He’s not the only one who helped create the classic though.
Just as important, however, is a name you might not know.
Jawswas co-written by Carl Gottlieb.
Image by Nimesh Niyomal
In a movie, this would have been too much.
Not only is there a killer great white shark, but the mafia is here too?!
The shark should be the only thing we fear.
Image via Universal Pictures
Even bigger was Gottlieb’s choice to make our lead characters more likable.
Chief Martin Brody (Scheider) is a by-the-book cop who loves his family but fears the water.
Hooper (Dreyfuss) is the outsider who is smarter than everyone else but tries to fit in.
Image via Universal Pictures
That’s all you need.
But the novel actually has Hooper and Ellen Brody (Lorraine Gray) having an affair!
The shark could now kill him for all we care, so goodbye tension.
Indianapolis speech among them.
He doesn’t fight back, he doesn’t argue, but simply takes it.
Working together was part of what made the first film work.
How well do you remember this detail from Steven Spielberg’s masterpiece?
That same strategy couldn’t work forJaws 2.
This time he is all alone when he goes out into the water to save the day.
He doesn’t have someone smarter or braver to help him, whichstacks the odds against our hero.
On top of that, he has been fired for warning everyone about another killer shark.
Everything feels fresh, with Mike saving the day just like the father he learned from.
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