On this day, June 20, 1975, the film “Jaws,” directed by Steven Spielberg, was released in theaters in the United States.
“Jaws” tells the fictional story of a great white shark that terrorizes a New England coastal resort town. The film was a box office success and the highest-grossing film in cinema history until it was surpassed by 1977's “Star Wars,” according to History.com.
The iconic film, which made people think twice before jumping into the water, according to Slashfilms.com, won three Oscars: Best Film Editing, Best Original Score and Best Sound.
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The film marked a breakthrough in the career of director Spielberg, who was 27 years old at the time. It spawned several sequels, notes History.com.
Actor Roy Scheider played police chief Martin Brody of the fictional resort town of Amity, who became embroiled in a battle with a man-eating shark.
Harpooned many times by a fisherman bent on its destruction, a great white shark surfaces in an attempt to destroy a fishing boat in a scene from the 1975 movie “Jaws.” (Universal/Getty Images)
He is joined in the fight by marine biologist Matt Hooper, played by Richard Dreyfuss, and professional shark hunter Quint, played by Robert Shaw, according to Britannica.
The film was based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Peter Benchley, released in 1973.
Film producers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown received a copy of the novel “and were hooked,” says Collider.com.
“They knew it had the makings of a great movie, so they went through their checklist. The story? Good. Can we afford to make it? We can't afford not to make it, so yes,” the site continues .
“Filming, which took place on Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, was plagued by delays and technical difficulties.”
The producers bought the film rights for $175,000, even before the novel was released to the public.
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“The question they should have asked? Can be done,” says Collider.
“Filming, which took place on Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, was plagued by delays and technical difficulties, including malfunctioning mechanical sharks,” Britannica said.
Actors Roy Scheider and Richard Dreyfuss stand next to a man-eating giant great white shark with a hook through it in a scene from the 1975 film “Jaws.” (Getty Images)
With more than 100 days of shooting (159 versus the planned 55) and a budget of $12 million (300% more than the initial allocation and four times the cost of an average film in 1975), the film was a challenge. .
Spielberg also made the decision to film in the ocean, “a first for major films,” says Collider.
“The theme to the shark-infested 1975 blockbuster 'Jaws' is thrilling, terrifying, but most of all, breathtaking.”
Movies set in the ocean “were typically filmed in a large tank or shallower water,” but never in the ocean itself, that site also says.
“Bad weather, sailboats getting into the frame, and soaked cameras” caused many delays.
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“Once, the Orca [the shark-hunting boat] began to sink while the actors were on board,” notes Collider.
Composed by John Williams, the film's haunting soundtrack is today part of American pop culture.
The poster for the movie “Jaws” from 1975, the year the film was released. (LMPC via Getty Images)
“Two notes. That's it. 'Duuuunnnn duun'. Two notes are all it takes to make listeners' hearts drop to their stomachs and to break out goosebumps and break out in a cold sweat.” said American Songwriter.
“The theme to the shark-infested 1975 blockbuster 'Jaws' is thrilling, terrifying, but most of all, breathtaking.”
“Jaws” spawned three sequels, none of which managed to match the success of the original, says Screamrant.com.
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“Despite the universally beloved nature of the original film, the sequels have really tarnished the franchise,” that site says.
“While the second and third films in the franchise were disappointing at best, it was the fourth film, 'Jaws: The Revenge,' that really took things too far, being labeled one of the worst. movies ever made and putting the final nail in the coffin of the franchise.”
Actor Robert Shaw, who played shark hunter Quint, in a scene from “Jaws.” (Universal Images/Getty Images)
Steven Spielberg “really regrets” that the bloodthirsty depiction of great white sharks in “Jaws” contributed to a sharp decline in the animal's population, Smithsonian Magazine said, quoting the director in a 2022 interview with the BBC.
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“That's one of the things I still fear,” the director continued, “not being eaten by a shark, but that the sharks are somehow angry at me for the crazy sport fisherman feeding frenzy that occurred after 1975.” .
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The legacy of “Jaws” is that it set the precedent for the term “summer blockbuster,” according to multiple sources.
“The blockbuster of the summer was born on June 20, 1975, when 'Jaws' opened wide,” wrote Nigel Andrews of the Financial Times.
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He added: “In the years after 'Jaws,' the entire release schedule changed.”
