'Jaws' still has teeth.

[azmouse]

I don't know how many times I've seen this movie but I know I'll be watching it frequently over the summer.
One of the best movies ever!


http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/preview/articles/2010/05/21/20100521goody0521.html


What ground did "Jaws" break, exactly? Steven Spielberg's scary little thriller, which debuted 35 years ago, all but held together by spit and bailing wire, ushered in the notion of the summer blockbuster. The happiest of accidents, it was a surprise smash, for a time the highest-grossing film ever, and it changed the way studios looked at summer.

It's also, you know, great.

****

"Jaws" also had a longer-term effect. Until 1975, summer had been thought of as a fallow period for movies, a time to burn off whatever less-than-stellar efforts studios had lying around gathering dust.

No more. Although the brilliance of the film's content might have been a result of the young Spielberg's gift of spontaneity, the promotion of the movie was something else entirely. "Jaws" was the first film to have a "wide" distribution, which is to say, to open in theaters around the country on the same day.

[driver8]

1. I remember going to see this movie like it was yesterday!

I agree with you -- one of the best movies, ever.

[timtom]

7. I quit going in the ocean after seeing that flick.

And, I live in South Florida.

[azmouse]

11. Why do you think I live in the desert now?!

:) No sharks.

[driver8]

17. Ha Ha -- I live in Southern California and I HATE swimming in the ocean!

Jaws is responsible for that!

[bigwillq]

2. Indeed

One of the best ever. I can watch it over and over and never tire of it.

[pokerfan]

3. The best part

Quint's speech: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nrvMNf-HEg

Quint's tale of the USS Indianapolis was conceived by playwright Howard Sackler, lengthened by screenwriter John Milius and rewritten by Robert Shaw following a disagreement between screenwriters Peter Benchley and Carl Gottlieb. Shaw presented his text, and Benchley and Gottlieb agreed that this was exactly what was needed.



USS Indianapolis (CA-35) was a Portland-class cruiser of the United States Navy. She holds a place in history due to the circumstances of her sinking, which led to the greatest single loss of life at sea in the history of the U.S. Navy.

On 30 July 1945, shortly after delivering critical parts for the first atomic bomb to be used in combat to the United States air base at Tinian, the ship was torpedoed by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine I-58, sinking in 12 minutes. Of 1,196 crew aboard, approximately 300 went down with the ship. The remaining crew of 800 faced exposure, dehydration and shark attacks as they waited for assistance while floating with few lifeboats and almost no food or water. The Navy learned of the sinking when survivors were spotted four days later by the crew of a PV-1 Ventura on routine patrol. Only 316 sailors survived.

[AllenVanAllen]

15. That was the most chilling scene of the movie.

It also inspired Hunter Scott at the age of eleven who renewed public interest and campaigned to clear the name of Captain McVay for the incident. In October of 2000 Congress did just that. Very cool.

[WinkyDink]

4. DUN-dun....DUN-dun...DUNdun. DunDun. DUNDUN....!!!!!! One of my all-time faves!

[DerekG]

5. This masterpiece is not praised enough

One of the few perfect films ever made.

[Ron Green]

6. Spielberg's last really good movie, IMO.

[Dr Morbius]

8. I think the reason it's so good is related to the film's budget.

Spielberg went over budget. Things broke; for example the mechanical shark was an engineering nightmare. Because of cost overruns, Spielberg was forced to use classic film techniques to bring out the tension. I think it improved the movie; Spielberg's huge success with the film ensured his future cost overruns would be tolerated and overlooked... and as a consequence he never has had to work as hard on a movie's pacing and lighting. There's a reason, I think, that Steven Spielberg never directed a movie quite as well since Jaws. He hasn't had to.

[TommyO]

9. And it was inspired by real shark attacks here in New Jersey!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jersey_Shore_shark_attacks_of_1916

The Jersey Shore attacks immediately entered into American popular culture, where sharks became caricatures in editorial cartoons representing danger. The attacks inspired Peter Benchley's novel Jaws (1974), an account of a great white shark that torments the fictional coastal community of Amity. Jaws was made into an influential film in 1975 by Steven Spielberg. The attacks became the subject of documentaries for the History Channel, Discovery Channel, and National Geographic Channel.

Between July 1 and July 12, 1916, five people were attacked along the coast of New Jersey by sharks; only one of the victims survived. The first attack occurred on Saturday, July 1 at Beach Haven, a resort town established on Long Beach Island off the southern coast of New Jersey. Charles Epting Vansant, 25, of Philadelphia was on vacation at the Engleside Hotel with his family. Before dinner, Vansant decided to take a quick swim in the Atlantic with a Chesapeake Bay Retriever that was playing on the beach. Shortly after entering the water, Vansant began shouting. Bathers believed he was calling to the dog, but a shark was actually biting Vansant's legs. He was rescued by lifeguard Alexander Ott, who claimed the shark followed him to shore as he pulled the bleeding Vansant from the water. Vansant's left thigh was stripped of its flesh; he bled to death on the manager's desk of the Engleside Hotel at 6:45 p.m.<1>

...

More at the Wikipedia link above

[azmouse]

10. I went to the Jersey shore for the first time the year Jaws came out.

I hadn't seen the movie yet but everyone was talking about it.

[TommyO]

12. I'm about thirty miles north of where the first attack took place

and I frequently get down to Barnegat Lighthouse at the far north end of LBI (the first attack was towards the sound end of the island)

[edbermac]

13. If they remade it today, it wouldn't be 1/10 as good as the original.

On the DVD commentary for DUEL. Spielberg commented why he went out into the desert to shoot on location instead of the studio, saying the audience would just see a guy sitting in a prop car with rear view projection and wouldn't be frightened at all. Ditto for JAWS.

Today they'd shoot in a studio tank with bluescreen and CGI fish like they did for THE PERFECT STORM and it would be laughably bad.

[tigereye]

14. it's an excellent film - not overly sensationalistic

He's a great director. Very impressive for an early film.


Have you seen Duel? We watched that right after. Interesting film.

[MiddleFingerMom]

16. There were 3 movies that I wanted to see that the military would not show in Europe...

.
..."Deep Throat", "The Exorcist", and "Jaws".
.
I eventually saw all three -- the first two after my return to
the States ("Deep Throat" was the only major disappointment).
.
Although I wasn't all that proficient in German at the time, the
feel and the intent shone through brilliantly.
.
And Robert Shaw's language sounded even rougher and saltier when
translated into German (not so hard to believe, nicht war?).
.
German movie theaters were COOL. Soft, comfortable, upholstered
easy chairs, your ticket price varied according to how close or
far you were from the screen, and -- mostest bestest of all --
THERE WAS BIER!!!!!
.