Starring Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss, Robert Shaw, Lorraine Gray and Murray Hamilton. Written by Peter Benchley and Carl Gottlieb. Directed by Steven Spielberg. Music by John Williams. Budget $9 million. Running time 124 minutes. Originally released in 1975.
The plot sees Police Chief Martin Broody start a new job on Amity Island on the very day a rogue 25 foot long Great White, or Carcharodon Carcharias if you prefer, starts using the costal town as his own personal all-you-can-eat buffet bar.
As the body count starts rising, sea-phobic Brody aided by marine biologist Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) and fisherman Quint (Robert Shaw) set out in a boat to bag themselves a shark.
What follows, without a shadow of a doubt, is one of the best films ever made and one of, if not, the best films of Steven Spielberg's illustrious career. And if you love the cinema and this film isn't in your top ten movies of all-times then you're not a film lover. It's note-perfect, has a perfect three-act structured, no soggy middle and still feels daisy fresh and exciting even after 47 years. It's been copied, studied and repeated but never bettered. Plus it's acknowledged as the first summer blockbuster, so you can legitimately blame every single crappy summer blockbuster that's followed on this and Steven Spielberg.
Filmed exclusively on location and with no sets, Jaws has a realistic, almost documentary feel about it and the three lead actors, all of whom weren't the first choice for their roles each give outstanding career defining performances. The night-time galley meal conversation onboard the fishing vessel Orca as the three men bond over battle-scar stories is a masterclass in acting, writing and directing.
If you've never seen it then now's the time to go! Because this new 4K 3D print is superb and actually enhances the film and I'm not a fan of 3D.
First released back in 1975, I was 12 when I first saw it one New Year's Day and I've lost count of the number of times I've seen it since. This is another film that I cannot fault in anyway and even after all these years I still found myself tensing up at certain moments and telling Charlie to swim faster! That plus the legendary crash zoom still makes me gasp.
They truly don't make films like this anymore. More's the pity. Drop everything and go see it now!
10/10
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