Last month, my dear friend Crissy moved from southern
California to my hometown of Erie, Pennsylvania. My fiancé Will and I
eagerly welcomed her, and one of our first quintessential Erie outings
was to Tinseltown, our local multiplex, for its Wednesday classic movie
showing. The film of the day was Steven Spielberg’s Jaws, the summery flick that made swimming at the beach a rather terrifying prospect.
As I’ve never been fond of man-eating sharks, I’d managed to go three decades without seeing this blockbuster, so I didn’t realize the breach of hospitality I was making by having our new fellow Pennsylvanian see this particular movie on her second day in Erie. Alas, how was I to know that a girl sharing her name would be the first to fall victim to those powerful teeth?
Happily, not only is Crissy made of stronger stuff than I am, but she’d already watched her name-twin get ripped to shreds before, so she survived the cinematic trauma beautifully. In fact, I was the only one of the three venturing into new movie territory. I was also the one eager to stick the popcorn box over my head every time John Williams’ helpfully unsubtle shark theme began to play. However, I am glad I can finally say that I watched this monster of a disaster flick.
Jaws takes place in a small island town preparing for its lavish 4th of July celebration. Amity has a friendly name, but a dark threat has made it a less than ideal destination. Conscientious sheriff Martin Brody, played by a sympathetic Roy Scheider, wants to close the beaches as soon as evidence of the first shark attack washes up on shore, but he faces opposition in the form of the cheerfully oblivious Mayor Vaughn (Murray Hamilton), who can only see dollar signs from the island’s booming tourist industry, which depends mostly on the beaches.
The first half of the movie is a battle of wills between these two men, with Brody finding an eccentric ally in the form of disheveled shark expert Hooper, endearingly played by Richard Dreyfuss. It is during this portion that the beach scenes I’d always associated with the movie occur. The mass hysteria that immediately ensues when a shark attacks on a hot July day is chilling to watch, particularly as Spielberg allows us to linger for a moment on individual reactions.
I’d always found it a bit odd that a movie could sustain this premise for long; with no one in the water to attack, there’s not much harm a shark can do, and why would anyone be foolish enough to venture out into shark-infested waters? The first half of the movie keeps that tension up believably, though, partly because of the stubborn mayor’s actions that mask the threat to the public and partly because of a fierce shark hunt, the results of which produce a false sense of security among the townspeople and visitors.
What I didn’t realize is that half the movie takes place out at sea in the claustrophobic quarters of a small ship on which Brody and Hooper are under the command of eerie sea captain Quint, played with grizzled menace by Robert Shaw. This accomplished seafarer has more than a dash of Captain Ahab in him, with his thirst for revenge stemming from a chilling incident that he relates late at night when a comical comparison of “war wounds” turns unsettling.
The sense of isolation in the latter half of the movie makes it bleaker, but it also allows the trio to develop, particularly Brody and Hooper, each of whom has seen considerable unpleasantness but remains rather sheltered. This portion is marked by male bonding and an omnipresent threat of calamity as a rather rickety boat is all that stands between these hunters and their enormous prey.
While there are many startling moments throughout the movie, the humor is also plentiful. Hooper is a particularly funny character who is frequently ready with a wisecrack, but the film is full of little moments, some of them purely visual, that elicit a laugh. That makes it as fun as it is frightening, particularly since the violent bits are mostly spread out.
Will also postulated that it’s the ideal date movie, since the squeamish viewer will frequently seek comfort in the arms of the braver party. While I thwarted that notion by simply blinding myself with popcorn at the critical moments, it’s certainly a fun movie for chums to see together… just not too soon before a trip to the beach.
As I’ve never been fond of man-eating sharks, I’d managed to go three decades without seeing this blockbuster, so I didn’t realize the breach of hospitality I was making by having our new fellow Pennsylvanian see this particular movie on her second day in Erie. Alas, how was I to know that a girl sharing her name would be the first to fall victim to those powerful teeth?
Happily, not only is Crissy made of stronger stuff than I am, but she’d already watched her name-twin get ripped to shreds before, so she survived the cinematic trauma beautifully. In fact, I was the only one of the three venturing into new movie territory. I was also the one eager to stick the popcorn box over my head every time John Williams’ helpfully unsubtle shark theme began to play. However, I am glad I can finally say that I watched this monster of a disaster flick.
Jaws takes place in a small island town preparing for its lavish 4th of July celebration. Amity has a friendly name, but a dark threat has made it a less than ideal destination. Conscientious sheriff Martin Brody, played by a sympathetic Roy Scheider, wants to close the beaches as soon as evidence of the first shark attack washes up on shore, but he faces opposition in the form of the cheerfully oblivious Mayor Vaughn (Murray Hamilton), who can only see dollar signs from the island’s booming tourist industry, which depends mostly on the beaches.
The first half of the movie is a battle of wills between these two men, with Brody finding an eccentric ally in the form of disheveled shark expert Hooper, endearingly played by Richard Dreyfuss. It is during this portion that the beach scenes I’d always associated with the movie occur. The mass hysteria that immediately ensues when a shark attacks on a hot July day is chilling to watch, particularly as Spielberg allows us to linger for a moment on individual reactions.
I’d always found it a bit odd that a movie could sustain this premise for long; with no one in the water to attack, there’s not much harm a shark can do, and why would anyone be foolish enough to venture out into shark-infested waters? The first half of the movie keeps that tension up believably, though, partly because of the stubborn mayor’s actions that mask the threat to the public and partly because of a fierce shark hunt, the results of which produce a false sense of security among the townspeople and visitors.
What I didn’t realize is that half the movie takes place out at sea in the claustrophobic quarters of a small ship on which Brody and Hooper are under the command of eerie sea captain Quint, played with grizzled menace by Robert Shaw. This accomplished seafarer has more than a dash of Captain Ahab in him, with his thirst for revenge stemming from a chilling incident that he relates late at night when a comical comparison of “war wounds” turns unsettling.
The sense of isolation in the latter half of the movie makes it bleaker, but it also allows the trio to develop, particularly Brody and Hooper, each of whom has seen considerable unpleasantness but remains rather sheltered. This portion is marked by male bonding and an omnipresent threat of calamity as a rather rickety boat is all that stands between these hunters and their enormous prey.
While there are many startling moments throughout the movie, the humor is also plentiful. Hooper is a particularly funny character who is frequently ready with a wisecrack, but the film is full of little moments, some of them purely visual, that elicit a laugh. That makes it as fun as it is frightening, particularly since the violent bits are mostly spread out.
Will also postulated that it’s the ideal date movie, since the squeamish viewer will frequently seek comfort in the arms of the braver party. While I thwarted that notion by simply blinding myself with popcorn at the critical moments, it’s certainly a fun movie for chums to see together… just not too soon before a trip to the beach.
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