Jaws (1975)

Jaws

• I seriously don't understand how I didn't really care for this film the first time around. I just don't think I was in the headspace of truly appreciating films, at least not as much as I do now. But on a rewatch, with 4K restoration, in 3D, I absolutely enjoyed it, and yeah, it's basically a masterpiece. The story isn't anything complicated: shark kills people, people go to kill shark. But what makes this stand out is the set pieces and characters. They each added a special little flare to the movie. The performances were executed beautifully, so you can really feel all the emotion and fear through the TV screen. Especially Robert Shaw as Quint. Any scene he's in is great, more specifically the nighttime seen with his shark story. One of the best film scenes of all time. And as I literally just said, one of the best things of the movie is the physical props for the shark. Films nowadays seriously fail at using real props and prosthetics, which sometimes affects the movie experience. In this case, you basically get an actual shark, which is why Steven Spielberg is so great (I mean, have you seen this and ‘Jurassic Park’?) If this film was made with a CGI shark, there's no authenticity, no realism, no stakes. But because of the physical shark, there's actually something to see and be afraid of. But most of all, my favorite thing about the film was the score. It’s just so freaking perfect, like every other John Williams score ever. The main Jaws theme is one of the most iconic themes of all time, and one of my personal favorites. It’s easily one of the most ominous, haunting, and scary themes in film history. It also has some very adventurous and whimsical tones and moments, which conflict nicely with the menacing shark. Overall, this is one of the best films of not just the 70s, not just the 20th century, but of all time. I’d recommend it to all action/horror fans, especially if you like films such as ‘Jurassic Park’. This film is officially Berry Approved, so go watch it now!