Jaws still Shocks Summer Viewers after over 40 Years

Who can forget that suspenseful theme song that has come to personify the horror movie industry – that simple E and F pattern that puts one on edge as soon as the melody starts. Who can forget that scene that left viewers scared to step even a foot in the ocean – when a young boy on a small yellow raft gets ripped to part by some colossal creature while his mother looks on in horror. Jaws, first released in 1975, is considered to be one of the first “high concept” suspense films and among many to be the father of summer blockbuster films. Even with the film’s rather outdated special effects, it remains a very popular and influential movie that continues to frighten beach goers every summer, making everyone think twice before splashing into the great blue abyss that may just hold a monster similar to the horrors of Jaws.

Starring Roy Scheider and directed by Steven Spielburg, Jaws is about a small, New England beach town that gets turned upside down after brutal shark attacks hit the coast during the town’s pivotal vacationing season. After positive feedback during advanced screenings, Jaws became the first movie to open nationwide, with a very successful outcome. Unlike other horror films, Jaws hit viewers with a situation that produced true fear and slapped them in the face with a scary reality, given that a shark attack could indeed happen to anyone willing to go for a simple swim in the ocean. Spielburg was ahead of his times by providing an exciting story that spoke to and deeply affected his audiences, both with physical and emotional fear. Because of the influences of this film, sharks were given a very negative and scary stereotype among mankind – a fear that still permeates among many beach travelers today.

Jaws paved the way for what today is known as the summer blockbuster movie, with followers including Star Wars and Transformers, and its influence on viewers over the past 40 years remains the same – one of fear, suspense, and horror. Once the weather starts to get warmer and the days get longer, many TV stations begin to air this film, knowing that summer viewers still enjoy the thrills and terror of such a great suspense movie.