Cast: Roy Scheider as Brody, Robert Shaw as Quint, Richard Dreyfuss as Hooper, Lorraine Gary as Ellen Brody, Murray Hamilton as Mayor Vaughn.

Written By: Carl Gottleib based on the book by Peter Benchley

Directed By: Steven Spielberg

Significant producers: Richard Zanuck and David Brown

original Score By: john Williams

Studio: universal Pictures

Rated PG

Runtime: 124 minutes

Audio Description By: Deluxe

Written By:

Narrated By: Ron Snow

What is it: Regarded as one of the best films ever made, jaws celebrates its 50th Anniversary in 2025. Based on a book of the same name by peter Benchley, jaws is the original summer blockbuster, putting a small town beach community Sheriff (scheider) against a man eating shark looking to feast on tourists during the towns busiest season. Balancing the need to protect, against pressure from the Mayor Hamilton), he seeks the advice of a marine biologist (Dreyfuss) and a grizzled boat captain, Quint, (Shaw) to hunt the terror under the sea before it kills again. Jaws was nominated for Best Picture in 1975, however Steven Spielberg was not. However, Jaws did win 3 Academy Awards for Best Film Editing, Best Sound, and Best Original Score for John Williams’s iconic composition.

Why it Works: As someone who had sight, and now does not, the 50th Anniversary ended up being my first viewing without the ability to see Spielberg’s exceptional choice of how to get the perfect shot. Truly, the film looks gorgeous, and a lot of that has to do with the folly that was Spielberg’s decision to shoot in the ocean. it made Jaws a nightmare to shoot, but you can’t trade the realism. They aren’t on a sound stage, and this isn’t put together by some computer generated images. it is practical, and it feels lived in. They built the sharks, which also ended up being a lucky folly, as their inability to function forced Spielberg to keep them hidden as much as possible. In many ways, it is this aspect that allows for the experience to be so well translated by the audio description. A lot of the kills are done without being able to see beneath the surface, and watch the shark tear his victims apart. The fear is in the unknowing, and sometimes less is more. Roy Scheider doesn’t feel like a matinee idol gifted a leading role, he feels like a man of the people. He embodies the Everyman quality needed for Brody. Richard Dreyfuss is also cast perfectly as the nerdy scientist archetype. He and Robert Shaw quite legendarily did not get along, but in frame, they are two parts of the same fight. While Dreyfuss often represents the logic, Shaw represents an almost spiritual connection with the ocean. his life on the water is what he believes will lead him to defeating the shark. He has so many excellent moments and quotes, though none truly surpasses Scheider’s iconic (and Improvised) “You’re gonna need a bigger boat.” Jaws is an early example of why the PG-13 rating was established, as it certainly is a lot for a PG title, though it ends up being a gateway to horror for many a youth. Spielberg expertly knows how to build the tension, his actors give him the most, and John Williams’s score is one of the most recognizable in film history. People who haven’t seen the film will recognize the theme. Truly, everything about this film works, from concept to execution. It is a perfect storm that shouldn’t have been, but was, because Spielberg’s non traditional choices ultimately gifted us a timeless adventure.

What Doesn’t Work: Nothing really. For me, I did first catch this on cable as a kid, and it kept me out of the water on the beach. i became much more of a pool kid after this. The only possible thing I could write here is that Jaws doesn’t give me the comfort food feeling I get from other films, which are even technically less perfect.I’ve still seen this quite a few times, but if I’m down in the dumps, Jaws isn’t a movie I would go with. It is epic for all the right reasons, and I could find myself watching it over and over if I kept finding people who hadn’t seen it, but it wouldn’t be my first choice on a rainy day.

the Audio Description: I’m so glad ron Snow is on this. I love when great narrators, whose work in the field is truly exceptional, end up being on some of these titles that last forever. I think so many narrators as description was being handed out wanted to be gifted with some of these iconic works, and ron Snow was such a great voice, he truly pulls the themes of Jaws together. the baritone of his voice adds a mysterious depth to the quality of the narration, which is written very well. I don’t have the entire film committed to memory from my sighted days, but certain scenes I was looking forward to. Some moments are truly about how Spielberg frames his shots, and we rarely ever get that level of specificity, but this track serves not just as a strong guide for those who have seen Jaws and are looking for a refresher, but also the next generation whose parents might be looking to educate them on the greatest films there ever have been and ever will be.

Why You Might Like This: if you haven’t seen jaws, what are you even doing with your life? You must really be afraid of sharks, or just abhor horror movies. If you’re trying to get into film at all, no matter what generation you come from, Jaws is a must-see. So many newer directors draw their inspirations from films like this.

Why You Might Not Like It: you’ve had a traumatic relationship with sharks, and this movie is triggering. I don’t want to acknowledge that a reason to not like this is “because it is old”. some things, not everything, but some old things are eternal, and Jaws is one of those films.

Final Thoughts: A film that doesn’t just stand the test of time, it defines it. Fifty years later, we’re still skittish about swimming in the deep blue sea.

Fresh: Grade: 9.9/10