From the depth of the ocean, and film history

Rating: 8/10 (14 January 2019)

Jaws is a classic movie, that helped define the genre of 'sea-based monsters' that are in the realm of possibility. While the 1975 film did not have the same special effects movies the likes of The Meg, it tells a simpler and honestly better story. The film is well shot and not diluted with plot points or unnecessary characters. The dialogue is sharp and shows the difference between the three main characters, growing on each other as the film continues.
The story is simple, three men on a boat go to hunt down a shark, a big one at that. The story connects the audience to at least one of the characters, giving them the desire to have them succeed. The slow building suspense has the audience not wanting to leave their seat to try and catch a bathroom break, because just like the crew, the shark can strike at any moment.
The story does a great job of establishing the point of the film, right away. You find out that the a shark is terrorizing the beach and the important, or relatively important people, have to stop it before 4th of July weekend, or the town will financially collapse. Then you meet the three men destined to save the town. Once the story is in full effect and they're faced with death, there is no longer just three characters, but four. The shark becomes the final character that the audience gets attached to, like it or not.
For myself, the film left me anxious and still afraid of the ocean.