‘Jaws’ Dir. Steven Spielberg, (1975)

Film Review Storytelling & Commission

Jaws Director: Steven Spielberg

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‘Jaws’ is an American thriller film directed by Steven Spielberg in 1975. The film sees a narrative that depicts local shark attacks on beachgoers which occur continuously. This eventually leads to the discovery of a bigger-than-life great white shark being the culprit and results in the local police chief, a marine biologist and a professional shark hunter to engage the beast to end its frenzy of violence. The film was based on the novel of the same name by James Benchley, and during the time of its realised was considered by many to be a watershed moment in the history of motion pictures. The thriller genre that the film falls in to is almost immediately introduced to viewer’s right from the outset, with an intense dramatic opening sequence that is complimented effectively by John William’s soundscape. Critic Martin shares a similar opinion, stating that; “Before we see anything, our ears are chilled by composer John Williams' menacing two note soundtrack which then builds into that unforgettable frenzy as the unseen shark savages its first victim.” (Martin, 2012) Martin defines the use of the score to be one of the most effective conventions that make the opening scene an exciting moment for viewers. The way the tempo of the soundscape gradually heightens with the ‘two note’ theme accentuates the editing and develops a pulse-raising fear of the unknown. Building upon Martin’s valid opinion, the way the whole sequence unravels directly engages with audience emotion through the use of various film making techniques, provoking their imaginations to be set free. An element which efficiently examples this can be found within the shot making; more specifically how the use of camera angles help to create a dim-light fear of the deep, reflecting the realistic eerie atmosphere that is found deep beyond the shallows of ocean (Figure 3).

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The way the camera tracks the young women (who is immediately identified as helpless) from below almost gives audiences the predator instinct to attack through the use of the subjective camera angle which feels as if it works as something similar to torture instrument about to maim its prey. Shots identical or similar to this are present throughout and foreshadow events to come, but more importantly are arguably one of the biggest suspense triggers Spielberg involves. From a personal point of view, the film’s renowned suspense would not have had the same affect without the constant reminders of the fear of the unknown, which until halfway through, is the great white’s physical appearance. Reviewer Ian Nathan acknowledges that at the time of release ‘Jaws’; “…delivered an astonishingly effective thriller built on a very primal level: fear.” (Nathan, 2002)

As Nathan states, fear is one of the most crucial areas which make ‘Jaws’ a successful thriller. This sense of fear is used throughout in various ways, and without considering the basic principles of filmmaking, the effect the production would have had on audiences, would have changed dramatically. From a personal outlook the way Spielberg leaves audiences with the sense of terror is the most simple, yet the most effective by the way he triggers imaginations to create mental images drawing upon the continual fear that is induced. Not only does Spielberg cleverly position cameras and shrewdly edit his shots, but he begins forcing audiences to be imaginative and creative within his own work, imposing them to manifest these vivid mental images of the beast monstrous scale, and the power in which it possesses. The most notable scene which depicts this is when the remains of the shark’s first victim are described during examination from the marine expert.

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Overtime, ‘Jaws’ has been compared with some of Hitchcock’s works, notably due to its use of subjective camera shots (such as the infamous contra-zoom; Figure 4), its editing style, and more comparably, its valuable suspense and tension which make it a hard hitting thriller. Everything within Spielberg’s production has a reason, and as Nesbit acknowledges; “Much like Hitchcock, nothing is thrown in without serving a purpose.” (Nesbit, 2000)

The slow editing helps draw out the tension that, in places, feels as if the atmosphere is about to snap if any more weight of suspense is added. This style is somewhat resemblant of Hitchcock’s methods, where viewers are on the edge until the culminating incidents, from which later relieve hefty amounts of fear at once. Within ‘Jaws’, the way events lead up to the shock of eventually experiencing the pure horror of the first ‘full’ sighting of the great white resembles the emotions which are in place during the climactic moment of the twist ending revealing Norman Bates’ true psychosis in ‘Pyscho’. Even though not identical, the use of the resembling editing and filmmaking styles during such scenes suggest possible influence from the works of the great master of suspense, and the climactic moments which mirror similar methods of creating the intense horror which develops. ‘Jaws’ provides viewers and critics alike with a monstrous torment of clever filming conventions that delves deep into the realms of the fear of the unknown, juxtaposing sound and video in a way that provides the frightening atmosphere throughout. Indefinitely, ‘Jaws’ is a horror film that still contains some of the best subjective and fear inducing cinematography in Hollywood, and debatably provides for the basic stonework to producing a successful horror/thriller film.

Review Bibliography References Martin, B. H (2012) available at; www.u.tv; www.u.tv/blogs/B-H-Martin/Shark-Attack-Jaws-Is-Back/01dadc82-fc82-49f0-bbd6-88f09371c29d [accessed online on 7 February 2013]. Nathan, I (2002) available at; www.empireonline.com; www.empireonline.com/site/incinemas/ReviewInFull.asp?FID=4317 [accessed online on 7 February 2013]. Nesbit, J. A (2000) available at; www.rottentomatoes.com; http://oldschoolreviews.com/rev_70/jaws.htm [accessed online on 7 February 2013]. Illustrations Figure 1: http://thefilminformant.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Jaws-Poster-1.jpg Figure 2: http://i2.listal.com/image/1070319/600full-jaws-screenshot.jpg Figure 3: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lp6sRnpyKng/UOIjrkGa0MI/AAAAAAAAA0o/h1uvPHU7LEg/s1600/JawsOpeningScene.jpg Figure 4: