Chief Brody: Love to prove yourself, wouldn't ya?
The success and impact of JAWS lies within the many ingredients, all working together to make the perfect stew of cinematic legend. From Peter Benchley’s novel to Steven Spielberg’s imaginative direction, all the way to a group of performances, all destined to help make a truly perfect film, it’s hard to pinpoint what made the film such a milestone in filmmaking and storytelling,…because there isn’t one thing.
Every single aspect of the film worked together to provide viewers with one of the most exhilarating experiences around, a perfect storm of storytelling that grabs its viewer by the collar and refuses to let up. When talking about JAWS and its recipe for success, one aspect of the film has always stood out to this writer: how it is, essentially, a story of a man trying so desperately to prove himself.
The character of Martin Brody knows he’s a fish out of water of sorts, being fairly new to Amity Island and having being reminded that he’s not a local quite a few times. The citizens of the island rely on Brody to not only rise to the occasion, but show that while he wasn’t born there, the island and the safety of its people, are his biggest concern. It’s not that Brody just wants to find and confront the shark to save his career and the people of Amity Island, but also the fact that he so desperately needs to prove to himself, that he can and will be able to deal with the danger the island resident are faced with.
Having to not only find the resolve to stand up to Mayor Vaughan, but also to confront his fear of the water, Brody is a man with an infinite amount of self doubt and it’s only when he, along with Quint and Hooper, is confronted in a literal face to face feud with the film’s antagonist shark, that Brody can and does begin to put faith and determination into defeating the shark, but also defeating the self doubt and self esteem issues that he displays throughout the film’s first half.
The Brody at the beginning of JAWS is a very different one than the man we’re seen paddling back to the shore, following the quite literal explosive finale. Having confronted his demons, his fears, the doubts and naysayers, Brody’s ability to finally rise up and take care of business assures that for the truly first time in his career on Amity, he is the Sheriff that the residents of Amity depends on him to be, a great example of a character arc that makes JAWS so wonderful.
A film about many things, all working together to give its audience a life changing experience, JAWS shows that sometimes in the darkest of situations and when all hope is lost, we’re able to find our own courage to stand up and defeat the fear and doubt within us. God, I love movies.
Words by Jerry Smith
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