COUNTDOWN TO HALLOWEEN: DAY 24-“JAWS”

In honor of the witching season, we’ll profile a new Halloween-centric title every day throughout the month of October.

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Article by Adam Mast

JAWS (PG)-1975

True, Steven Spielberg’s JAWS is more of a character driven action movie than an all out horror picture, but the fact remains that this masterwork offers up some of the biggest scares in the history of cinema. It should also be noted that movies of this nature are always more effective when we care about the folks that are on the verge of getting eaten.

For the few of you who haven’t seen this unforgettable movie, here’s a brief overview; Police chief Brody (played by Roy Schieder) must team with excitable shark expert Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) and  cantankerous fisherman Quint (Robert Shaw) in an effort to track down and exterminate a deadly great white shark after the massive killing machine starts praying upon unsuspecting Amity beach goers during the course of a busy 4th of July season.

Beach attendance dropped significantly when this film was released 40 years ago and I can pay JAWS no higher compliment. This is the kind of impact this picture had on audiences. It was a massive hit and is often sighted as the first bonafide blockbuster as we know the blockbuster today.

Funny enough, Spielberg has spoken often of what a grueling shoot this was. JAWS was over schedule and over budget, and “the Beard” had a hard time getting the damn shark to work. Of course, much of the turmoil on set would turn out to be a blessing in disguise. Because of technical issues, there’s a lot more “power of suggestion” at play in this picture then there might have been otherwise, and even the reported butting of heads between Dreyfuss and Shaw translates into dynamite onscreen chemistry.

Spielberg is, perhaps, the most celebrated filmmaker of all time, and JAWS is a prime example of this genius storyteller firing on all cylinders. Scheider, Dreyfuss, and an extremely magnetic Shaw are all at the top of their game, but this is the Spielberg show through and through. The director’s impulsive decisions as a storyteller here are the stuff of legend. Even JAWS author Peter Benchley questioned  a key moment at the end of this picture, suggesting that it wasn’t at all realistic. But Spielberg knew that if he had the audience firmly in his grasp that they would not only accept this iconic “Smile, you son of a bitch!” moment, but that it would be a crowd pleasing moment of the highest order. And it was.

If Spielberg has a film of Alfred Hitchcock proportions on his stellar resume, then JAWS is it. His undeniable ability to build tension and suspense is on display in a monumental way here.

So many unforgettable sequences to speak of; Quint’s haunting delivery of the Indianapolis monologue, the bay shark attack, the showing off of battle scars, Chrissie’s moonlight swim,  the fate of Alex Kintner, “You’re gonna need a bigger boat.,”etc. JAWS is quite simply a two hour collection of iconic images.

And once again, Spielberg and crew give us characters worth caring about. This is a movie about real people. For every grandiose scare and for every tension filled beat of action is a human moment. Look no further than a warm (and instantly relatable) scene in which Brody’s young son shadows him at the breakfast table. Adorable and sincere, and it makes the scary stuff all the scarier because we know what Brody has to lose.

In some ways, there are moments in JAWS that make it feel like a precursor to the slasher movie craze of the 80’s. A silent killing machine hell bent on praying upon as many helpless victims as possible. This is a conceit made all the funnier when you take into consideration that little Alex Kintner was played by an actor named Jeffrey “Voorhees.” Make no mistake though. The “silent killing machine” aspect is where the comparison stops.

I bare no ill will towards the likes of FRIDAY THE 13th, mind you. In fact, I have quite a fondness for the slasher genre. The fact remains though, if Bruce the shark and Jason engaged in a Celebrity Death Match, my money is on Bruce.

COUNTDOWN TO HALLOWEEN

October 23rd-“Frailty”– Click Here
October 22nd- “Psycho” – Click Here
October 21st-“Killer Klowns From Outer Space”– Click Here
October 20th- “Horrorfest 2015” – Click Here
October 19th- “Hocus Pocus” – Click Here
October 18th-“The Exorcist”– Click Here
October 17th-“Prince of Darkness”– Click Here
October 16th- “The Omen” – Click Here
October 15th-“Dawn of the Dead”– Click Here
October 14th- Student Bodies”–Click Here
October 13th-“Habit”–Click Here
October 12th- “The Twilight Zone” – Click Here
October 11th- “Creepshow” – Click Here
October 10th-“Shaun of the Dead“-Click Here
October 9th-“Invasion of the Body Snatchers”– Click Here
October 8th-“The Final Girls”–Click Here
October 7th-“Something Wicked This Way Comes”–Click Here
October 6th- “We Are Still Here”–Click Here
October 5th-“Evil Dead II: Dead By Dawn”–Click Here
October 4th- “Phantom of the Paradise“-Click Here
October 3rd-“Poltergeist“-Click Here
October 2nd-“The Babadook“-Click Here
October 1st-“John Carpenter’s The Thing“-Click Here

About Author

Adam Mast

Adam Mast has been a lifelong film enthusiast dating back to age 6 when his parents took him to see a little movie called JAWS at a drive-in theater in Northern California. This would lead him to several writing stints for various publications and outlets. Mast would also have a hand in several film projects of various shapes and sizes. In 2014, Mast would join forces with colleague John Pugh to create Cinemast.net as a means discuss film from a fan and analytical perspective. Together, Mast and Pugh would also create the 501 (C)(3) nonprofit, Film and Media Alliance of Southern Utah (FMASU) in 2017. FMASU’s mission is to encourage, inspire and educate filmmaking talent and to preserve film history. Adam currently resides in southern Utah with his amazing wife, Tonja, and their four wonderful children.

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