When a killer shark unleashes chaos on a beach community off Cape Cod, it's up to a local sheriff, a marine biologist, and an old seafarer to hunt the beast down.When a killer shark unleashes chaos on a beach community off Cape Cod, it's up to a local sheriff, a marine biologist, and an old seafarer to hunt the beast down.When a killer shark unleashes chaos on a beach community off Cape Cod, it's up to a local sheriff, a marine biologist, and an old seafarer to hunt the beast down.
- Won 3 Oscars
- 16 wins & 20 nominations total
Jeffrey Kramer
- Hendricks
- (as Jeffrey C. Kramer)
Robert Nevin
- Medical Examiner
- (as Dr. Robert Nevin)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaSeveral decades after the film's release, Lee Fierro walked into a seafood restaurant and noticed an "Alex Kintner Sandwich" on the menu. She commented that she had played his mother many years ago. Jeffrey Voorhees, manager of the restaurant, ran out to meet her. He had played her son, and they hadn't seen each other since the original movie shoot.
- GoofsGreat White Sharks cannot move backwards once their gills are under water, as seen towards the end of the film.
- Crazy creditsThe three leads are credited using a placement that was popular in the 1970s, making it unclear who receives first credit. Robert Shaw's name is vertically above Roy Scheider's, but Scheider's is to the left. Richard Dreyfuss, being the least experienced, is last whichever way you read it.
- Alternate versionsThe version shown in recent years on television (as of 2000) includes a lengthier scene where the crazed fishermen hunt sharks to collect Mrs. Kinter's reward. It shows them crazily firing rifles into the water, much like a shark feeding frenzy. The extended version of Jaws was first shown in the US on the ABC network on November 4, 1979 in order to achieve a running time of 3 hours including commercial interruptions. This version and ran occasionally through the 1980s. The shark hunting frenzy mentioned here, in addition to Matt Hooper telling a story about an ex-lover to Chief Brody on their way to dissect the tiger shark, as well as Quint's badgering of a young musician in a bait and tackle store were all included. Many network and syndicated television broadcasts contained added footage long before "Deleted Scenes" were ever part of home video packaging.
- ConnectionsEdited from Inner Space: Man Eater (1973)
Featured review
One of the Greatest Films Ever Made
Jaws (1975) **** (out of 4)
Steven Spielberg's classic about a man-eating Great White shark stalking the beaches of Amity and the three men who go out to try and kill it. Seriously, is there anyone who doesn't know the plot to this masterpiece?
Considering all the production trouble on this thing it would be amazing to get a half-way decent film yet for some reason, perhaps the movie Gods were shining down, we ended up with one of the greatest films ever made. This is without question one of the greatest films to deal with tension as Spielberg masterfully handles all the material. The movie is like an amazing roller coaster as we get one scare after another until the end when we just get our senses attacked from all around. Millions of people have discussed the greatness of this film so it's hard to pick one thing but I'd say the greatest achievement of the film is the simple adventure it gives us.
Even though we get some very intense scenes the screenplay is smart enough to give us other things to go with. We got some nice black humor in the witty dialogue but we also get a good buddy picture with Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss delivering memorable characters. The three of them together are so different yet all three are like people I'm sure each viewer has met so it's easy to connect with them and it makes the film all the more fun when we go on this adventure.
The film, of course, benefits from the brilliant John Williams score, which is perhaps the most memorable in film history. Bruce, the name given to the shark, caused most of the problems during filming but you wouldn't know that by just watching the picture. The look of the shark is incredible and Spielberg certainly made the right decision of keeping it hidden and just revealing bits and pieces as the movie went along. The first glimpse in the pond is hauntingly shocking and each sighting just grows more and more tension. The director also knows how to build suspense without us seeing the shark as we're constantly viewing objects floating (the dock, the barrels) to imply that the creature is there.
What's even more amazing is that this film scared people so badly that they refused to go into the water yet the most suspenseful scene is probably the now legendary speech by Shaw about his time on the USS Indianapolis. It goes without saying but the three leads are all terrific in their roles and I really can't think of too many movies that have as many memorable characters as the ones here. We also get strong supporting work from Murray Hamilton as the Mayor and Lorraine Gary as Brody's wife.
For me this ranks as one of the greatest adventures ever captured on film because everyone involved makes it feel so real. When the men get on the boat to go after the shark you feel as if you're really there. When the camera is underwater given a POV shot of the shark, you feel as if you're in the water. The final death scene in the movie also just happens to be one of the most terrifying ever captured on film and it might even be the most brutal. The movie is a true masterpiece of suspense and I think it would be fair that nothing has come close to this in the past 35 years. Like PSYCHO, we've had a lot of rips of imitations but nothing has come close to the same power and it's doubtful anything ever will.
Steven Spielberg's classic about a man-eating Great White shark stalking the beaches of Amity and the three men who go out to try and kill it. Seriously, is there anyone who doesn't know the plot to this masterpiece?
Considering all the production trouble on this thing it would be amazing to get a half-way decent film yet for some reason, perhaps the movie Gods were shining down, we ended up with one of the greatest films ever made. This is without question one of the greatest films to deal with tension as Spielberg masterfully handles all the material. The movie is like an amazing roller coaster as we get one scare after another until the end when we just get our senses attacked from all around. Millions of people have discussed the greatness of this film so it's hard to pick one thing but I'd say the greatest achievement of the film is the simple adventure it gives us.
Even though we get some very intense scenes the screenplay is smart enough to give us other things to go with. We got some nice black humor in the witty dialogue but we also get a good buddy picture with Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss delivering memorable characters. The three of them together are so different yet all three are like people I'm sure each viewer has met so it's easy to connect with them and it makes the film all the more fun when we go on this adventure.
The film, of course, benefits from the brilliant John Williams score, which is perhaps the most memorable in film history. Bruce, the name given to the shark, caused most of the problems during filming but you wouldn't know that by just watching the picture. The look of the shark is incredible and Spielberg certainly made the right decision of keeping it hidden and just revealing bits and pieces as the movie went along. The first glimpse in the pond is hauntingly shocking and each sighting just grows more and more tension. The director also knows how to build suspense without us seeing the shark as we're constantly viewing objects floating (the dock, the barrels) to imply that the creature is there.
What's even more amazing is that this film scared people so badly that they refused to go into the water yet the most suspenseful scene is probably the now legendary speech by Shaw about his time on the USS Indianapolis. It goes without saying but the three leads are all terrific in their roles and I really can't think of too many movies that have as many memorable characters as the ones here. We also get strong supporting work from Murray Hamilton as the Mayor and Lorraine Gary as Brody's wife.
For me this ranks as one of the greatest adventures ever captured on film because everyone involved makes it feel so real. When the men get on the boat to go after the shark you feel as if you're really there. When the camera is underwater given a POV shot of the shark, you feel as if you're in the water. The final death scene in the movie also just happens to be one of the most terrifying ever captured on film and it might even be the most brutal. The movie is a true masterpiece of suspense and I think it would be fair that nothing has come close to this in the past 35 years. Like PSYCHO, we've had a lot of rips of imitations but nothing has come close to the same power and it's doubtful anything ever will.
helpful•607
- Michael_Elliott
- Jun 23, 2015
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Stillness in the Water
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $7,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $266,567,580
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $7,061,513
- Jun 22, 1975
- Gross worldwide
- $477,220,580
- Runtime2 hours 4 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1
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