Jaws

The series of Spielberg's projects, which made the director famous, no longer excites me today, but if I had to name a title that I consider crucial in his early creative period, it would be Jaws. Spielberg showed himself to be a great storyteller here, who masterfully worked with tension and human fear of the unknown. From a basically very simple plot, he made a gripping genre film that could become a textbook for aspiring filmmakers, and a number of scenes still amaze today with the filmmaker's impressive cleverness. I consider the underwater scenes filmed from the shark's perspective or the view of the fisherman on a broken pier particularly well-crafted, as he experiences a transformation from the hunter to the hunted in a split second. Overall impression: 90%. (11/04/2014)

My friend told me how during the scene where the human head appears, everyone in the cinema jumped so hard that one row completely collapsed (you know, old cinema, joined wooden seats, you don't see something like that in a multiplex), I think that says it all… The model of the shark didn't work as it should, and that's why Spielberg opted for hints in the first half. And he did well, the human imagination is often much more frightening. (04/13/2003)

Seeing Jaws in the cinema and, paradoxically, at a greater distance from the screen, put it in a different light for me. It made me more aware of the overall composition of the picture, which was masterfully crafted even in this early stage of Spielberg’s career (that is also true of his even earlier Duel). Jaws, however, is a pure film delight also due to the depiction of the characters and their relationships, which brings an element of storytelling into this film with a one-line premise. Not to mention the brilliant building of tension. Imagine being the first in the history of cinema to make an A-grade film about a murderous shark on an unknown small-town beach where you can’t use the potential of any locally known attractions and the only things you have are an old boat and a mechanical shark, and making such a compact, playful and, at the same time, scary movie that entertains with its every scene. Steven nailed it. But he wasn’t completely alone in this – he had great support from John Williams, and thank God for it, on behalf of Spielberg’s entire filmography. (02/07/2019)

An unequal duel between a cute cartilaginous fish and the evil mammals who occupy its until now peaceful home. Fortunately our Kafkaesque nameless hero doesn’t give up and with all his might he protects his holy right to freedom and to life in general. It is unbelievably easy to identify with this nice guy and there are countless heart attack moments when you fear for him as if he were you. After seeing this movie you’ll never want to get out of the water back to that despicable human vermin. Shame on us! (02/11/2008)

The best Spielberg. When I watch Jaws, I realize how incredibly strong tension can be built in a seemingly unobtrusive way, through the construction of mise-en-scène and the choice of editing techniques, and how the viewer's attention can be guided in such a way that every single scene has the most intense effect. The key is the work with hints and communicating information through simple visual motifs, which manifests itself in the generally diabolical escalation of the terror of the approaching creature and the unrelenting pace of the narrative, particularly in the legendary second shark attack scene, which truly belongs to the hall of fame of the best filmmaking sequences in history. In it, Spielberg, through Sheriff Brody's nervous glances, repeatedly pitches us possible victims of the attack, with the shark's presence confirmed by the sudden disappearance of a dog whose owner calls in vain, and the camera showing us only the frisbee it was supposed to fetch. The already nerve-wracking situation is intensified by the invisible cuts, catalysed by characters crossing in front of the lens, and the tension culminates in a switch to a point-of-view shot of a shark and the famous transfocation raid on Brody, a moment at which I sweat out all the beers from the previous evening every time and my cinephilic self descends into hash ecstasy. And that's somehow how the overall division into two distinct halves works – the first one hints, in the second we see a lot of the shark, and the tension is maintained by alternative directorial techniques (barrels), impeccable dialogue (Quint's narration is directly devoured by the viewer), amazing music, and indescribably effective timing, bordering on sheer shock at times (if the scene described above makes me ecstatic with hash, SPOILER!! Quint's death puts just about every stimulant in the world into me). Perfection, after this you just can't swim peacefully in the sea anymore..... Yeah, and I don't do drugs, it was just symbolism :D (04/18/2011)