Jaws (1975)

I intend to rate horror movies, and this is more of a suspenseful adventure, however this movie scared me a lot, so it’s only fitting that I rate it as well, because sharks are a very common fear. The first time I watched it, I had to hide behind my fingers!

Any scene with the shark involved—which is basically the whole movie—is suspenseful. And terrifying. I say “involved” because the shark isn’t shown that much, actually. It’s amazing how they manage to not show the shark that much but it’s still so scary. You know there’s a threat there, but you don’t see it. If you can’t determine where the threat is, you can’t run away from it, and you can’t attack it.

I love Hooper so much! I love him! He’s just such a good character. He’s so silly. So cocky. In a good way. It’s pretty funny when you have a doctor or a scientist character who’s a butterfinger. It’s so fun to see the characters interact. The acting was great. The characters are ALL so interesting. To put it bluntly, they all have a lot of character to them. The scene where Brody pours the wine into the glass. Where his kid is imitating his moves. It makes you feel that the movie’s not all about the horror. The family is so sweet. You rarely see couples in movies just goofing around.

When the pages of the shark book are turning in Brody’s glasses. The camera scene on the dock where they’re taking a picture with the tiger shark, I love the way it was composed. As the second part of the movie starts, it was like they were entering into the jaws of the beast and they symbolize that by shooting the boat...through the jaws of the beast. Very good foreshadowing. When Quint told the story of why he doesn’t like life jackets. Then he destroys the radio, so they can’t call for help, just like in the story. When it’s time for life jackets, the way they’re handed out . . .When the boat was at that lifeless angle and you’re just like “Dude you’re gonna diiieee!”

When the heroic music was playing on top of that scene, it was like, “Maybe this isn’t the right track?” But it IS the right track. Normally you wouldn’t have such heroic music for such a gruesome, desperate scene. But Jaws does it. It executes it so well.

When the mayor wouldn’t shut down the beach, it did remind me a lot of people being stupid in the pandemic and not listening to scientific officials. If you ever see a Hooper...listen to him. 

Scary: 3.5

I’m terrified of the ocean now, so yeah. It did scare me. 

Creepy: 2

It wasn’t creepy. It was scary as in it thrilled you, you were looking out for what they were going to do next, but it wasn’t eerie. Except the shots underwater. Those were very creepy. You really felt like, “Is that what my legs look like? Do they just look like pieces of meat for whatever is beneath me swimming?”

Disturbing: 3 

I don’t like bone cracking sounds. They do a great job with the sound effects and physical motions so that you wince every time the characters get hurt, like you can feel it happening to you. When the shark attacks someone and you can still see the clear intestines of its previous victim hanging off its teeth! That was an amazing detail. I loved it.

Suspenseful: 4.5
The music, the underwater shots, the cinematography. The legs in the water. The beach scene where you are thinking, “Who is it going to kill? The guy? The kid? The dog?” When Quint was holding his reel and strapping himself up to the harness thing without saying anything. 

Good: 5
I love the music and the cinematography. When Quint was standing on the boat near the sunset until he is a silhouette. Beautiful. So suspenseful. SO Suspenseful. Thrilling. Very good. It was also really funny at certain times. And I love Hooper!

Very, very good movie. Obviously because it’s a classic, you know? The mayor just paved the way for all the other douchey mayors. Like in Ghostbusters! I don’t know why so many people hated the 2016 remake [of Ghostbusters]. I thought it was really funny. Anyway. 

I wrote these film reviews when I was 14. Hire me to draw. -Lillian Schrag