Instant Classic

Rating: 9/10 (18 April 2003)

I once heard a definition of a "masterpiece": a work on which the artist has taken the exact same care with every brushstroke. Whether you look at it through a magnifying glass, or from far away, you are still in awe of it.
I first saw _Jaws_ the summer that it came out, and I kept comparing it with the book. That prevented me from enjoying it as much. Now, 25 years later, I realize that the movie is a better work. The movie is on cable television constantly, and each scene still stands alone. Like a masterpiece of a painting, almost every detail is just right.
Since then, I have seen the "Making of" videos, and I have noted some of the details that aren't quite right: some scenes in sunlight, some in cloud, sometimes the angles don't match up just right. Those little things only tell me how difficult it can be to make a movie, and makes me appreciate even more what a fine work actually made it on the screen.
Steven