Jaw’s was one of the first massive summer blockbusters. Sadly while it became incredibly popular, becoming the world’s top grossing movie in just 78 days, it pushed wrong and quite often harmful facts about sharks. It created suspense and realism in a way that people flooded to the theatre to watch, and broke anybody’s expectations of what a summer movie could be. Jaws was released at a time where almost nothing was known for certain about the animals, and because of that it had to work with what was available at the time. In a blog post marine biologist David Shiffman dissects and attempts the point out the many facts that were gotten wrong by the movie. In fact one of the scariest things about the movie, that a shark could go “rogue” and start targeting a beach for people was completely false. The idea that the shark targeted swimmers was pushed throughout the movie, and was even present in it’s promotional material.
In this movie poster, the shark is seen about to attack a human. Jaws pushed the idea heavily that shark’s were intelligent, vicious predators that needed to be killed, and because of this generations of people have grown up afraid of these animals. However Jaws also had a positive effect on the world of sharks, as it inspired many to enter the field and to try to understand more. While Jaws was a movie that viciously portrayed sharks as masterful killers, it also helped to spark the research that proved this exactly wrong. The fact that this movie has such a lasting impact while and even long after you watch it is a testament to the amount of work actually went into filming and creating the movie. Jaws is a movie that continues to scare people today, and continues to make people think about swimming in the ocean, even if what it has to say has been proved false.
In this video review and analysis, the creator points out many things that helped Jaws become the blockbuster that it had turned out to be, and how that despite the fact that there were many movies that followed Jaws, they almost always crashed and burned, while Jaws continued to shine. For example the reviewer notes how in the start of Jaws it’s a point of view shot from the shark’s perspective. In Jaws the movie starts with what appears to be a shark moving through a reef, in this shot the creature continues to move forward, undeterred by things that would make it very difficult for a human to swim. The shark plows through reefs, algae and all kinds of marine life, showing how determined and powerful the shark is in it’s environment. Many other shark movies tried to copy this cinematic achievement, but almost all failed. The reviewer points out how in an italian copy of Jaws the underwater scene is choppy, and keeps swiveling around. Instead of an impression of power and determination as shown in Jaws, this makes the audience think the shark is confused and trying to figure out his surroundings. These little things are what continue to inspire people not only to fear sharks after watching Jaws, but also to study and appreciate them.
Hello Tristan,
I found it very interesting that the film became the world’s top grossing film in a very short 78 days. I do agree that the film created a bad stigma towards sharks because I would honestly be lying if I said that film did not instill a fear of sharks within me at a young age. I did find it interesting that the film not only scared people of these massive creature, but also sparked an interest to learn more about the species themselves. I never knew that it was this movie that gave humans a deeper understanding of sharks. In my next assignments I found it very helpful that you compared the film to copy cat films to show just how much Jaws shined as the top grossing movie.
Hey Tristan,
First of all, I love Jaws- It’s definitely a classic. I really liked how you pointed out some of the effects that Jaws had on people during the time it came out, and discussed the reasons why, it made for a really interesting read and I feel like I learned a lot. I also didn’t know that the movie was only made in 78 days! Thats pretty impressive because I would have thought the movie would have had a huge budget and taken a ton of time to produce. In some of my future blog posts I’m going to focus on some of the societal impacts of the movie, and some trends that it may have sparked.
Hey!
I think the history of the Jaws movies themselves is pretty amazing. The effect it had on audiences back then and still has today is amazing. I loved how you used the classic Jaws poster, couldn’t describe the movie in a better way and when people see that image the instantly know. Your post is packed with information and facts and i really like your captions on your picture and video. This connects to my films mainly through suspense and some action. I never new that Jaws made that much of an impact in 78 days! In the future i think i will search harder for more impact facts and information.
Hello Tristan,
I thought it was interesting how much fear it struck into everyone at the time. I remember reading a fact about the summer when Jaws came out that a lot of beaches were less busy or empty. It is a very real fear that they were able to exploit it very well. This gave sharks a lot of bad publicity, however I like when you mention how it was able to spark more research on sharks and also gets people interested in sharks. The Jaws photo you used is very historic, even people who have not seen the movie have probably seen this suspense filled picture.
Hi Tristan,
I really liked your post it was well written and thought out. I do agree this movie scared people and I think still to this day has an affect on people and their view on sharks. I also think there were no other movies like this out in 1975. I like that you point out the movies impact on society and the way they felt towards sharks. I also like that you talked about copy cat films that were unsuccessful, maybe it was because they didn’t have Spielberg on their side 😊 I will definitely use comparison’s in my future blogs.