Der weiße Hai: Die Geschichte hinter dem Blockbuster

I saw the recent documentary on Jaws, which was good and fairly informative, then watched the movie, probably the second or third time in my life. It was fun to see the documentary and know a little bit about the movie, then see the film.

The Definitive Inside Story gives great detail on the behind the scenes events. I grew up in Florida and was a surfer at the time Jaws came out. Up to that point when we were out surfing sharks never really came to mind but after Jaws they certainly did. One day while out surfing, 3 or 4 sharks were spotted between us and the beach, they were about 80-100 feet away and just kept on swimming.

Anyway, I digress. See this doc for a lot of good info on the film.

Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story is an engrossing documentary about one of the best films ever made. It doesn't offer anything revelatory but it's always great to see some of the greatest filmmakers to ever do it talk about a game changer with genuine passion and love. It's a fantastic collection of filmmaking talent and people more directly linked to the original film, including Steven Spielberg himself opening up about the highs and lows of making Jaws.

Over the course of its very efficient 88 minute run time, it paints a full picture from the inception of the source material to the problem filled production of the film itself before culminating with the record breaking reception and long lasting appeal that perseveres to this day. Laurent Bouzereau's direction and the editing by Jason Summers make it all feel seamless. The archive footage is wonderful, especially seeing Robert Shaw using his real accent whilst in full costume.

Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story has a title that's half-right. It was released to celebrate 50 years of Jaws, but I wouldn't call this much of a definitive/inside story. There aren't too many bits of info shared here that haven't already been repeated time and again, even if you've not sought out hours of Jaws documentaries. I've read and watched a few things, not exhaustively, and this still gave me a bit of deja vu throughout.

I also appreciate that Emily Blunt likes Jaws, but I have no idea why she was such a prominent interviewee here. Everyone else is someone who was involved with the movie, related to someone (usually deceased) who was involved with the movie, some kind of shark expert, or a filmmaker who (usually) talks about being inspired by Jaws directly. And they're generally genre filmmakers, even if including them feels like a bit of a stretch. But what Emily Blunt can bring to this, not even serving as someone who can remember the film coming out, since she was born eight years after 1975... I don't know. Insane.

That's the thing most worth harping on about. Everything else here is serviceable. It packages behind-the-scenes info (a lot of it well-known) into an easy-to-watch documentary. They could've spent a bit more time on the film's second half, though. And maybe a lot less time with EMILY BLUNT WHY ARE YOU HERE EMILY AAAAGGGHHHHH.

This documentary was incredibly interesting and informative. It was a pleasure learning more about this amazing film, its cast and crew, and everything that happened behind the scenes.

I had no idea about the extent of the trauma Steven Spielberg experienced after the film's release, but understanding the challenges he faced while filming on the water, I can see why.

It was so great learning about all the different aspects of this film in detail and how they all came together to make a perfect masterpiece.

Overall, this was an amazing documentary and a massively enjoyable watch.

Happy 50th Jaws.

"The film that I thought would end my career, is the film that began it."

• Steven Spielberg.

Saw Jaws when I was very young, and it scared the crap out of me and everyone else in the theatre. For people who know the port hole scene, this made everyone jump in the theatre. The summer of '75 was the Summer of the Shark. This was a great doc with interviews of Spielberg and a lot of cast and crew (archival footage for those who have passed). It was an epically long and tough shoot for the cast and crew. It was also interesting to see the effect on the town of Martha's Vineyard, where Jaws is still celebrated today. At the end of August 2025, they are re-releasing Jaws at IMAX, and I will be there.