Terror from Below: Jaws (1975)
Cinematic Semicentennial Series – 1975 edition
Original poster art for Jaws
We have arrived at what is arguably the biggest, boldest, and most influential film Concentric Cinema has featured to date. Full disclosure: I was initially going to forgo covering this movie. After all, it seems everything that can be said about Jaws has already been said. While that might not be technically true, it sure feels that way considering just how effectively this one captured popular imagination. And yet, this movie is so impactful and was one of many flicks that fed my monster kid soul that I cannot NOT talk about it. So let’s head into the surf—but careful, not too far.
“This is not a boat accident! It wasn’t any propeller! It wasn’t any coral reef! And it wasn’t Jack the Ripper! It was a shark.”
-Hooper
New York City transplant Martin Brody (Roy Scheider) is the new chief of police on the (fictional) Amity Island off the coast of Massachusetts. He, his wife Helen, and their two boys Michael and Sean are still settling in at the cusp of high tourist season at this very popular beach town when Martin gets called in to investigate a grisly discovery: the butchered and dismembered remains of a young woman have been found at the local beach. While all evidence points to a shark attack, Chief Brody runs into near immediate interference from Amity Mayor Larry Vaughn (Murray Hamilton), who balks at closing the beaches. In fact, Vaughn is generally against doing anything that will put a damper on the upcoming 4th of July festivities that signal the start of high tourist season, the main financial lifeline for this small town.
Meanwhile, dramatic eyewitness reports to at least one shark attack and evidence of others compel Brody to continue to push for the beaches to be closed, triggering more runs-in with the mayor and other town leaders. Enter marine biologist and self-professed lover of sharks Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfus) who arrives from the Oceanographic Institute on the Mainland to offer his scientific expertise, enthusiasm, and lots of clever quips. Hooper is indignant that more has not been done in response to what is clear evidence of a shark attack. He explains to the mayor that this predator is a massive rogue shark that has “staked a claim” to the waters off Amity. As much as Brody and Hooper try pleading for reason and caution, Mayor Vaughn is unmoved and it’s full steam ahead for the holiday weekend.
A 4th of July to Remember
The town of Amity, festooned in red, white, and blue decorations, is bustling as tourists pour onto the island from ferry after ferry to enjoy the holiday festivities and the beautiful beaches. While Brody and Hooper are busy coordinating efforts to keep the beach goers safe, Mayor Vaughn is downright giddy about the crowds but also anxious that no one is swimming; he subsequently coaxes some nervous beach goers into the water. Without giving away any details I will just say things do not go as planned and the chief’s son Michael and his friends come in harm’s way, shocking the Brody family to its core.
Brody finally convinces a contrite and emotionally shaken Mayor Vaughn to not only to close the beaches but to hire a local fisherman by the name of Quint (Robert Shaw) to kill the shark. Quint is a weather-beaten fisherman who is equal parts prickly and charming in a world-weary sort of way. One thing is for sure, Quint is an old salty dog who has seen a thing or two in his life.
An unlikely trio go shark hunting
It is ultimately decided that Quint, Brody, and Hooper will set out on Quint’s fishing boat the “Orca” to hunt and hopefully kill the shark. The “Orca,” rough looking and more than a bit creaky, has clearly seen better days. It is loaded with various provisions and Hooper’s high-tech tracking, diving, and shark-killing equipment.
For the final third of the film, Quint, Hooper, and Brody argue about strategy, engage in lively banter, and eventually bond by sharing stories, comparing scars, and facing their mortality over this ocean-bound battle to the death. It is also here that we finally get a good look at the shark, an aquatic adversary which is larger, more powerful, and aggressive than our trio could have imagined. They watch as the 25-foot, three-ton leviathan with rows of razor-sharp teeth glides swiftly through the water as both the hunted and the hunter.
Are our heroes outmatched? For those new to this movie, Concentric Cinema recommends you dive in and immerse yourself in a thrilling ride.
My two cents
Jaws is, without a doubt, one of my most formative films. While I was too young to have seen it in the theater (I was three at the time), I was enthralled every time I caught it on network TV back in the late 1970s and 1980s. I spent a few weeks every summer with my dear grandmother Molly in Rockaway Beach, Queens, and I can distinctly remember pausing at the water’s edge, toes sinking into the grainy sand, and feeling very hesitant to go any further as images from Jaws swam in my head. It didn’t help that the Rockaway Beach surf was rough and the water was murky, letting one’s imagination run wild as to what was lurking below the surface.
There is so much to say about this film, but let us start with the stellar cast—a pitch perfect trio of lead actors. Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfus, and Robert Shaw are just as indispensable to this film as the editing, music, and exciting set pieces.
In a cast of colorful characters, Roy Scheider’s Martin Brody is a grounded and appealing everyman who just wants to keep the people of Amity Island safe. His closest thing to an eccentricity is an extreme aquaphobia (Martin avoids going in the ocean if at all possible). He is very much a fish out of water in Amity, channeling his inner New York attitude by dropping some choice wisecracks.
Not to be outdone in the playful sass department is Richard Dreyfuss as the brilliant, ebullient, and witty Matt Hooper. While Hooper is wealthy, well educated, and privileged, he is also not afraid to mix it up with his shipmates and roll up his sleeves to kick some shark butt—or at least give it that old college try.
Robert Shaw’s performance as Quint is (brace yourself, I’m going to use that word again) iconic. He loses himself in the equal parts irascible, jovial, and slightly mad veteran of the seas. His monologue about his harrowing experiences around the sunken aircraft carrier U.S. Indianapolis at the end World War II is understandably revered by fans. If you are interested in seeing another great film starring Shaw, check out a previous Cinematic Semicentennial Series feature on The Taking of Pelham One Two Three.
I also want to acknowledge the very relatable supporting performance of Lorraine Gray as Helen Brody and the great character actor Murray Hamilton as the jittery, slightly smarmy, and very human Mayor Vaughn.
Publicity photo. Richard Dreyfus, Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw
I think it is safe to say that even the most casual film fans will recognize the ominous and thrilling main theme from Jaws a mere two notes in. Inspired in its simplicity and power, this theme became instantly iconic (truly no other word comes close here). Check out the supplements for a fascinating piece that dissects this incredible bit of music. Composer John Williams created a slew of indelible movies scores over the decades, including the Stars Wars films (1977-2019), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Jurassic Park (1993), E.T. (1982), and the Indiana Jones films (1981-2023). His somewhat less famous score for 1979’s Dracula also happens to be a favorite of mine. Of course, the Williams score for Jaws is much more than its famous two-note motif. His full orchestral work evokes high adventure, horror, and pure wonder. Fans of the legendary composer will attest that when you listen to a Williams score, particularly for a genre film, you are in for a full experience.
And since we are on the topic of music, there is a wonderful moment that follows Quint’s somber Indianapolis monologue where the three men break into a raucous and drunken rendition of the song “Show Me the Way to Go Home.” According to a Wikipedia entry the song was written in 1925 by the English songwriting team Jimmy Campbell and Reg Connelly, using the pseudonym "Irving King". Fun personal fact: while I can hardly carry a tune, I do sing this song to my daughter every night when it is my turn to put her to bed. It is one of the few songs I know all the words to and it does have a good lullaby feel to it. I also consider it plain good parenting.
Take even a shallow dive into the production history of Jaws and you will learn about how Spielberg and his creative team had all kinds of trouble with maritime shooting and getting their mechanical shark to function properly. This compelled them to feature the shark sparingly, withholding a full view of the big fish until later in the film. In a case of necessity truly being the mother of invention, Spielberg and his team were compelled to find creative ways to demonstrate the creature’s presence without showing it. However, when we finally get a good look at the shark, it is a fearsome sight to behold with its massive body, impossibly wide bite radius, jagged uneven teeth, and black eyes. It is worth the wait.
In the end, Jaws succeeds by balancing moments of terror, humor, and awe in such a thoroughly entertaining way and it is easy to see why it has endured over these 50 years. It’s as if this Spielberg guy knew what he was doing.
U.S. and International lobby cards for Jaws
Jaws at 50
Based on the 1974 Peter Benchley novel, Jaws opened in U.S. theaters on June 20, 1975 and went on to terrify and delight audiences through the summer and into the fall of that year. Against a budget of approximately $12-$14 million, it earned more than $260 million at the box office and north of $200 million internationally. Put simply, the film was a sensation and is often credited (along with Star Wars) with kicking off the summer blockbuster craze. Big budget adventure and sci-fi spectacles would flourish in the coming decades.
The movie would spawn several sequels: Jaws 2 (1978), Jaws 3-D (1983), and Jaws: The Revenge (1987), all of which fall far short of the original in virtually all respects. That said, Jaws 2 (Roy Scheider returns, Spielberg does not) is not a half bad sequel; Jaws 3-D is cheap, sloppy fun; and Jaws: The Revenge, the worst of the lot, features a shark that roars. Yes, you read that correctly.
Considering the unqualified success of Jaws, it was inevitable that filmmakers of varying talent, budget, artistic integrity, and financial ambition were going to try and cash in. The next several years would see many films coined Jaws rip-offs or ‘Jawsploitation,’ most of which sit firmly in the B and cult movie categories. These include Grizzly (1976), a.k.a. “Jaws with Claws,” a very on-the-nose exploitation film; Orca (1977) with a killer whale meting out revenge on a local fishing village and fisherman played by Richard Harris; and Piranha (1978), produced by Roger Corman and directed by Joe Dante. Then there is The Killer Crocodile (1989), a wonderfully cheesy and not-so-subtle take on Jaws. This was an Italian production, and let’s just say no one did exploitation cinema quite like the Italians back in the late 1970s and 1980s. Check out this Collider piece about other enjoyable Jaws rip-offs.
Jaws would continue to play in heavy rotation on network TV, cable, and physical media (Laser disk, VHS, DVD, Blu-ray, and most recently on ultra-high definition). In fact, the version I screened prior to this writing was a beautiful UHD copy that was released five years ago for the 45th anniversary of the film. There are even screenings of the movie where audience members watch from rafts floating in the water.
This much beloved film will not go extinct anytime soon, if ever, as it elicits far too much multi-generational love from both genre-centric cinephiles and casual fans alike—not to mention the myriad of references that have deluged pop culture over the years.
Cast (abridged)
Roy Scheider – Chief Martin Brody
Richard Dreyfuss – Matt Hooper
Robert Shaw – Quint
Lorraine Gray – Helen Brody
Murray Hamilton – Mayor Vaughn
Carl Gottlieb – Meadows
Lee Fierro - Mrs. Kintner
Jeffrey Kramer – Hendricks
Crew (abridged)
Director – Steven Spielberg
Screenwriters – Peter Benchley & Carl Gottlieb
Writer Original Novel – Peter Benchley
Cinematographer – Wilmer Butler
Underwater Photographer – Rexford Metz
Editor – Verna Fields
Music Composer – John Williams
Sound – John R Carter
Production Company: Cinematique; Panavision, Ltd.; Technicolor Laboratories; Universal Pictures; Universal Pictures; Universal Title; Zanuck/Brown Company
Distribution Company – Universal Pictures
Behind the scenes photos from Jaws
How did I watch?
Universal 45th Anniversary UHD
Running Time: 2h 4m
MPAA Rating: PG
Did you know?
Actors Lee Marvin and Sterling Hayden both turned down the role of Quint, prompting producers to recommend Robert Shaw after working with him in 1973’s The Sting.
Peter Benchley, author of the original novel Jaws, has a cameo in the movie, playing a beachside reporter.
Jaws was given a PG rating, which seems hard to believe given the content. At the time, PG-13 ratings did not exist.
Large parts of the film we shot at Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts.
Reportedly both Benchley and Spielberg lamented the fact that the film was responsible for a frenzied shark obsession in the popular imagination and led to the vilification of sharks, which resulted in greater rates of overhunting.
According to the Guinness World Records, 1975’s Jaws was the first film to reach $100 million, becoming the first true summer blockbuster with patrons willing to wait in long lines to be terrified by this cinematic sensation.
Dreyfus and Spielberg would team up once again a few years later for another groundbreaking sci-fi film, Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977).
The shark was given the nickname “Bruce” after director Steven Spielberg’s lawyer.
Jaws was declared "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant" in 2001 by the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress.
Jaws was nominated for four Oscars and won three: best sound, best editing, and best score at the 48th Academy Awards.
We are big fans of Roy Scheider here at Concentric Cinema. We celebrate his solid genre credentials including The French Connection (1971), The Seven Ups (1973), Sorcerer (1977), Blue Thunder (1983), and 2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984).
Recommendations based on JAWS
Duel (1971)
Grizzly (1976)
Piranha (1978)
Supplements-
Dissecting the Scariest Two Notes in Film History (Washington Post)
Jaws at 50: Spielberg’s marine masterpiece transformed the movies – and us (The Guardian)
