness and fear of sharks. While the effects seem dated now, when the movie was released, the special effects were very impressive for audiences, making the movie stand out against all others. Overall, I really enjoyed this film because it draws you in and makes you feel as though you are with Brody, Hooper, and Quint, tracking down a great white shark.