JAWS
Dying. Dying savagely. Dying in a strange realm that we humans are not native to. Dying as food, food to a creature big enough to bite you in half. The veil of carnage the Shark is able to inflict on it’s prey is detailed slowly, piece by piece. First the poor naked girl by the buoy. Then the people by the beach, and finally the crew of the Orca. By the time the shark is revealed, Jabber Jaw could have emerged from the water and we’d still wet our pants. By that time, every viewer has integrated their own personal fears so deep into the Shark that it could have been green with blue spots. The Shark, and the violent death it represents becomes a subconscious tattoo on our psyche after seeing this film that never quite goes away, ever. -Marc R. Luce
If any of the terror of Jaws has been lost over time one thing remains just as memorable and frightening and that’s John Williams score. It’s magnificent, simple, and sends chills right to your very core. I heart Jaws.