“You yell barracuda, everybody says, “Huh? What?” You yell shark, we’ve got a panic on our hands on the Fourth of July.”
Jaws is a hell of an adventure and a great horror film, and I can’t think of any other film that pulls off both equally well. I love the way Spielberg brings the small fishing town of Amity to life. There’s a running visual motif that’s like an easy shortcut to great cinematic images: something in the foreground, something in the middle, something in the background. Shot after shot is composed this way, creating a film with tension on multiple planes that makes the most of the widescreen photography. This has some of the best use of background actors, just in the correct part of the frame. Excellent photography by Bill Butler under difficult conditions.
There are few horror films where you’ll identify so closely with the potential victims. That shark seems determined to reclaim the coast. The attacks are all shocking and thrilling, while John Williams blasts away with the classic musical motif. Tension, thrills, fun, humor and even a little cover up scandal. Jaws is a film I could watch every May as the bar for what all Summer entertainment should at least attempt to reach.
Leave A Comment