Jaws 45th Anniversary

"You're gonna need a bigger boat."- Martin Brody

 (#35 on AFI's 100 Greatest Movie Quotes of All Time)

On June 20, 1975, movie goers filled theaters to watch what many consider to be the first summer blockbuster-Jaws. With Jaws we witness a massive great white shark terrorize the quaint island of Amity. It is a story that is just as much about the shark as it is the islanders' reaction to the threat of their lifestyle. Some argue that Jaws isn’t a horror movie, some are insistent that it is. That’s for you to decide.

Jaws takes place on the fictional Amity Island, where if you weren’t born on the island you’re not considered an islander. When Martin Brody (Roy Scheider), the island’s new police chief, warns Mayor Larry Vaughn (Murray Hamilton) about the very first attack, he is resistant to closing the beach. Shark attacks kill summer dollars, and Mayor Vaughn says as much. Even after the second attack, Vaughn states the beach is only closed for twenty-four hours (to which one resident cries “that’s like three weeks!”).

Shortly after, Mayor Vaughn claims the shark has been caught, effectively keeping the summer tourism machine running. When marine biologist Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) insists they didn’t catch the right shark, Vaughn thinks Hooper is using his study of the attacks for his own gain. It is only when Mayor Vaughn’s son is threatened that he finally takes action. In comes local fisherman and WWII veteran, Quint (Robert Shaw), who offers to kill the shark (or bird, as he calls it). Now the islanders must rely on Quint (a deviation from the easy-going islander archetype) and two outsiders to save their livelihoods.

So what is it about Jaws that scares people? Steven Spielberg’s expert directing, the haunting two note score, and the mechanical shark (named Bruce) all provide thrills. But there’s something about the scene where Matt Hooper & Chief Brody are sitting at the dinner table-Chief Brody a little drunk, Hooper eager to autopsy a tiger shark - that also brings to light the frustration that results from their warnings going unheeded. Maybe that’s one of the things that makes Jaws great; if the right thing was done after the first attack, Jaws wouldn’t be the classic it is today. Human error and one terrifying shark propel it forward.

To place a hold on Jaws by Peter Benchley or the 1975 film, click here