Rikk
06-12-2005, 01:53 PM
New 'Jaws' DVD has bite
By NEIL WATSON-- Edmonton Sun
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0008KLVG4.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg
The mechanical shark - Bruce was the name - looks ridiculous now, sure to elicit howls of scorn and derision from anyone accustomed to CGI magic.
But 30 years on, Jaws is still terrific.
http://jam.canoe.ca/Video/2005/06/10/jaws.jpg
The movie that launched the blockbuster is better than 90% of the event movies that open on 5,000 screens most Fridays of every summer. Far better. The blockbusters du jour have special effects beyond imagination, but rarely do they bother with story, humour or people we care about. Jaws had a cheesy mechanical shark, but we overlooked that (obvious in 1975, too, by the way) because we were so invested in the fates of the three men who head out to sea to hook that "eating machine.''
Can you imagine one of today's blockbusters including a scene like the one in Jaws where the late Robert Shaw, as the spectacularly crusty Quint, tells the story about the doomed sailors aboard the Indianapolis at the end of the Second World War? The speech must go on for four or five minutes - an impossible length today, given our video game attention spans - and is a superior special effect to anything I've seen in a current blockbuster.
Jaws director Steven Spielberg was only 29 and only had one feature film (The Sugarland Express) under his belt when he started production on the "shark movie.'' But he was clearly already in possession of sure storytelling instincts, and he cleverly balanced character development and plot with those soon-to-be-infamous and terrifying scenes in the water.
Jaws was not only a commercial and critical blockbuster, it was a pop culture phenomenon of the highest order. Lines of dialogue and the haunting theme music immediately entered the public lexicon. Jaws had such an effect that people did stay out of the water, or if you ventured in, you could be certain someone close by would be trying to scare you ... da dum, da dum ....
A handsome two-disc DVD set marks the 30th anniversary, offering an interesting and lengthy making-of documentary, deleted scenes, storyboards and a well-produced souvenir booklet. It affords Jaws-aphiles the memories and perspectives of most of the principals three decades later. (Shaw died in 1978 at age 51.)
We find out that Spielberg wanted Lee Marvin to play Quint, but the irascible Marvin was more interested in going fishing than playing a fisherman. Jon Voight was top of the list to play water-phobic Chief Brody, the part that went to Roy Scheider. Peter Benchley, who wrote Jaws, co-wrote the screenplay and has a cameo as a TV reporter in the film, explains the title's evolution.
All interesting and worthy for the fan, but the joy is in watching the film again - and how well it holds up. Spielberg faced endless problems with the weather on Martha's Vineyard, and with the operation of Bruce, so it's amazing that he found the time to coax such fine performances out of the three principals, including Richard Dreyfuss as oceanographer Matt Hooper, and a cast of veteran character actors that included Murray Hamilton.
Most of us know the story - from the first attack during a midnight skinny dip to Brody's well-aimed rifle shot that finds that canister in the jaws of death - so well that the fun is waiting on those familiar moments. The aforementioned onboard scene in which Quint, Hooper and Brody bond, Quint's nails on the blackboard, the grieving mother slapping Brody. And there are so many famous lines of dialogue, including, "Swallow you whole,'' "You got city hands, Mr. Hooper,'' "That's a 20-footer. 25.'' And, most famously, "You're gonna need a bigger boat.''
To its enduring credit, Jaws stirs fear to this day because it plays into a primal fear that gives us all a twinge when we are out on the water.
Who cares if Bruce the shark looks like he's made out of foam rubber and moves like there's two guys inside shifting levers, Jaws is still one hell of a fish story.
JAWS - DVD rating: 4 1/2 SUNS (out of 5)
By NEIL WATSON-- Edmonton Sun
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0008KLVG4.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg
The mechanical shark - Bruce was the name - looks ridiculous now, sure to elicit howls of scorn and derision from anyone accustomed to CGI magic.
But 30 years on, Jaws is still terrific.
http://jam.canoe.ca/Video/2005/06/10/jaws.jpg
The movie that launched the blockbuster is better than 90% of the event movies that open on 5,000 screens most Fridays of every summer. Far better. The blockbusters du jour have special effects beyond imagination, but rarely do they bother with story, humour or people we care about. Jaws had a cheesy mechanical shark, but we overlooked that (obvious in 1975, too, by the way) because we were so invested in the fates of the three men who head out to sea to hook that "eating machine.''
Can you imagine one of today's blockbusters including a scene like the one in Jaws where the late Robert Shaw, as the spectacularly crusty Quint, tells the story about the doomed sailors aboard the Indianapolis at the end of the Second World War? The speech must go on for four or five minutes - an impossible length today, given our video game attention spans - and is a superior special effect to anything I've seen in a current blockbuster.
Jaws director Steven Spielberg was only 29 and only had one feature film (The Sugarland Express) under his belt when he started production on the "shark movie.'' But he was clearly already in possession of sure storytelling instincts, and he cleverly balanced character development and plot with those soon-to-be-infamous and terrifying scenes in the water.
Jaws was not only a commercial and critical blockbuster, it was a pop culture phenomenon of the highest order. Lines of dialogue and the haunting theme music immediately entered the public lexicon. Jaws had such an effect that people did stay out of the water, or if you ventured in, you could be certain someone close by would be trying to scare you ... da dum, da dum ....
A handsome two-disc DVD set marks the 30th anniversary, offering an interesting and lengthy making-of documentary, deleted scenes, storyboards and a well-produced souvenir booklet. It affords Jaws-aphiles the memories and perspectives of most of the principals three decades later. (Shaw died in 1978 at age 51.)
We find out that Spielberg wanted Lee Marvin to play Quint, but the irascible Marvin was more interested in going fishing than playing a fisherman. Jon Voight was top of the list to play water-phobic Chief Brody, the part that went to Roy Scheider. Peter Benchley, who wrote Jaws, co-wrote the screenplay and has a cameo as a TV reporter in the film, explains the title's evolution.
All interesting and worthy for the fan, but the joy is in watching the film again - and how well it holds up. Spielberg faced endless problems with the weather on Martha's Vineyard, and with the operation of Bruce, so it's amazing that he found the time to coax such fine performances out of the three principals, including Richard Dreyfuss as oceanographer Matt Hooper, and a cast of veteran character actors that included Murray Hamilton.
Most of us know the story - from the first attack during a midnight skinny dip to Brody's well-aimed rifle shot that finds that canister in the jaws of death - so well that the fun is waiting on those familiar moments. The aforementioned onboard scene in which Quint, Hooper and Brody bond, Quint's nails on the blackboard, the grieving mother slapping Brody. And there are so many famous lines of dialogue, including, "Swallow you whole,'' "You got city hands, Mr. Hooper,'' "That's a 20-footer. 25.'' And, most famously, "You're gonna need a bigger boat.''
To its enduring credit, Jaws stirs fear to this day because it plays into a primal fear that gives us all a twinge when we are out on the water.
Who cares if Bruce the shark looks like he's made out of foam rubber and moves like there's two guys inside shifting levers, Jaws is still one hell of a fish story.
JAWS - DVD rating: 4 1/2 SUNS (out of 5)