The plot is simple. Even the little kids would find this too easy to comprehend. Amity town is located near the beach and tourists flock to the wonderful sands. However, something was plaguing the waters; there were series of attacks of swimmers involving a great white shark. As the film starts, we see camping teenagers in the beach and two lovers running after one another into the sea. In both such a stunning and brilliant shot, one of the most creative scenes in the film, was when the girl swam into the deep and then we, the audience, sees her shouting for help, being carried away by something under that got her feet (or the whole half of her body). This was where Spielberg knows how to create tension; if he was to make a monster movie, he should have made that shark emerge and swallow the whole girl whole – but he didn’t; he must have understood that it’s not only a shark movie he was making, but a kind of uneasy thriller that would make audience grip their seats while they’re at it. The whole Amity town was scandalised to find out that a girl was missing, and Brody (Roy Scheider) the local police chief reckons it was a shark that killed her, ordering the whole beach to be closed from public. The beach resorts thundered, not agreeing to the fact that their businesses would be on hiatus in the eve of summer holidays. In a blend of comedy, great sense of humour, action, adventure and thrilling fun – Jaws becomes an epic splash of townie adventure movie brilliant for the whole family. The fantastic chase of the three men, Brody, Quint (Robert Shaw), who has personal grudges with sharks including his foul-mouthed nature, and Hooper (the most likeable and entertaining performance by Richard Dreyfuss) as the rich-kid arrogant oceanographer.

The characters were all wonderfully caricatured, and the dialogues between them were very playful. Dreyfuss was the one that really brings the laughs, watch out for his child-like tongue-out expression on his face when he was annoyed by Quint. But it was Brody in which we normal people could connect to; he’s terrified of the sea, doesn’t like to go swimming into the deep and easily troubled.

More importantly, Spielberg knows how to use his camera. One of the most amazing scenes in the film was when Brody was sitting in the sunbed, looking over the sea while a man was talking in front of him. The camera blurs the man in front of him, and focuses into the sea, as if we the audience could actually take a glimpse if there’s something swimming around aside from the town folks. Which leads us to the shark; it would have been more graphic if we the shark always, tearing people apart, but Spielberg reduces the shark’s appearance by sticking into his storyline and the events above the sea level. The shark was never overused, and the most brilliant thing was, we absolutely know that there a shark swimming around somewhere only that we need to wait for its next feeding.

I love Jaws, and it’s one of those films that would stay with us as we grow up. Until now, I’m still fascinated by John William’s scary musical score, not easily forgotten. Aside from the fact that even adults are entertained, it’s a kind of film that we must let the children see while they’re still young, for in memory it will remain and when they grow up and asked about the brilliant movie they had seen as a child; they would say “Yeah, I’ve seen Jaws.” And what’s more even brilliant when a kid doesn’t first utter that it’s a film about this shark, but rather say it was made by this guy called Spielberg.

Rating: A