Amity Island is an island with a popular beach, used by both tourists and local, near the 4th of July when the beaches are crowded with people, a great white shark decided to make the beach its own private feeding ground. The shark won't go unless it's killed, and as a danger to the people, the Chief, hires a shark expert and a captain. They set of to sea in search of the shark so they can kill it.
Beginning with the opening sequence of "JAWS" it starts with the production name and the main actors name in white writing. This white writing is set against a black background, I think to symbolise innocence in the actors character, in contrasts with the danger he will face.
"JAWS" is then followed on by an underwater scene zooming in at coral reefs in close up shots and the title "JAWS" appears in capital letters in white. Throughout the underwater scene, eerie music plays which immediately builds a sense of caution and the tense enigma begins. It then cuts to a group of young adults drinking round a bomb fire with someone. The camera pans across showing all the people who are at this bonfire party, which helps the tense atmosphere relax, but at the same time increase; all because with the combination of music and this relaxed scene, the enigma built already makes the audience aware something is going to happen.
It then cuts to a shot of the group of people round the bonfire. The lighting is special here, as the moon reflects of the ocean and the bonfire lights up the faces. The reflection of the moon on the water, having been focused on, brings the viewer to be aware of the water: it almost gives the water a personality by hinting of the fact that it can be dangerous.
This is followed by a quick edit from one shot of teenagers running along the beach to go skinny-dipping to a shot of the boy falling down the bank of the beach as the sun begins to rise. At this point the diagetic sound effects begin. We hear the sound of a buoy out at sea banging or tapping against something. There is a quick cut to the girl diving into the sea in a long shot. At this point the audience is aware that something could be in the water, or not, and that something may happen, or not. The enigma builds this state of worry for the girl from the audience.
The camera then follows the girl beneath her under the water as she swims. What will happen to her, and when? A huge amount of tension is build from these few shots and how they are edited together. As the girl swims the eerie suspense building music starts again. The shot successful creates fear when combined with the music.
It then cuts to the girl shaking water off her face as she resurfaces from the water. Followed by a quick shot zooming in on the girls body from beneath, the tension is now increasingly high. This creates a ‘seat grabbing’ atmosphere, where danger and anxiety take hold of the viewer.
The next shot begins with the girl ‘bobbing’ under the water, which she is obviously surprised by, which causes her to panic. The audience believes something bad is going to happen due to the suspenseful build up previous to it. She then gets dragged around in the water, which the audience knows is something she is not doing herself, which is cut to a close up of the same shot. She is panicking, the audience is panicking and the suspense grows and the enigma unfolds. Does she survive?
A complete contrast in shots: the panic is followed by a somewhat peaceful shot of the boy lying on the beach. He is oblivious to the danger out at sea and has no idea of the girl’s trauma. The tension caused here is immense. The audience knows what is happening; yet the boy is unaware of the girl and the girl has no idea where the boy is. The director has cleverly placed the audience within the story giving them a sense of urgency to try and do something.
The gripping fear is then dropped for a moment as the girl grabs the buoy at sea. For a split second the girl, and audience, believes she may be ok. The tension and fear is then rebuilt when she is dragged and pulled under.
These shots create a mystery. The audience is shocked and the story continues. The enigma built by this is what urges the audience to keep watching. To finish this tension building sequence, a quiet, peaceful, but eerie, shot of the buoy clinking in the water, joined with silence as the sun starts to rise. A graphic match of the sea fades to morning in a different part of the ocean.
Further in the film the opening event is brought about. "SHARK ATTACK" is written by the town’s chief. The two words are emphasised as such to create a feeling of shock. The audience feels fear for the whole of Amity Island.
Then there is a shot of a dog swimming in the sea with a stick in its mouth. The audience straight away is fearful for the dog. The water creates a sense of danger, like it can take anyone or anything, which scares the audience. Again a contrasting shot is used. Happy families spread across the beach relaxes the audience just a small amount, despite knowing that something is likely to happen to the dog.
A close up of the stick floating in the water follows. The stick is a symbol of danger: a warning to the audience and characters. The sound of the owner calling for its dog echoes the danger in a disturbed manner. The simple but effective use of the stick is as a symbol for danger, also making the audience cringe because they know the relation of the water and its victims. At this point the audience knows that the dog won’t come back, which build empathy with the owner. The eerie music heard in the beginning is a signifier for the shark. You may not be able to see the shark but when the music begins to play, you know the shark is around.
This is introduced again with a zoom from long shot to extreme close up of the little boy’s legs. He is paddling in the sea. This purely innocent imagery is transformed into quite a deceiving picture. The music alerts the audience to the shark, danger and events to follow.
A shot of the lilo confirms the audience’s thoughts, with teeth marks and blood dripping from the edges, the boy is gone. The blood acts as another signifier for the shark, bringing danger and death to anyone who crosses it.
We then see the Chief running to an area of the sea where his son was in an orange boat, where the shark was heading. A panning of the camera, following the chief as he runs building the sense of panic and shock the chief will could soon feel, cuts to a long shot of where the sharks fin dips under the water. This builds the powerful tension, as unlike before the audience is also unaware of what will happen next.
It then cuts to a shot of the son in his very small orange boat. A shot of the son in his small as the great white shark jumps up from behind somewhat emphasises the size of the boat and creates a sense of vulnerability.
The suspense grows: death and struggle in inevitable and the audience knows this. The action sequence gets the audiences’ adrenalin pumping, helping the tension become even greater. It then cuts to a bird’s eye view of the chief’s son in the water next to his little orange boat. A shadow of the shark comes up towards the mans legs, jaws wide open. Struggle, pain and fear are injected into the audience. A quick edit shows the other boys, in water, frightened and in state of shock. Another quick edit takes us back to the man being dragged under the water. The next shot is his leg; trailing slowly to the ocean floor, blood streaming out. The simplicity of this shot, in a disturbing way, ensures that the audience believe they are beneath the shark’s authority. The blood spreading in the water implies that the sharks ‘fun and games’ can only result in death and pain. We then hear the creepy music come in and fade out over a shot of people shouting from the shoreline for their children: the music is emphasised at first but then begins to fade to eventually disappear when the shark has.
Towards the end of Jaws once they have reined the shark in, there is close up shot of the captain’s face. We see the Chief and the shark expert in the background.
After having just seen the shark expert in the background the audience is brought into a shocking realism that he could have been killed: there is a shot of the cage he was put in being ripped apart by the shark. This helps the audience understand the character showing that he is a willing person, kind and giving. Because the shark is aggressively attacking the metal cage, the audience is intimidated and feels that the violent creature is obviously angry. The audience is desperate for the men to survive but they don’t know if they will. Desperation and hopefulness for the men fill the audience as the men struggle aboard their sinking ship. After the shark has jumped up onto the boat causing it to start sinking, which gets the audience excited and scared with adrenalin, the feeling of isolation, fear and death sets in. The shots and how they have been edited help build an increasing hope for the characters, and the tension becomes overwhelming.
One of the characters becomes a victim of the shark: the captain is still alive within the shark’s mouth, screaming in pain. His facial expressions emphases the horror and fear he has. Despite being a gruesome scene the audience is compelled to watch it because they want to know what happens. Who is left on board once the captain is gone? The tension built once the captain is gone is somewhat over powering. The audience know that someone is left on board or else this surely would have been the end. The chief is left, and because he is now alone, the audience’s desperation for him almost screams out. They want him to be ok, but they don’t know if he will be.
We then see the chief shove a tank of compressed air into the sharks mouth, with the water swimming around him, after the shark pushes it’s head into the hull of the boat.
The close up shot here really helps the audience react to the footage. It was not expected which is why the tension and feeling of near-death sets in. Slightly less shocking shot follows, with the boat slowly sinking. Inevitable death hits the audience. The shark then returns to what is left of the boat, and the eerie music returns with it. Building up the tension with the music, danger and worry is apparent. There is a medium long shot of the boats sail post at an almost horizontal angle, which creeps towards the water with the chief perched on the end. The steady but shocking pace at which the post lowers gets the audience panicking for the chief. Will he end up in the water or will he find a way of getting out. The idea of being in the water with shark allows even higher levels of tension to build. You see the rifle the chief is holding: this prop exaggerates the defencelessness of the chief. What is a rifle in comparison to the jaws of a great white? The audience just hopes that the chief will be able to defend himself against the shark. He shoots and the gunshot echoes the vulnerability of the chief. He shoots again, and the echo recurs. The audience is now thinking will he run out of bullets. Panic and tension builds up because the audience is so aware of this vulnerability. A quick close up of the sharks mouth with the tank in it, is followed by a quick cut to a shot of the shark blowing up out the water. The explosion relieves the audience and the tension disappears. It the end there is a finishing shot of the chief and the shark expert paddling on a bit of wood alone. The sense of security is apparent because the danger is gone.
ADDITIONAL ANALYSIS
The setting of Jaws is important throughout the film. The idea of being stuck out at sea, chased by a great white shark, needs an appropriate starting point. I think the island was a great place to set the film because a sense of tranquillity and safety comes across. The tension in the opening is that much more because the island is supposed to be a safe, relaxing, stress free place, which is where many were met with the worry and tension of the storyline.
The scenes out at sea obviously had to be set in water because of the nature of the story but the whole idea of being stuck in the middle of no-where helps to build tension levels throughout. Also the water creates a sense of not knowing: something from behind, beneath, above or any side of you could come. This, I think, emphasises the fear and vulnerability with the characters.
The props I saw to play quite an important part in the film were:
- The captains boat and all accessories: ropes, boxes ect.
- Guns
- A fake dead shark at the beginning of the film
- Fake dead bodies
- The shark experts’ equipment
- Other fishing boats, and small boats
- All the beach accessories: lilo, towels and toys.
Costume:
The chief was usually dressed in uniform or in smart casual clothing to match his character in the film. His character had an important role in society and his costume was to reflect this.
The shark expert was dressed casually and sophisticated to help show his wealth, and it implies the fact that he was probably well educated because of his area of expertise.
The Captains dress was ‘rough around the edges’, comfortable yet still practical. His captain hat let everyone know where he stands socially and represents that being a captain is of importance to himself. It also represents his lifetime experience on boats, almost a token for his work.
