Still effective after 25 years

Rating: 9/10 (20 May 2000)

When I was a kid Jaws was the ultimate 'terror' film, the film my parents would not let me watch late at night, but also the one I most wanted to see. It had been a while since I had seen Jaws, but it seemed to be as terrifying as I remember. Of course there are shots where the shark looks a little fake, but the camera angles used in most of the attack scenes, or false alarms are excellent. It still is very creepy in some parts, very atmospheric - with the music, camera angles, pauses by the actors - it all comes together very nicely. The story is not too bad either, especially when we forget the 3 inferior sequels. Jaws is still the ultimate monster movie, even with films like lake Placid and Deep Blue Sea trying to reinvent the genre with comedy/horror, Jaws knocks them over anytime. The casting of Jaws was really very well done, and all three actors- Dreyfuss, Shaw, Schneider seem to have a great chemistry between them- although this is not really seen until over half way through the film when they board the Orca.
With Jaws it doesn't seem that the attacks are what are most terrifying, its the buildup. Its when its very still and silent in the water, most definitely the calm before the storm. What is most impressive about Jaws is that it has aged very well. Even with the enormous advances in special effects, and computer generated imagery Jaws still seems to have some real power - heaps more effective than the sharks in Deep Blue Sea. Jaws has certainly stood the test of time.