I had read that Spielberg told the actress that she wouldn't know when they were going to tug at her so her response was visceral. Movies today suck. Great insight!
It is the scariest scene for me in any movie ever. Everything works to amazing effect. But the scariest part is to imagine the level of fear Chrissie must be experiencing. One moment she is enjoying a late night swim, and then the next second her whole world is coming to an end. Imagine how horrifying that would be to process? To know what is PROBABLY happening to you and knowing that you only had a few seconds left to live. Unspeakable.
@@shemthegrasshopper2143 Same here. I saw JAWS on the big screen about ten years ago with a friend and the whole sequence with poor Chrissie I had my eyes closed and my hands over my ears and I was reciting some lame nursery rhyme. I was too frightened to be embarrassed, LOL
She was probably more aware of pain… as she was violently and painfully taken to her death. What’s amazing about this scene is that it makes the viewer imagine it.
Absolutely. And how must it feel once you realise bodyparts are missing, or are severly mutilated, you cannot see it but eventualy feel it with your hands... there is a shark attack surviver explaining just that experience... horrible!
This scene was actually shot in broad daylight. They used shaded lenses to get night effects. Just a bit of movie trivia!!! I was 16 years old when this movie came out and we stood in a very long line at the Fine Arts Theater in Portland Maine and just to see it and we were so excited!
Not seeing the shark until the third attack was genius. Only seeing the fins turning when it killed Alex gave me nightmares because it looks exactly like something out of Animal Planet and the fact that no one could really see what was happening made it worse
And to think not showing the shark was born out of necessity since the salt water caused the animatronic to malfunction time and again. It turned out a great decision to go for the power of suggestion in stead
The subtle imagery in the fence detail is a great touch. One that I never noticed until recently. She passes what looks like a huge shark bite missing from the fence, twice in the shot, as she runs towards the water. Genius.
I wasn’t a huge fan of the novel in comparison to the film. One of the rare times a film was better than the novel it was based on. One of the my main issues was what I saw as unnecessary sub plots such as the affair between Hopper and Brody’s wife. The fact that Hooper is extremely likeable in the film was important, his behaviour in the book had the opposite affect.
Many people focus on how inconsistent it is that a gigantic shark like that would take that long to subdue her, but that is not the point. The point is that we are forced to feel her pain and terror in way that is completely overwhelming and all consuming. And it does this in a way that verges on sadistic: like watching a serial killer making a victim suffer. Its one of the most distressing depictions of a death in cinema history.
I'm guessing that after seeing that shark attack in Egypt that happened in 2023, they shut their big mouths! That poor guy was slowly taken apart by a very big, female tiger shark.
@@tanyaobregon2266 You said it. Sometimes in movies like this it’s scary what isn’t seen. I mean it’s horrifying enough seeing her attacked without even seeing the Shark
I love this kind of unashamedly intelligent , fine toothed comb style analysis of one of the greatest films ever made , of any genre. It treats the audience member like they actually have a brain which you’re willing to make full use of . Thanks so much for this ! I’ll very very much look forward to watching the next episode of this series . Thank you for posting 🙏
Hats off to Spielberg , saw this movie when it first came out , and still find it terrifying to this day , a true classic in suspense/horror .not forgetting an amazing musical score from the master John Williams. Great analysis to this classic scene
I love too how the picket fence appears as jagged broken teeth as they run between them toward the water. Note also that Chrissie crosses from one side to the other at the end of that sequence, effectively isolating herself from all that has gone before and sealing her fate. She’s truly on her own.
Fun fact: The actor who was playing Chrissie didn't know she would be pulled underwater, so when she had been suddenly pulled without knowing what was happening, her screams of fear were actually real.
Totally appreciate how you explained everything modern cinema has none of these amazing thoughts or tactics to use in nowadays movies that's why they suck so much Spielberg was a true legend when it came to making movies.
Jaws illustrates just how pathetic most movies are today. Truly a great film...the storytelling, the characters, the visuals, the music, the dialogue. We don't even see the shark for the first hour, yet are still terrified and engrossed in the movie from that opening seen. We know Chrissy for just a few lines, yet her loss is memorable and tragic. And the same can be said for every other character that is killed In this movie (even the dog). I bet everyone who watches this movie can remember every scene, person, and animal that is killed during the movie, including their names (including the shark, which, while not given a name, is described in detail, provided its Latin name, and we learn of its power, function, strength, and purpose...today, death of an individual is often viewed and inconsequential or even .humorous. Compare to the first sequel...none of the deaths are meaningful because each of the characters killed is meaningless to us as the audience..
I appreciate this video. I was told by a reliable source that the actress playing, "Chrissie" experienced some difficulty holding her breath and struggling with the impromtu tugs. She was panicking for real due to the extended pulls and tugs which made her lose her breath. In later years, she admits this to be true. She was literally drowning.
This scene is a masterclass. My mom read the book and encouraged me to at least read this attack scene and it's even more brutal when you read the details and have the insight of Chrissy's thoughts. Both nailed the horror.
@@anjinsanx44 Romans 1:20 For ever since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through His workmanship [all His creation, the wonderful things that He has made], so that they [who fail to believe and trust in Him] are without excuse and without defense.
I think she wasn't really praying, but just exclaiming _Oh, God_ in disbelief. In the book, she doesn't say anything, just screams when she realizes that her leg is gone.
To think Chrissie had a small role, but we still truly remember her because her death was so intense, and it was at the start of the movie too! 😲 I praise all of the setup and the well spot-on acting.
I heard that when Richard Dreyfuss (Hooper) first heard & saw this scene he became seriously ill.... that's how much of a GENIUS Spielberg is- he can do NO wrong as far as I am concerned! I'm his BIGGEST number 1 fan!
Making them human before a death scene is really important, I hadn't really thought of that before since I don't usually watch horror movies. Wow, that is really a good point and I'm glad this came across my recommendations
You missed a HUGE foreshadowing. As Chrissy runs along the fencing and the guy asks her where we going, right as she says "swimming", she passes the jagged mouth of the shark that was broken out of the top of the fence planks. Eerie!!
@@fordsgirl8096 Look at the top of the fence she's running past at 4:50. I would bet money that is the exact same bite radius of Bruce. And, I noticed something else, 3 seconds later, she is shown running past it again; the exact same 3 seconds are when she goes completely under the first time to when she surfaces screaming at the beginning of the attack. I have a feeling the entire attack on Chrissy is being played out, like a music scale, in the design of the fence.
Tony Commodore The fence at the point mentioned looks like a giant shark bite, and the fence runs up and down like a roller coaster chaotically, like the way she was being taken by the shark
@@tonycommodore8929 Man that’s deep. Passing bite in the fence first time representing the minute Bruce hits her, then 3 seconds later passing the bite in fence again representing the second hit by Bruce
I also have a few points to add. When Chrissy frist swims out and she’s stroking in the water she then goes under by putting her appendage up. From my perspective this shows two things. The first of which comes to mind is like Chrissy, the shark is in the water and usually when it appears it more often then not surfaces with its fin coming up out of the water whereas Chrissy’s appendage goes down. So you could say that Chrissy’s limb subconsciously both parallels and symbolizes the shark’s fin. Thus foreshadowing her impending death from a fearsome and deadly predator. The other subject that is worth mentioning is that unlike the drunk on the beach we as the audience are aware of Chrissy’s attack, but like that drunk we are unable to do anything about it. So in a way that drunk on the beach does to an extant, symbolize the audience.
Absolutely brilliant movie even to this day. No matter how great cgi sharks look on screen nowadays there will never be a shark movie that will top this. Lots of rumors of remakes which I hope will never ever, at least in my lifetime, happen.
That and a combination of the dumb blonde stereotype along with the consummation of a lot of alcohol also contributes to what happens in this masterful scene, if a girl said swimming to me like that, I’d say he’ll no and drag her back to the party.
Only Ric Flair can swim with sharks wooooooooo! We have Shark Week,Sharks have Ric Flair Week!!!!! The Real World's Champion !👍💪😀🦈🦈🏊♂️🦈🦈wooooooooo! Stylin' and Profilin' !!!
I remember an interview with Peter Benchley sometime after the movie came out and he told of an encounter he had with this woman who told him that before all this came out, she used to enjoy taking dips at night in the ocean, but ever since the movie came out, she doesn’t do that anymore because his book, which brought the movie about, scared the daylights out of her.
Underrated masterclass 🎩 Seriously your analysis of this cult scene, the best opening scene ever imho, is amazing the best ever 🫡 jaw dropping I dare say Jaws wouldn’t have been THE Jaws without Chrissie attack that’s one of the many pillar if not the main pillar of this legendary movie definitely made for the big screen not the 📺 ☝️
It is not a horror film at all. Yea it contains gruesome scenes and some great jump scares, but It has more in common with monster flicks of yore only brought to modern standards in1975. It to me is still one of the greatest adventures ever filmed
Yes, Jaws is a horror film, or AT LEAST PARTLY one. I think it's pretty OBVIOUS. I mean the shark in it isn't a REALISTIC ORDINARY one, it's pretty much a MONSTER VERSION, what with its freakish size and its abnormal savagery. If it wasn't a horror film at all, if it were just a STRAIGHT DRAMA in other words, then it would've just been a normal sized and tamer shark I think.
@@Robert_Douglass how does realizing your strong have to do with being naked? If anything it just sounds weird. You can be strong and have clothes on. Lol you’d be arrested for doing that. That’s like saying, I’m unafraid to not wipe my ass, so I’ll go out in public with shit in my pants because I’m strong. It’s just weird
@@Robert_Douglass I’m not saying you should freak out if your naked or be afraid, but you should also realize social boundaries, and be prepared to stay away from you. Don’t expect people to respect that.
I saw Jaws at the cinema in 1978 aged 10 and this scene scared me in a way I had never known before or indeed have ever known since. I was literally hyperventilating and it took me well into the movie before I had calmed down.
6:30 I always thought that Spielberg filmed the shot of Chrissy running to the water in silhouette because that would be how a shark would see the victim above them in the sea. It's another nod to the PoV shots that build the tension in the underwater opening scene.
He had to re-edit the scene with a darker filter because the first pass had too much light and you could clearly see Chrissy's nude lady parts for a PG rating.
Absolutely amazing analysis. Great understanding from a cinematic/ visual perspective. Spielberg is known for his subtle terror which is initially hidden then slowly brews to a creshendo. Camera work was nicely anayzed. Thank you. I enjoyed your analysis very much. Cannot wait to see your other takes, pun intended. : )
This movie and especially this scene left me with a life long fear of swimming in the see. Even though I’m all grown up it still to this day makes me feel anxious going in to the Water.
No matter how many times I've seen this(a lot) her screams, gasps for air and pleading for help always gets me. I'd like to see how that was film cause she genuinely seemed as if she was being attacked by something. I wonder if someone was underwater pulling on her legs without her knowing at times to get those reactions?
The more I rewatch this scene, I notice something interesting. When it cuts to Chrissie in the water with the sunset in the distance, it looks like a symbol of peace and freedom. But if you really concentrate your mind on what is about to take place, this shot has a much darker meaning. The sunset no longer symbolizes peace, but instead serves as a deadly warning that blood is about to be shed, and death is inevitably near. But I don’t know though. This is just a theory I happened to come up with.
I think I’ve written posts and replies on RUclips about this movie before, about how interesting it would be to see how JAWS would have panned out if the mechanical ⚙️ shark 🦈 had worked and if Spielberg had been able to film all the scenes and shots with the beast that he had wanted to. How much less terrifying would it have been and how would it have fared at the box office. Where would it now sit in the history of the cinema.
I like the choice of depicting Chrissie's death twice in this video, one with no dialogue from you and one with commentary. Allows the audience, whether they've seen this movie or not, to first have their own conclusions and reactions to such a hard-hitting scene of biting terror with no interruption and then listen to your analysis and form a new opinion on this scene from the two viewpoints. In short, admirable YT video making.
@@cine-mechanic8589 One thing I would like to know is how, mechanically, Chrissie was being moved (pulled and pushed) during the shark attack. I'd have to think that the actress, Susan Backlinie, must've come close to choking. She did an amazing job depicting that uniquely terrifying experience.
@@mawsjumbler I believe they used an underwater rig to yank her back and forth. The choking sounds were done later in post production. Spielberg actually waterboarded the actress (with her consent of course) to get authentic choking/gurgling sounds.
I haven't finished the video yet, but I wonder if in the scene of Chrissy and the kid running, the skyline mirrors a white shark's camouflage; grey like the sea from above, and white like the sky from below.
The film is terrific. I've watched it multiple times. I like Roy Scheider, and the rest of the cast. At times, the shark looked fake, but I forgive them.
The greatest film in the history of cinema ..followed by The Warriors 🙂 and The Last Of The Mohicans..this is the best analysis of the open ing ive ever seen!!
What I could never quite grasp in this scene is everybody is wearing coats / jackets so WHY would someone go swimming...in the ocean no less where it is cold even in August?
I've watch this movie a multitude of times, since its original showing till now, and out of all the deaths, this one i always skip over, when she's first pulled under to then resurface with panting like breaths, I feel her terror, I just can't do it.
This scene happened a lot faster in the movie than the book. After the first attach she reached down and discovered her leg was missing, then the shark hit her again. I've met Susan (Chrissie), she used to be a mermaid at Weeki Wachee Springs in Florida. That's why she was chosen for this scene.
I remember when I went swimming in the ocean at night as a kid. Nobody thought we might get our legs eaten off. I guess if we did, it just would have been life. 1980's and 90's for you.
I don't go out and never alone in water anymore. I grew up in Sweden, with no threatening sharks around. However, now when I live in the UK, there are some bigger sharks around-so they say anywyay
Interesting analysis of this great film!Your voice over narration is very dramatic and makes this scene be more drawn in to watch! Blessings in Christ’s Peace!🕊😇
My favorite movie of all time, only behind jurassic park. Barely. This scene is brilliant. God can't save you chrissy. Wish we could have seen the head/Sternum/ arm dead body as I've seen someone show what it would have looked like. But not seeing is prob better.
I want too know how she expected to find her clothes if she hadn't had died.But if I'm correct this was filmed off Cape cod where there are actually real great White's.
the one thing i love about steven spielberg's movies is they all seem like real life situations. i mean, jaws, jurassic park, as well as war of the worlds, ALL seem as if any of it were to actually happen, the way the movies go down, is how it really would go down. i know jaws does happen in real life but its not as intense as the movies are
In the documentary of the making of Jaws they mention that the scene with Chrissie was achieved with some sort of rope/harness pulley system that two men on the beach pulled Chrissie. During the scene there was a miscommunication and the men went in opposite directions breaking Chrissie's ribs. The scene where she is screaming it hurts and the pain she is in was real but Spielberg told the crew to keep filming. How much of that is true, I do not know but when you look at the scene is does seem true.
Not true. Susan Backlinie has confirmed she was not injured, and she had to flail her arms to make the scene look more violent than it was. Also, the screams were added months later in post production...
Yep, it’s dragging her under. Likely has her by the legs. In the book, the shark comes up from under and basically knocks her out the water and catches, crushes, and dismembers her. They could not keep the shark hidden and film it like the book. Good compromise I thought.
@@andreatibbatts2815 that’s right😀! That is even consistent with the book. I read it the other day for the first time in a while. The shark bites her leg off. In the movie it just drags her under after that, while in the book, it comes up under and grabs her in its mouth, and tears he’d apart , but this is after it bites her leg off.
@Ger O'Brien That’s a good thought too. It’s really hard to know. The movie is unclear. The book is very graphic with what the shark does. At one point she thinks she snagged her leg on a piece of driftwood and when she goes to feel it, its not there anymore, Then she freaks out and the shark grabs her in its mouth in tears her apart.
Spielberg did not show the Shark at the beginning of the first attack because the shark didn't work. According to Zanuck, Spielberg was going to show some of the Shark in the beginning, but the mechanical shark kept malfunctioning. The scene still works, though. The imagination runs wild wondering what's going on.
I read the book. The shark first took her leg off at the knee. Chrissie had felt something and reached down to her leg to find it was gone. The shark actually leaps up out of the water with Chrissie in it's Jaws. But the movie version is terrifying, not seeing it. The hidden terror.
At the beginning when u see Chrissie plunging downward, thats actually Steven Spielberg pushing her down and then there were 2 ropes pulling her back and forth like a tug of war until she plunged right down at the end
Compared to the size of the shark when we see it and try to compare it to this! How far under the water was it? Without seeing none, not even a fin? I know the shark was doing the dolphin thing.
Yes, as well as the camera scenes when the boy gets killed and the camera goes from Broody and what he sees. My son's film tutor brought that scene up, as being from Alfred Hitchcock
Chrissie’s hyperventilation after the second bite is what conveyed to me the horror of the scene. Great acting as well.
I had read that Spielberg told the actress that she wouldn't know when they were going to tug at her so her response was visceral. Movies today suck. Great insight!
It is the scariest scene for me in any movie ever. Everything works to amazing effect. But the scariest part is to imagine the level of fear Chrissie must be experiencing. One moment she is enjoying a late night swim, and then the next second her whole world is coming to an end. Imagine how horrifying that would be to process? To know what is PROBABLY happening to you and knowing that you only had a few seconds left to live. Unspeakable.
same for me, as a grown man I honestly struggle to sit through it or just listen to it
@@shemthegrasshopper2143 Same here. I saw JAWS on the big screen about ten years ago with a friend and the whole sequence with poor Chrissie I had my eyes closed and my hands over my ears and I was reciting some lame nursery rhyme. I was too frightened to be embarrassed, LOL
She was probably more aware of pain… as she was violently and painfully taken to her death. What’s amazing about this scene is that it makes the viewer imagine it.
With salt water agonizingly pouring into her ripped open wounds while drowning and being eaten alive, thats why i dont swim with sharks.
Absolutely. And how must it feel once you realise bodyparts are missing, or are severly mutilated, you cannot see it but eventualy feel it with your hands... there is a shark attack surviver explaining just that experience... horrible!
The opening scene is effective because it combines elements of night, drowning, and being eaten alive. All are terrors in their respective components.
Good insight
@@cine-mechanic8589 You have done a brilliant job in making me think about it. Thumbs up for an outstanding video.
No shit sherlock😉
How did she ever expect to find her clothes???
@@patriceaqa288 Here,s to swimming with no legged women!
This scene was actually shot in broad daylight. They used shaded lenses to get night effects. Just a bit of movie trivia!!! I was 16 years old when this movie came out and we stood in a very long line at the Fine Arts Theater in Portland Maine and just to see it and we were so excited!
Not seeing the shark until the third attack was genius. Only seeing the fins turning when it killed Alex gave me nightmares because it looks exactly like something out of Animal Planet and the fact that no one could really see what was happening made it worse
Good point.
And to think not showing the shark was born out of necessity since the salt water caused the animatronic to malfunction time and again. It turned out a great decision to go for the power of suggestion in stead
On voit un peu le Requin quand il retourne le tapis gonflable
and the broken turning round pier following the man
The actress who plays Crissie was so great in this scene. She really gives everything she has to this one moment.
Definitely.
She reprised her role for the slapstick comedy "1941". This time, it's not a shark that she finds, but a Japanese submarine.
Didn't she get really hurt from being dragged in that harnice when filming the attack scene, think I read something about this
@@Robert_Douglass .... ALSO a Spielberg film.
@@darkangelw8472 I think it was a dislocated shoulder or something like that. So, some of the screams were real..
The subtle imagery in the fence detail is a great touch. One that I never noticed until recently.
She passes what looks like a huge shark bite missing from the fence, twice in the shot, as she runs towards the water.
Genius.
Good catch.
Yes, I noticed that. Clever and subtle
I never noticed that. You really think that it was a director's touch? I would never have thought that. Interesting.
The opening 6.5 minutes of Jaws are better than most entire horror/slasher films
its certainly one of the most scariest sequences ever filmed. pure primal fear, the stuff of nightmares
For those of you who have not read the book, it is a good read. The attack description at the beginning is intense too
The audiobook is really great too
She felt a pain in her hip, felt down there and her hip was missing. I read that book when I was 10. Brody's wife and Hooper were scumbags.
I had the same reaction as Spielberg: I really wanted the shark to win.
I wasn’t a huge fan of the novel in comparison to the film. One of the rare times a film was better than the novel it was based on. One of the my main issues was what I saw as unnecessary sub plots such as the affair between Hopper and Brody’s wife. The fact that Hooper is extremely likeable in the film was important, his behaviour in the book had the opposite affect.
I was shocked at how much of scumbag the book version of Matt Hooper is.
Many people focus on how inconsistent it is that a gigantic shark like that would take that long to subdue her, but that is not the point. The point is that we are forced to feel her pain and terror in way that is completely overwhelming and all consuming. And it does this in a way that verges on sadistic: like watching a serial killer making a victim suffer. Its one of the most distressing depictions of a death in cinema history.
Great Whites drag and toss Seals around seemingly playing with them and or intentionally torturing them before devouring them.
I'm guessing that after seeing that shark attack in Egypt that happened in 2023, they shut their big mouths! That poor guy was slowly taken apart by a very big, female tiger shark.
One of the best movie of all time
2021 still one of the most terrifying scenes in movie history
Exactly!! Even what is not seen is terrifying!! That first scene in Jaws still terrifies me!! Brilliant, Steven Spielberg, Brilliant!!👍
And then, the two-note score of Master John Williams!!! Stop! You scared the life out of me in this movie!🤣😳😳😳👍👍👍😳🎶🎶🎶🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹
@@tanyaobregon2266
You said it. Sometimes in movies like this it’s scary what isn’t seen.
I mean it’s horrifying enough seeing her attacked without even seeing the Shark
It's all personal opinion but I never thought Jaws was scary but entertaining. I thought The Exorcist was scary though.
@@TroyBraiden
I seen both and haven’t been scared of either
I love this kind of unashamedly intelligent , fine toothed comb style analysis of one of the greatest films ever made , of any genre. It treats the audience member like they actually have a brain which you’re willing to make full use of . Thanks so much for this ! I’ll very very much look forward to watching the next episode of this series . Thank you for posting 🙏
Hey thank you so much!
Hats off to Spielberg , saw this movie when it first came out , and still find it terrifying to this day , a true classic in suspense/horror .not forgetting an amazing musical score from the master John Williams. Great analysis to this classic scene
I love too how the picket fence appears as jagged broken teeth as they run between them toward the water. Note also that Chrissie crosses from one side to the other at the end of that sequence, effectively isolating herself from all that has gone before and sealing her fate. She’s truly on her own.
Fun fact: The actor who was playing Chrissie didn't know she would be pulled underwater, so when she had been suddenly pulled without knowing what was happening, her screams of fear were actually real.
And Steven Spielberg pulled the rope for the first " bite".
Just listening to her screaming it hurts, gives me the creeps. One can only imagine the thought of being eaten alive by a 25 ft great white shark 🦈
Totally appreciate how you explained everything modern cinema has none of these amazing thoughts or tactics to use in nowadays movies that's why they suck so much Spielberg was a true legend when it came to making movies.
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.
Jaws illustrates just how pathetic most movies are today. Truly a great film...the storytelling, the characters, the visuals, the music, the dialogue. We don't even see the shark for the first hour, yet are still terrified and engrossed in the movie from that opening seen. We know Chrissy for just a few lines, yet her loss is memorable and tragic. And the same can be said for every other character that is killed In this movie (even the dog). I bet everyone who watches this movie can remember every scene, person, and animal that is killed during the movie, including their names (including the shark, which, while not given a name, is described in detail, provided its Latin name, and we learn of its power, function, strength, and purpose...today, death of an individual is often viewed and inconsequential or even .humorous. Compare to the first sequel...none of the deaths are meaningful because each of the characters killed is meaningless to us as the audience..
Tig Bitties not in the movie; only on the set.
I appreciate this video. I was told by a reliable source that the actress playing, "Chrissie" experienced some difficulty holding her breath and struggling with the impromtu tugs. She was panicking for real due to the extended pulls and tugs which made her lose her breath. In later years, she admits this to be true. She was literally drowning.
This scene is a masterclass. My mom read the book and encouraged me to at least read this attack scene and it's even more brutal when you read the details and have the insight of Chrissy's thoughts. Both nailed the horror.
Should have mentioned that her desperate cries to god to make it stop, cruelly go unanswered. That is truly terrifying.
because god doesnt exist
but Jaws does!
@@anjinsanx44 Romans 1:20 For ever since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through His workmanship [all His creation, the wonderful things that He has made], so that they [who fail to believe and trust in Him] are without excuse and without defense.
@@RonaldCaviellostill not an excuse to just leave her getting fucked up like that 💀
I think she wasn't really praying, but just exclaiming _Oh, God_ in disbelief.
In the book, she doesn't say anything, just screams when she realizes that her leg is gone.
To think Chrissie had a small role, but we still truly remember her because her death was so intense, and it was at the start of the movie too! 😲 I praise all of the setup and the well spot-on acting.
I heard that when Richard Dreyfuss (Hooper) first heard & saw this scene he became seriously ill.... that's how much of a GENIUS Spielberg is- he can do NO wrong as far as I am concerned! I'm his BIGGEST number 1 fan!
Cool
I first saw this movie @ age 12,and I still say it today.Stuntwoman Susan Backlinie deserved an Oscar Nomination for this scene.
Making them human before a death scene is really important, I hadn't really thought of that before since I don't usually watch horror movies. Wow, that is really a good point and I'm glad this came across my recommendations
Thanks for watching
You missed a HUGE foreshadowing. As Chrissy runs along the fencing and the guy asks her where we going, right as she says "swimming", she passes the jagged mouth of the shark that was broken out of the top of the fence planks. Eerie!!
I looked & looked for this, but still don't see it.... can you give me the time? Or where in the shot it is: upper right, lower left, etc....
@@fordsgirl8096 Look at the top of the fence she's running past at 4:50. I would bet money that is the exact same bite radius of Bruce. And, I noticed something else, 3 seconds later, she is shown running past it again; the exact same 3 seconds are when she goes completely under the first time to when she surfaces screaming at the beginning of the attack. I have a feeling the entire attack on Chrissy is being played out, like a music scale, in the design of the fence.
Tony Commodore The fence at the point mentioned looks like a giant shark bite, and the fence runs up and down like a roller coaster chaotically, like the way she was being taken by the shark
@@frankdees507 Yeah, that's pretty much what I said.
@@tonycommodore8929 Man that’s deep. Passing bite in the fence first time representing the minute Bruce hits her, then 3 seconds later passing the bite in fence again representing the second hit by Bruce
If I'm in the bath and hear this theme, I jump right out.
haha
gonna need a bigger bath :D
that would explain the smell ;)
Absolutely
@Carol Mcloughlin, I know what you mean I was 7 when I saw Jaws and 10 when I saw Jaws 2, It was different in the 70's.
This scene still is nightmare fuel.
The combo of night, the action and the death help disorient someone in the very beiginning and you just go down the scared hill from there!!
I also have a few points to add. When Chrissy frist swims out and she’s stroking in the water she then goes under by putting her appendage up. From my perspective this shows two things. The first of which comes to mind is like Chrissy, the shark is in the water and usually when it appears it more often then not surfaces with its fin coming up out of the water whereas Chrissy’s appendage goes down. So you could say that Chrissy’s limb subconsciously both parallels and symbolizes the shark’s fin. Thus foreshadowing her impending death from a fearsome and deadly predator. The other subject that is worth mentioning is that unlike the drunk on the beach we as the audience are aware of Chrissy’s attack, but like that drunk we are unable to do anything about it. So in a way that drunk on the beach does to an extant, symbolize the audience.
Great analysis : going on with the sun set: its clouded over: again indicating that she has disappeared. ..well done
Thanks!
Absolutely brilliant movie even to this day. No matter how great cgi sharks look on screen nowadays there will never be a shark movie that will top this. Lots of rumors of remakes which I hope will never ever, at least in my lifetime, happen.
Chrissie didn't know I guess that Sharks are quite active at dawn and dusk
And it's not a safe time to swim out in the ocean.
hello
That and a combination of the dumb blonde stereotype along with the consummation of a lot of alcohol also contributes to what happens in this masterful scene, if a girl said swimming to me like that, I’d say he’ll no and drag her back to the party.
Only Ric Flair can swim with sharks wooooooooo! We have Shark Week,Sharks have Ric Flair Week!!!!! The Real World's Champion !👍💪😀🦈🦈🏊♂️🦈🦈wooooooooo! Stylin' and Profilin' !!!
I remember an interview with Peter Benchley sometime after the movie came out and he told of an encounter he had with this woman who told him that before all this came out, she used to enjoy taking dips at night in the ocean, but ever since the movie came out, she doesn’t do that anymore because his book, which brought the movie about, scared the daylights out of her.
@@bullwinklejmoos I’d say that’s a good thing she stopped
Psycho and Jaws are two of my favorite horror films
Psycho is one of my favorite movies too. Both of these films are great and are made by excellent filmmakers
Underrated masterclass 🎩
Seriously your analysis of this cult scene, the best opening scene ever imho, is amazing the best ever 🫡 jaw dropping I dare say
Jaws wouldn’t have been THE Jaws without Chrissie attack that’s one of the many pillar if not the main pillar of this legendary movie definitely made for the big screen not the 📺 ☝️
Most people whom I know DO consider Jaws a "horror" film.
Everyone considers jaws a horror film .....this guys an idiot
@@Salty-cracker68 Jaws is not a horror film. Even the Director said so. It is a man against nature adventure film.
It is not a horror film at all. Yea it contains gruesome scenes and some great jump scares, but It has more in common with monster flicks of yore only brought to modern standards in1975. It to me is still one of the greatest adventures ever filmed
@@doh4828 agreed. I've seen it 1000x
@@doh4828 Well, I certainly would not say it isn't one "at all".
Yes, Jaws is a horror film, or AT LEAST PARTLY one. I think it's pretty OBVIOUS. I mean the shark in it isn't a REALISTIC ORDINARY one, it's pretty much a MONSTER VERSION, what with its freakish size and its abnormal savagery. If it wasn't a horror film at all, if it were just a STRAIGHT DRAMA in other words, then it would've just been a normal sized and tamer shark I think.
You know, sometimes NUDITY in film is ASTHETIC, not "exploitative".
Nudity should not be seen as a vulnerability, but as empowerment.
@@Robert_Douglass eh I’m getting sick of hearing the word empowerment, how is that empowering?
@@ZaiDrizzleDrop it is when a woman is suddenly unafraid to go fully unclothed, her fear has gone from her because she realises she is strong.
@@Robert_Douglass how does realizing your strong have to do with being naked? If anything it just sounds weird. You can be strong and have clothes on. Lol you’d be arrested for doing that. That’s like saying, I’m unafraid to not wipe my ass, so I’ll go out in public with shit in my pants because I’m strong. It’s just weird
@@Robert_Douglass I’m not saying you should freak out if your naked or be afraid, but you should also realize social boundaries, and be prepared to stay away from you. Don’t expect people to respect that.
I saw Jaws at the cinema in 1978 aged 10 and this scene scared me in a way I had never known before or indeed have ever known since. I was literally hyperventilating and it took me well into the movie before I had calmed down.
This scene scared THE SHIT out of me as a kid.
Same here, I saw this when I was 8 yrs old.
Same here I was an 8 year old kid who was so terrified seeing this scene 😱
@@varunajith100 , Absolutely!
Yup..summer of '75...I was 8..scared the nuggets out me..not seeing the shark.
6:30 I always thought that Spielberg filmed the shot of Chrissy running to the water in silhouette because that would be how a shark would see the victim above them in the sea. It's another nod to the PoV shots that build the tension in the underwater opening scene.
Yes, original book cover
He had to re-edit the scene with a darker filter because the first pass had too much light and you could clearly see Chrissy's nude lady parts for a PG rating.
i am watching this in 2021 February 23rd and it still scares the hell out of me,,
Absolutely amazing analysis. Great understanding from a cinematic/ visual perspective. Spielberg is known for his subtle terror which is initially hidden then slowly brews to a creshendo. Camera work was nicely anayzed. Thank you. I enjoyed your analysis very much. Cannot wait to see your other takes, pun intended. : )
Reallly appreciate the support
WHAT does Chrissie say when shes holding onto the dingy
The Netflix subtitles say she’s saying “Oh god, oh god, oh god, oh god, I’m panicking”
This movie and especially this scene left me with a life long fear of swimming in the see. Even though I’m all grown up it still to this day makes me feel anxious going in to the Water.
Christy Watkins, when I first saw this movie, and this scene my first thought was , do sharks play with their food first before eating it?
LOL
Kind of. they often bit and let go. so the pray bleeds out.
@@pierreblomberg1 PREY.
Sharks usually have a bite first to taste, to test if it's eadable.
Watch Shark Week…… yes they do!
Always Felt Bad for Chrissie in this Scene Especially While The Bloke has Passed out on The Beach.
This movie Traumatized me as a youngster especially this scene. We had a backyard oval pool and at dusk I got the hell out of the water! Lol
LOL
This scene alone made me scared of getting in the water as a kid.
No matter how many times I've seen this(a lot) her screams, gasps for air and pleading for help always gets me. I'd like to see how that was film cause she genuinely seemed as if she was being attacked by something. I wonder if someone was underwater pulling on her legs without her knowing at times to get those reactions?
I never noticed that about the use of sunsets in Spielberg movies. It seems so obvious now .
True but story takes at night, opening to dawn.
The more I rewatch this scene, I notice something interesting. When it cuts to Chrissie in the water with the sunset in the distance, it looks like a symbol of peace and freedom. But if you really concentrate your mind on what is about to take place, this shot has a much darker meaning. The sunset no longer symbolizes peace, but instead serves as a deadly warning that blood is about to be shed, and death is inevitably near. But I don’t know though. This is just a theory I happened to come up with.
I think I’ve written posts and replies on RUclips about this movie before, about how interesting it would be to see how JAWS would have panned out if the mechanical ⚙️ shark 🦈 had worked and if Spielberg had been able to film all the scenes and shots with the beast that he had wanted to. How much less terrifying would it have been and how would it have fared at the box office. Where would it now sit in the history of the cinema.
I know that the Animatronic Shark is a machine
I like the choice of depicting Chrissie's death twice in this video, one with no dialogue from you and one with commentary. Allows the audience, whether they've seen this movie or not, to first have their own conclusions and reactions to such a hard-hitting scene of biting terror with no interruption and then listen to your analysis and form a new opinion on this scene from the two viewpoints. In short, admirable YT video making.
I literally just finished a 10 page paper analyzing the mise-en-scene for this movie and now I find this?! lmao great video!
Awesome, thanks for stopping by.
I couldn't be more impressed and satisfied. Thank-you, I love this!!
Thank you for stopping by!
@@cine-mechanic8589 One thing I would like to know is how, mechanically, Chrissie was being moved (pulled and pushed) during the shark attack. I'd have to think that the actress, Susan Backlinie, must've come close to choking. She did an amazing job depicting that uniquely terrifying experience.
@@mawsjumbler I believe they used an underwater rig to yank her back and forth. The choking sounds were done later in post production. Spielberg actually waterboarded the actress (with her consent of course) to get authentic choking/gurgling sounds.
AIREL IS THE BEST MERMAID GIRL THEN SWEET SWIMMER THEN CHRISSIE WATKINS SHE WAS NIGHT SWIM IN THE BEACH
@@marydpatry1523 What??
I haven't finished the video yet, but I wonder if in the scene of Chrissy and the kid running, the skyline mirrors a white shark's camouflage; grey like the sea from above, and white like the sky from below.
I was looking for something red in the scene which seems to foreshadow all the other deaths and I couldn't find it. Then I realised it's the buoy.
The film is terrific. I've watched it multiple times. I like Roy Scheider, and the rest of the cast. At times, the shark looked fake, but I forgive them.
I was hoping for some animation showing us what the attack looked like underneath the water.
The greatest film in the history of cinema ..followed by The Warriors 🙂 and The Last Of The Mohicans..this is the best analysis of the open ing ive ever seen!!
The picket fence in the sand dunes leading to horror is ripped straight out of “ Invaders from Mars”
What I could never quite grasp in this scene is everybody is wearing coats / jackets so WHY would someone go swimming...in the ocean no less where it is cold even in August?
The book described the attack
I have never looked at that scene like that.... great work.
I've watch this movie a multitude of times, since its original showing till now, and out of all the deaths, this one i always skip over, when she's first pulled under to then resurface with panting like breaths, I feel her terror, I just can't do it.
This scene happened a lot faster in the movie than the book. After the first attach she reached down and discovered her leg was missing, then the shark hit her again.
I've met Susan (Chrissie), she used to be a mermaid at Weeki Wachee Springs in Florida. That's why she was chosen for this scene.
6:02 I still think if she'd not had been attacked she'd have to find her clothes and shoes she threw anywhere
It wasn't sunset it was dawn.
True. That is the East Coast and the sun is near the waterline.
It's sunset. She swims in south beach, marthas vineyard aka amity island, sun setting to the west
did anyone see the bite mark on the fence??
Yes indeed!
Yes, and Christie runs through it and Cassidy falls under it foreshadowing who lives and dies, brilliant.
I've been watching this movie since 1975 and never noticed that until now.
Yes. I was reading through a comment section and someone pointed it out. Excellent choice of detail by Spielberg
I remember when I went swimming in the ocean at night as a kid. Nobody thought we might get our legs eaten off. I guess if we did, it just would have been life. 1980's and 90's for you.
lol
I don't go out and never alone in water anymore. I grew up in Sweden, with no threatening sharks around. However, now when I live in the UK, there are some bigger sharks around-so they say anywyay
Did you die?
@@JETS5 Didn't even lost a toe.
@Polarcupcheck So you lost all your body parts except toe?
Interesting analysis of this great film!Your voice over narration is very dramatic and makes this scene be more drawn in to watch! Blessings in Christ’s Peace!🕊😇
lol the smoke at 4:40 is almost the shape of jaws in the cover swimming up to her - had some drinks !
My favorite movie of all time, only behind jurassic park. Barely. This scene is brilliant. God can't save you chrissy. Wish we could have seen the head/Sternum/ arm dead body as I've seen someone show what it would have looked like. But not seeing is prob better.
This is amazing
Thanks!
Excellent narrative! You've got the voice for it.
Thanks so much.
How did she swim to the buoy so quickly after being attacked the first time? Was she dragged?
Chrissie was dragged towards the bouy then she clinged onto it, before being dragged away from it.
I think I read somewhere that the Chrissie character was a competitive swimmer.
Jaws IS a horror movie. I don't know why anybody would say it isn't.
I want too know how she expected to find her clothes if she hadn't had died.But if I'm correct this was filmed off Cape cod where there are actually real great White's.
09:46 amazing "chord of dread" by John Williams here.
the one thing i love about steven spielberg's movies is they all seem like real life situations. i mean, jaws, jurassic park, as well as war of the worlds, ALL seem as if any of it were to actually happen, the way the movies go down, is how it really would go down. i know jaws does happen in real life but its not as intense as the movies are
Brilliant analysis. Very well done.
Thank you.
Nicely done.
Thanks
Carl Gottlieb costarred in M*A*S*H (1970)
Film Editor Verna Fields won the Oscar for Best Film Editing
This is my favourite movie of all time.
Awesome analysis! Thank you👍
Thanx for posting!!👍🏾
Thanks for stopping by.
In the documentary of the making of Jaws they mention that the scene with Chrissie was achieved with some sort of rope/harness pulley system that two men on the beach pulled Chrissie. During the scene there was a miscommunication and the men went in opposite directions breaking Chrissie's ribs. The scene where she is screaming it hurts and the pain she is in was real but Spielberg told the crew to keep filming.
How much of that is true, I do not know but when you look at the scene is does seem true.
Not true. Susan Backlinie has confirmed she was not injured, and she had to flail her arms to make the scene look more violent than it was. Also, the screams were added months later in post production...
The actress was never injured during the filming of this scene. And most of her screams were added post-production.
What is the shark doing to her? Other than biting her with his teeth . . . is she being dragged by the shark? If yes, but how?
Yes she's being dragged. Sharks are very powerful.
Yep, it’s dragging her under. Likely has her by the legs. In the book, the shark comes up from under and basically knocks her out the water and catches, crushes, and dismembers her. They could not keep the shark hidden and film it like the book. Good compromise I thought.
He bites a leg off.
@@andreatibbatts2815 that’s right😀! That is even consistent with the book. I read it the other day for the first time in a while. The shark bites her leg off. In the movie it just drags her under after that, while in the book, it comes up under and grabs her in its mouth, and tears he’d apart , but this is after it bites her leg off.
@Ger O'Brien That’s a good thought too. It’s really hard to know. The movie is unclear. The book is very graphic with what the shark does. At one point she thinks she snagged her leg on a piece of driftwood and when she goes to feel it, its not there anymore, Then she freaks out and the shark grabs her in its mouth in tears her apart.
And Chrissie Watkins is gone...
Spielberg did not show the Shark at the beginning of the first attack because the shark didn't work. According to Zanuck, Spielberg was going to show some of the Shark in the beginning, but the mechanical shark kept malfunctioning.
The scene still works, though. The imagination runs wild wondering what's going on.
Yeap, the shark didn't work most of the time.
I had the book and found it was quite intense how the shark attacked the woman swimming alone on the sea
I read the book. The shark first took her leg off at the knee. Chrissie had felt something and reached down to her leg to find it was gone. The shark actually leaps up out of the water with Chrissie in it's Jaws. But the movie version is terrifying, not seeing it. The hidden terror.
Great analysis! Do you teach film at a school? Your voice is superb for narration.
Dont teach but thanks for the compliment!
At the beginning when u see Chrissie plunging downward, thats actually Steven Spielberg pushing her down and then there were 2 ropes pulling her back and forth like a tug of war until she plunged right down at the end
Compared to the size of the shark when we see it and try to compare it to this! How far under the water was it? Without seeing none, not even a fin? I know the shark was doing the dolphin thing.
impressive commentary well done
Thank you.
I can clearly see that Speilberg emulated Alfred Hitchcock. He pulls the viewer into the story.
Yes, as well as the camera scenes when the boy gets killed and the camera goes from Broody and what he sees. My son's film tutor brought that scene up, as being from Alfred Hitchcock
Fantastic analysis!