Black Book

MOVIE: Black Book aka Zwartboek (2006)

LENGTH: 145 minutes

GENRE: Romance, Drama, Thriller

WARNING: It is a movie taking place during World War II, so if you are not into that, then move the heck on, or don’t. It is up to you.

PLOT SUMMARY 

Not to be mixed up with the 2004 film Little Black Book with Brittany Murphy. This film follows the Dutch-Jewish singer Rachel Stein who goes from being an average performer to a silent fighter with the Dutch resistance during the Nazi-occupation of the Netherlands.

WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH THIS MOVIE

Well for one, in 2008, the Dutch voted this the best Dutch film ever. You don’t have to be Dutch to love this movie; like me for example, I am very far from being Dutch and I love it! Also, this film stars Dutch actress Carice Anouk van Houten, who plays Melisandre on the popular show Game of Thrones. Melisandre’s proverb, and my personal favorite saying from the show, “The Night is Dark and Full of Terrors,” also happens to work for this film. The terror being the Nazi regime, for this film. She is much more like-able and does not grant pure deaths via fire in this film, thank goodness. Houten’s character Rachel Stein, makes for a great protagonist.

Rachel Stein may have a strained love story in this film, but her contribution to the Dutch resistance definitely makes up for it. Her character reminds me of Diane Kruger’s character Bridget von Hammersmark from the film Inglorious Basterds, but so much stronger. Stein is smart, charming, and resilient to top it all off. It was so easy to get behind her character, because I love the choices she makes and how good-natured this character is. She doesn’t lose sight of her goal of helping to end the Nazi regime, and wanting to prevent horrible things from happening to others, like they did to loved ones in her life. Stein is a Jewish woman masquerading like she isn’t Jewish, to get into the Nazi inner circle to accomplish her goals. She completely blows the prejudices and taught stereotypes of Jewish people right out of the water. The Nazis have no idea what hit them with Rachel Stein on the resistance.

Overall this film is exceptional. This was a film I saw in passing one night and got hooked on right from the beginning. The cast is great, the music, the cinematography, and the directing by Paul Verhoeven, are all excellent. Yes, the movie is long but it is well worth the watch. I definitely don’t like movies that seem to drag on for hours, but this one makes every minute and even every second count. This is not a movie focusing purely on the Holocaust as you have probably seen so many times before. This is not even a movie that takes place in France, the United Kingdom, Germany, or Poland, like you also may have seen many times before. This talks about the Netherlands, which you probably know from Ann Frank living there briefly, during her short life. I personally have not seen a lot of movies that focus on the effect of the Nazi regime on the Netherlands, or even northern Europe for that fact. This film gives insight, through a fictional story, into people working in the shadows to overthrow fascists in their country. I love this film for its historical context, the great story being told, and the excellent protagonist, Rachel Stein, leading the film.

You may know the director Paul Verhoeven for his films: RoboCop (1987), Total Recall (1990), Basic Instinct (1992), Starship Troopers (1997), and Elle (2016). He unfortunately directed the film Showgirls (1995), one of the most cringeworthy movies of the 90s, but nobody is perfect. Don’t hold Showgirls against him, he has already won a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director and Worst Picture for it; Verhoeven being the champ he is, was the first person to go to the ceremony in person to receive his awards. I assure you though, Black Book makes up for any terrible movies Verhoeven may have made in the past.

LAST THOUGHTS 

I have come upon some great movies when I have decided to stay up at the wee hours of the night, and fought off my tiredness. In case you don’t know what the Golden Raspberry Awards are, let me explain. They are awards for failure in cinematic achievements, that was created in 1981 by UCLA graduates John J.B. Wilson and Mo Murphy. The award ceremony precedes the Academy Awards by one day. The award is a golf ball-sized raspberry on top of a Super 8 mm film reel.

FUN MOVIE FACTS 

1.) The Dutch submitted this film for their Academy Awards submission for Best Foreign Language film in 2007, but sadly, it did not get nominated.

2.) Most actors are multilingual in this film. Carice van Houten, for example, speaks four languages fluently in the course of the film: Hebrew in the scenes in Israel, German with Nazi soldiers, English with Canadian army personnel, and Dutch for the majority of the film.

3.) This film is the most expensive Dutch film ever made, with a 16 million euro budget, which is nearly 20 million dollars. Compare that to the largest movie budget in the United States which has been 378.5 million dollars for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.

4.) Crew members allegedly had to wait for over a year to get paid because the production company ran out of money before completion. Talk about doing it for the artistry.

 

 

 

Sources

1.) Movie poster for Black Book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Book_(film)

2.) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0389557/trivia?ref_=tt_ql_2

3.) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most_expensive_films

The Long Kiss Goodnight

MOVIE: The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)

LENGTH: 120 minutes

GENRE: Action, Thriller

WARNING: There is strong language, nudity, sexual content, and violence. Definitely not a movie to show kids.

PLOT SUMMARY 

Samantha Caine (Geena Davis) is the archetype of a small town lady. She has a nice little family comprised of her daughter and her boyfriend, and on top of that, she is a small town teacher. Samantha had washed ashore eight years prior, pregnant with her daughter and with no memory of who she was, but has made a good life for herself and her daughter. In order for Samantha to learn her past she hires private investigators to help her find out who she was previously, including Mitch Henessey (Samuel L. Jackson).

After a car accident, Samantha discovers she has quite the knife wielding skills and gets a visit from a not so nice man from her past. She feels that her past life could endanger her family so Samantha flees with the help of Henessey. Little does Samantha know, she has a lot more skeletons in her closet.

WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH THIS MOVIE 

First of all it’s a great movie! It is one of those little known 90s movies, that didn’t get the accolades or attention of other films from that year. It’s an action movie that kept me invested from the first minute, all the way until the end. If you want a decent action movie with a great protagonist and good fight scenes, this would definitely be up your alley.

Geena Davis plays Samantha Caine/Charlene Elizabeth “Charly” Baltimore so well. You see this character transform from the happy-go-lucky small town teacher to the hard-core assassin. The change comes slowly but eventually more abruptly once Charly (on the left) finds out more about herself. I love this character because she oozes confidence and danger all at the same time. This is not the sweet Geena Davis character from Stuart Little or Beetlejuice, this is a whole other persona. Charly still has the small town life and sentiment for her daughter, but actively fights against it to regain the Charly that she once was. She did not really have any liabilities in her life, prior to her daughter, but still handles her business with bravado. This character is edgy, tough, and very rough around the edges, but so likeable. Geena Davis is known for a number of roles in her life, but I don’t think she gets nearly as much credit for this film as she deserves.

We also have the legend Samuel L. Jackson as the supporting, but loveable character Mitch Henessey (on the right). Mitch is a private investigator, a bit down on his luck. He is loyal and just as crude speaking as Charly. He respects Charly and his character has a good heart, once you get past his sleaziness. His comical remarks to Charly’s crazy life add a good balance of humor with the action. They make a good team. Mitch may have won the lottery of cases when he decided to take on Samantha/Charly’s case, but he handles it pretty well considering he was never as qualified as Charly to handle the violence that ensues. He also has some really good dad jokes on top of his humorous remarks, that are very cheesy, but the right amount of cheese.

It is a great watch, very entertaining and doesn’t have an onslaught of ridiculous one-liners as other action movies do. It does have great characters, that all contribute their own unique personas to the mix. Geena Davis is absolutely brilliant in it, and I couldn’t picture anybody else playing Charly Baltimore.

LAST THOUGHTS 

You will definitely see Geena Davis mentioned in other films, I absolutely love her! This concludes my guilty pleasure movies, maybe you’ll give one of them a try.

FUN MOVIE FACTS

1.) Renny Harlin, the director of The Long Kiss Goodnight and the then husband of Geena Davis, helped Davis practice for the torture scene by seeing how long she could breath in a bathtub.

2.) One of the movie’s original locations was a historic, grand hotel in Muskoka, Ontario, Canada – the 100-year-old Windermere House. Unfortunately, the hotel caught fire and burned down, and it has been speculated that the cause of the fire was from the film lights. It has never been proven to be the film lights that caused the fire.

3.) This film and Cutthroat Island (1995) were attempts by Renny Harlin and his then-wife Geena Davis, to not only further her career, but to generate more public interest in female action stars. Both films were not commercial successes, but Geena Davis is still amazing!

4.) Shane Black became the first writer to sell a script for four million dollars. He later admitted that this caused a lot of envy among his fellow screenwriters, as well as accusations of commercialism. He voluntarily retired from the blockbuster industry for almost a decade as a result.

 

 

 

Sources

1.) The movie poster for The Long Kiss Goodnight: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Long_Kiss_Goodnight

2.) Photo of Geena Davis as Charly: https://actionagogo.com/2016/06/01/want-a-female-bond-watch-the-long-kiss-goodnight/

3.) Photo of Samuel L. Jackson as Mitch Henessey: http://www.starwarped.faketrix.com/Star-Wars-character-Samuel-L-Jackson-The-Long-Kiss-Goodnight-Mitch-Henessey.htm

4.) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116908/trivia

 

Gloria

MOVIE: Gloria (1980)

LENGTH: 121 minutes

GENRE: Crime, Thriller

WARNING: This film has strong language, violence, and sexual content. Also John Adames is a cutey as Phil.

PLOT SUMMARY 

Gloria Swenson (Gena Rowlands) lives an unassuming life, when her neighbors push for her to hide their young son Phil Dawn (John Adames). Phil’s father, an accountant to the mob, has a hit put out on him and his family, when he becomes an FBI informant, so Phil’s relocation is for his safety. Unfortunately, it does not end well for Phil’s family.

The mob is not quite done after taking care of Phil’s family, since they want all loose ends cut, including Phil. Gloria protects him the best she can, much to her vexation. Gloria is quite the protector of Phil, and whether she likes it or not, she and Phil bond through their dangerous circumstances.

WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH THIS MOVIE 

No this is not based off Van Morrison’s band Them song from 1964 or the cover by The Doors. This film is written and directed by John Cassavetes, the late husband to Gena Rowlands, who plays Gloria Swenson. Cassavetes didn’t even intend to the direct the movie until his wife said she wanted to star as the title character, and asked him to direct it. Gena Rowlands was nothing short of perfect for this role.

You may know Gena Rowlands (on the left with John Adames) as the older Allie with dementia in The Notebook or from Taking Lives. She has been in a good number of films, but this is by far my favorite movie she has ever been in. Gloria is a strong character, whose bark is just as fearsome as her bite. She is a proud woman that may seem cold and distant, but her walls come down when she finds a bit of a kindred spirit in the equally tough talking Phil. She is resilient and doesn’t let her past “relations” with the mob get in the way of protecting little Phil.

Phil is a kid that tries to act tough even through his entire family’s demise, and acts like he has it together. He is just a scared and confused kid, that has quite the vast knowledge of profanities. I mean the fact that he has those high-waisted flared pants in the movie makes him hard to take seriously, but adds to his cuteness. He and Gloria make quite the team, and believe me, you will love the two of them together from beginning to end.

There is a 1999 remake that definitely has a great Gloria and Phil pair up, starring Sharon Stone as Gloria and Jean-Luke Figueroa as Nicky. The characters’ names are different and the plot-line is tweaked a bit, but it is still the same basic story. Other movies were inspired by Gloria such as Ultraviolet, Julia, Léon: The Professional, and Verônica. The original Gloria is the best, and shall always be a classic in my book.

LAST THOUGHTS 

Another favorite of mine that I discovered from spending many hours watching Turner Classic Movies channel.

FUN MOVIE FACTS 

1.) Cassavetes chose six-year-old Juan Adames (who would be billed as John Adames) from among 350 contenders at a group casting call in New York.

2.) Gloria was nominated for one Academy Award, but did not win it.

Academy Award nomination: 

Best Actress in a Leading Role – Gena Rowlands

 

 

 

Sources

1.) The movie poster for Gloria: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloria_(1980_film)

2.) http://7artcinema.online.fr/en_7artcinema_cinema_7art_movie_film_john_cassavetes_1980_gloria.html

3.) http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/455915%7C456219/Gloria.html

 

The Sixth Sense

MOVIE: The Sixth Sense (1999)

LENGTH: 107 minutes

GENRE: Supernatural, Horror, Thriller

WARNING: This film talks about life after death, if that makes you uncomfortable, then it would be best to avoid this film.

PLOT SUMMARY 

Child psychologist, Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis), works to help Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment), who claims to be able to communicate with the dead. It seems as the case goes along that Crowe’s professional and personal life begin to crumble.

WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH THIS MOVIE 

This film was written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan; it’s one of his best works. Shyamalan may not have the best reputation these days, well at least not like he did at the time of this film. I happen to really like M. Night Shyamalan, because he likes sticking motifs into his films that foreshadow what’s going to happen, and he makes his own original stories. He makes an effort, and though it may not always work out, he really tries.

I knew the spoilers to this film long before I saw it – thanks mom! I still really enjoyed watching the movie, and luckily I don’t outright refuse to watch movies even when the big twists and turns are revealed to me beforehand. I will not spoil it for you though, I’m not evil like my mother that way.

Haley Joel Osment, as Cole Sear, is brilliant in this film. Cole Sear is the weird, loner-child that doesn’t quite connect with his peers because of his gift of seeing the dead. “I see dead people,” is the well known line often quoted in other films when referencing The Sixth Sense. Cole tries to come to terms with his ability despite his mother Lynn Sear (Toni Collette) and Malcolm Crowe doubting him. Cole has a good heart, and wants to deal with the people he sees, despite the opposition he faces from the adults in his life.

Malcolm Crowe, is that frustrating adult that just pushes his own beliefs onto a child, without even considering that the child is telling the truth. Malcolm is like that at first, but his mindset eventually changes as he gets to know Cole Sear personally.

Toni Collette, as Lynn Sear, is wonderful. Lynn is a single mom that is trying to understand her child, but is unable to because she doesn’t quite understand his ability. She loves Cole of course, but it is just hard to connect with him. Since Shyamalan does a great job in showing things from Cole’s point of view and Malcolm’s point of view, he makes it so that you are also sympathetic to Lynn.

Shyamalan films everything so brilliantly, certain scenes which seemed completely normal, are actual hints to an underlying, plot twist. Everything from the atmosphere that Shyamalan creates, to the music, make an ominous, yet intriguing story.  Also Shyamalan, along with the previous mentioned director Alfred Hitchcock, had a habit of placing himself in his own movies. Only Shyamalan gave himself short speaking roles, that would still add to the forwarding of the plot.

LAST THOUGHTS 

You will hear me talk about Shyamalan again, but I won’t tell you which other film(s). This would be a good, mild movie to watch for the Halloween season.

FUN MOVIE FACTS 

1.) Osment and Donnie Wahlberg’s character, who also saw dead people, both had some white hair on their heads. Shyamalan decided that all “spirit spotters” would have one similar physical attribute.

2.) The Sixth Sense was nominated for six Academy Awards, but did not win any of them.

Academy Award nominations:

Best Picture – Frank Marshall, Kathleen Kennedy, Barry Mendel

Best Actor in a Supporting Role – Haley Joel Osment

Best Actress in a Supporting Role – Toni Collette

Best Director – M. Night Shyamalan

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen – M. Night Shyamalan

Best Film Editing – Andrew Mondshein

 

 

Sources

1.) The Sixth Sense movie poster: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sixth_Sense

2.) http://mentalfloss.com/article/66913/17-straightforward-facts-about-sixth-sense

 

 

The French Connection

MOVIE: The French Connection (1971) 

LENGTH: 104 minutes

GENRE: Crime, Thriller

WARNING: This film is not for children unless accompanied by an adult. There is violence, narcotics, and strong language in this film.

PLOT SUMMARY 

This film centers around two narcotic detectives, Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle (played by Gene Hackman) and Buddy “Cloudy” Russo (played by Roy Scheider), as they try to figure out the mysterious man who is smuggling drugs into New York City.

WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH THIS MOVIE

This is one of Gene Hackman’s most famous films and makes for an interesting cat and mouse-type film. You may know the film from that classic scene, shown on the movie’s poster, where Jimmy Doyle is shooting a crook in the back. Jimmy Doyle is a loose lip cop that says whatever comes to his mind and is merciless when it comes to getting his guy. You can probably tell that from him shooting a guy in the back, which Jimmy doesn’t see as dishonorable at all.

Roy Scheider is in this and you may know him from the little known film Jaws, which I have talked about on here before. This movie is no Jaws though – instead of sharks, you see another variety of bloodshed with drug dealers and gun violence. Roy Scheider’s character, Cloudy Russo, is less rude but equally determined to find the French guy that is responsible for sneaking heroin into the country.

This film definitely went along with the whole “War on Drugs” idea that was started by Nixon in the 70s, but did not go by that name until Reagan. Jimmy Doyle exemplifies this time period and takes all the smuggling and drug running personally. There is no fancy speech by Doyle saying that he wants to save lives or anything like that – he just wants to kill Alain Charnier, the one responsible for the drug smuggling.

There is a French Connection II and that was hard to get through for several reasons. Before I even explain why this movie was difficult to watch, I need to tell you what the second film is about. Jimmy Doyle goes all the way to France to get the French guy, Charnier, since the evidence against Charnier from the last film mysteriously disappeared. This is two or three years after the original investigation and Doyle is ordered by his superiors to go to Marseille, France.

Firstly, the sequel is incredibly cringe-worthy because Doyle is so blatantly disrespectful to the French police, despite being on their territory. He even calls them “frogs” throughout the entire movie. Secondly, Jimmy Doyle is the kind of American that makes a scene doing everything, so much so that you stand by from a distance thinking, “he makes us all look bad”. Thirdly, Jimmy Doyle becomes addicted to heroin, thanks to Charnier. I was very uncomfortable seeing him suffer through withdrawal, all the while still spewing derogatory words towards the French police that are not only trying to save his health, but his career. I have to be honest; in the first film, you are rooting for Doyle and Russo to get Charnier and all his affiliates. But, in the second, you are just rooting for Doyle to get out of France and stop making an international imbecile out of himself. Also, there is no Russo in this film, unfortunately, so there is no one to balance out Doyle’s idiocy.

If you see French Connection and don’t see the second film, no one will be mad at you. In fact, I will understand. The first film is much easier to get through and Doyle is a lot more tolerable, especially with Chief Brody on his side – I mean, Cloudy Russo.

LAST THOUGHTS 

I just saw French Connection II recently. It had been on my “To See” movie list for a while because I make it a point to see the sequels to classics, no matter how horrible. I mean, I try, but sometimes they are just so bad.

FUN MOVIE FACTS

1.) In 2005, the Library of Congress deemed The French Connection (not French Connection II) as “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” enough to be preserved in the United States National Film Registry.

2.) The French Connection was based off a 1961 drug bust by New York cops Eddie “Popeye” Egan and Sonny “Cloudy” Grosso. The bust had about 112 pounds of heroin with a street value of $32 million. Just think of the inflation of that today! The two cops involved in the drug bust were technical advisers on the film and made cameos. Egan plays Walter Simonson and Grosso plays Detective Klein.

3.) During the big car chase sequence, William Friedkin (the director of The French Connection) chose to be in the modified car filming Gene Hackman from behind because none of the camera crew, who had families, wanted to be in the car filming Hackman.

4.) The Academy nominated The French Connection for eight awards. The film won five of those awards.

Academy Award nominations:

Best Actor in a Supporting Role – Roy Scheider

Best Sound – Theodore Soderberg, Christopher Newman

Best Cinematography – Owen Roizman

Best Picture – Philip D’Antoni

Best Actor in a Leading Role – Gene Hackman

Best Director – William Friedkin

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium – Ernest Tidyman

Best Film Editing – Gerald B. Greenberg

Academy Award wins:

Best Picture – Philip D’Antoni

Best Actor in a Leading Role – Gene Hackman

Best Director – William Friedkin

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium – Ernest Tidyman

Best Film Editing – Gerald B. Greenberg

 

 

Sources

1.) The French Connection movie poster: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_French_Connection_(film)

2.) https://www.moviefone.com/2016/10/08/the-french-connection-facts/

 

 

Jaws

MOVIE: Jaws (1975)

LENGTH: 124 minutes

GENRE: Action, Thriller, Horror

WARNING: This film may make you never want to go to the beach again, but I assure you there are plenty of things you should fear in the ocean other than sharks. There is graphic content such as shark attacks where limbs detach from the body, so if you are really squeamish you should have a trash bin or plastic bag nearby – but still watch the movie!

PLOT SUMMARY 

If you haven’t seen this movie then I really don’t know where you have been or what you have been doing other than seeing this movie at least once! Maybe you thought it would be a boring shark attack movie, where the attacks look exaggerated and the shark was some weird puppet thing. Well whatever your reasoning, you’re wrong! The film takes place in a happy-go-lucky beach resort town. After some body parts wash up ashore, it is quickly determined it was a brutal shark attack that ripped that poor person apart.

The film takes place in a happy-go-lucky beach resort town. After some body parts wash up ashore, it is quickly determined it was a brutal shark attack that ripped the poor person apart. The Police Chief, Martin Brody (Roy Scheider), being the dutiful fellow he is, wants to close the beaches right away. Only Mayor Larry Vaughn (Murray Hamilton) disagrees, since the town’s economy heavily relies on the summer tourist season. The mayor has no redeeming qualities, so much so that you’ll want to “accidentally” nudge him off of the boat so the shark will get him. However, another shark attack happens, causing a panic within the town and a bounty is placed on the vicious shark.

A local shark hunter, Quint (Robert Shaw), makes quite the entrance, dragging his nails on a chalkboard as he walks in. He announces that he will kill the shark for $10,000, which the townspeople think is too steep a price. Meanwhile, Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss), an oceanographer, confirms that a great white shark killed the first victim. It eventually takes more death and a close call for Brody’s young son for the mayor to finally take Quint seriously, and come up with a plan to kill the unwanted guest.

WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH THIS MOVIE

Jaws is based on a book of the same name, by Peter Benchley. He even makes a cameo in the film as a news reporter (below). Unfortunately, both the book and the movie did not shed a kind light on sharks. Benchley blamed himself for this negative portrayal of sharks and became a staunch ocean conservationist, campaigning for the protection of sharks up until his death in 2006. He even remarked, “Knowing what I know now, I could never write that book today.”

I had the privilege of seeing the movie on the big screen on the 40th anniversary of its release back in 2015, which made me love it all over again. Jaws has the whole package: great writing, fantastic scores, great characters, and great directing. Steven Spielberg (director of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial) knows how to build suspense and make you feel the anxiety of the impending shark attacks along with the characters. Spielberg used $3,000 of his own money to shoot an additional scene, just weeks before the movie premiere. In the scene, shot in Verna Field’s (the film editor of Jaws) swimming pool, Hooper finds a giant shark tooth. It took some powdered milk and a tarp to make it look like Hooper was scuba diving into murky ocean water.

Have you ever heard the line, “We’re gonna need a bigger boat”? Well, it’s from Jaws and it was ad-libbed by Roy Scheider himself. When you see the film you’ll see why Roy Scheider said it. Spielberg liked the line so much he kept it in the movie and made sure it was audible when the film was released.  It is now one of those classic movie lines you’ll hear randomly in other movies.

This film contains one of the most iconic scores in movie history, composed by John Williams. It is just two notes, “F and F sharp” or “E and F”, played whenever the giant shark approaches (aka the “shark theme”) and those simple notes just intuitively let you know when danger is nearby.

I can’t talk to you about the movie without talking about the cast of characters. You’ll love Martin Brody. He is an honest family man who is legitimately concerned about human life. You’ll also love Matt Hooper and his deep fascination with the ocean, sharks in particular. Quint is just what you would think of a shark hunter – rough around the edges, endless stories to tell, and the battle scars that accompany them. Those three make quite the team and will have you rooting for them to take out the shark that has been munching on townspeople like snacks.

We have reached an interesting milestone here on the blog with this movie and not just because it is one of the greatest movies of all time. This movie is the first film franchise (but definitely not the last!) I will discuss. Jaws is the first of four movies. FOUR freaking movies. The other movies that follow this one are: Jaws 2 (1978), Jaws 3-D (1983), Jaws: The Revenge (1987). They are just as disappointing as you would think they are and Steven Spielberg did not direct the other three movies, further adding to the disappointment. The second movie is basically a rehash of the first, but without Hooper and Quint. The third has Brody’s sons (same characters different actors), now young adults, working at SeaWorld in Florida. Right off the bat this should tell you that you are in for a very mediocre ride. The fourth film is based on the premise that a shark wants vengeance, which already doesn’t make any sense, and so the shark follows (yes, I said follows) Brody’s widow Ellen Brody (Lorraine Gary, same actress of the first movie) instead of living its life of survival and hunting. Honestly, if you only see the first movie, you’re good. I can’t say I recommend the sequels, but if you are curious go ahead and watch them. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you!

LAST THOUGHTS 

This movie is a fabulous work of fiction, because that’s what it is – fiction. This film and its subsequent sequels make sharks terrifying. They come in all shapes and sizes (in the case of this movie, the shark comes in size “Huge”) and they make very exciting predators. After watching Shark Week, before it became a disappointing work of fiction, they touched on how Jaws lead to an increase of hunting and killing sharks and how sharks are very misunderstood animals. Sharks don’t hold grudges and they don’t normally hunt humans. When you watch this movie, just understand that this is a fictitious movie that does not accurately illustrate how sharks think or hunt. I invite you to learn more about actual sharks and what could be done to help them from being hunted into extinction. Here is a little article where a marine biologist explains the misconceptions about sharks Jaws perpetuated:

http://www.npr.org/2016/07/14/486012072/a-marine-ecologist-on-swimming-with-sharks-and-what-jaws-got-wrong

FUN MOVIE FACTS

1.) Steven Spielberg nearly stopped production of Jaws because he felt the film was too similar to the television film Duel he directed, and Spielberg was afraid he would be typecast as “the truck and shark director.” David Brown (one of the producer’s of Jaws) fortunately talked Spielberg into sticking with Jaws.

2.) The production encountered so many mechanical errors with the shark that the film was nicknamed “Flaws”.

3.) In 2001, the United States Library of Congress chose Jaws for preservation in the National Film Registry.

4.) The film won three Academy awards:

Best Film Editing- Verna Fields

Best Original Dramatic Score- John Williams

Best Sound-  Robert Hoyt, Roger Heman, Earl Madery, and John Carter

Other Academy Award nomination:

Best Picture

Sources

1.) Jaws movie poster: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaws_(film)

2.) The picture of the author cameo in Jaws: http://people.com/celebrity/jaws-40th-anniversary-movie-secrets/

3.) http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-33049099

4.) http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/05/entertainment/jaws-movie-40th-anniversary-feat/

5.) http://www.npr.org/2016/07/14/486012072/a-marine-ecologist-on-swimming-with-sharks-and-what-jaws-got-wrong