Directed by the legendary and influential filmmaker, Stephen Spielberg, Jaws became a record-breaking sensation upon its release in 1975.
Featuring stellar performances from Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss, the first film in the series is widely regarded as the inaugural summer blockbuster of modern cinema due to its immense commercial success and widespread distribution. The terrifying scenes of a great white shark preying on swimmers and beachgoers at a popular seaside resort, coupled with its unforgettable musical score, have left an indelible mark on anyone who has seen it.
Based on Peter Benchley’s 1974 novel, the film opens with a chilling scene of a young woman taking a late-night dip in the ocean at the New England resort town of Amity Island. She is dragged beneath the waves by an unseen entity, and her remains are found on the beach the following day.
When the coroner determines that a shark attack was the cause of death, Police Chief Martin Brody (Scheider) advocates for closing the beaches. However, the local mayor (Murray Hamilton), fearing the economic impact of lost tourism, persuades him to keep them open.
Following another tragic incident, the pursuit of the deadly creature begins. Martin teams up with a marine biologist (Dreyfuss) and a seasoned shark hunter (Shaw) to hunt down the enormous beast before it can strike again, in a thrilling story of man versus nature, reports the Mirror.
Jaws was the first significant film to be shot at sea, leading to numerous production challenges. The filming went over schedule and budget, with the mechanical shark frequently breaking down.
This led to the creation of the infamous theme music to signal the predator’s approach and presence.
The score garnered multiple awards following its 1975 release. The film also received various prestigious nominations and secured three Academy Awards.
Thanks to an aggressive marketing campaign accompanying its release, it became the highest-grossing film of all time until Star Wars surpassed it two years later.
Both films are credited with establishing the concept of the summer blockbuster due to their success and business model.
Upon release, Jaws was warmly received by critics. It continues to be highly regarded fifty years on, with reviews on Rotten Tomatoes giving it an almost perfect positive score of 97%, labelling it a “classic”.
One reviewer wrote: “Spielberg fashioned an instant classic whose success owes as much to his superb orchestration as to the substantial jolts and knockout performances by Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw, and Richard Dreyfuss,”.
Another agreed: “An absolute classic; a film that knows exactly what it is, and that, despite the many problems it encountered during filming, ended up becoming the film that epitomises what Steven Spielberg is capable of,” they posted.
A third lauded every element of its production: “The movie is just about everything viewers could hope it would be: Intelligently written, ably acted, beautifully filmed, excitingly edited and, above all, the scariest big-budget extravaganza since The Exorcist.”
Another celebrated its enduring fright factor: “The first summer blockbuster elevates its so-so source material into a thrilling horror adventure that still manages to instill a sense of genuine terror to this very day,” they wrote.
