'Tis a Remorseless Eating Machine!

Rating: 9/10 (17 November 2015)

Why is Jaws' titular character one of the scariest movie monsters? Ultimately, it's a common great white shark that lacks the genetic and/or supernatural enhancements expected in horror antagonists. One explanation is its hunting ground, which is a place we cannot imagine anything bad happening. Besides its safety and beautiful weather, Amity Island is perfectly evocative of childhood beach-going memories. Adding terror to this idyllic blend makes it all the more terrifying. The three leads' all-consuming relationship with the beast also explains its near-mythological status. After all, it would take some kind of monster for someone like Hooper to devote his life to studying it and a hell of an encounter for someone like Quint to devote his to turning them into trophies. As for Brody, while hardly a shark expert, his every waking thought concerns stopping a single shark from ruining paradise and harming his family. Regardless, all of these elements could still result in a monster that makes audiences laugh instead of shudder. Spielberg and company prevented this from happening in one of the most famous instances of doing more with less in movie history. Since the mechanical shark prop was too cumbersome for extended use, the director made substitutions such as showing the beast from a first-person perspective and by revealing the aftermaths of its feeding frenzies instead of the shark itself. Besides adding tension, these flourishes make it more possible to imagine the monster not as a shark, but as the stuff of nightmares killing machine that Hooper and Quint describe. John Williams' theme for the shark is another prime example of doing more with less. Its simple repeated phrase not only adds an undercurrent of dread, but also mystery as to when and where the beast will attack. In the end, Jaws proves that a monster does not need an elaborate history or otherworldly origins. With enough movie-making magic, it can simply be an animal looking for its next hot lunch.