Horror or Not? #3 - Jaws

[spawningblue]

Another film that has had lots of controversy.

[betterdan]

It's action horror.

[Erick H.]

I think it qualifies as a variation of a "monster movie".It has a murderous creature and it works off of the fear of the unknown (and often unseen).You fear what is below the surface in much the same way as what is hidden in the dark.Also ,the film is punctuated by shock sequences and the spectacle of violent death.It intends to scare you,it does.I'd say that makes it horror.Others are free to disagree.

[life_o_petey]

i had no idea this was even debatable.

[dwatts]

No - not a horror. An action/thriller.

[Workshed]

If fucking April Fool's Day is Horror, then Jaws is Horror.

[Ash28M]

The first half there are some horrific mysterious deaths by an unseen killer. The second half is an adventure monster movie.

Therefore It's a Horror/Adventure/Giallo:)

[maybrick]

If fucking April Fool's Day is Horror, then Jaws is Horror.

Your logic is infallible. :)

[speanroc]

weeeeeeeelllllllllllllll, think of this ...if u were being persued by a 25 foot great white shark thats has been eating the locals would that be HORROR , i think so....

[baggio]

i had no idea this was even debatable.

Exactly, Its 100% a horror movie.



P.S.- Where were all you guys that voted Jaws a "horror movie" during the "the perfect horror film" thread? Which by the way was being shot down as a candidate by a couple of people.:)

http://www.horrordvds.com/vb3forum/showthread.php?t=30742&highlight=perfect

[Matt89]

There is no debate. Jaws is, was and always shall be a horror film. Maybe it's not as scary now as it was back in 1975, but it is still a horror movie. Take a look at the theatrical trailer and original advertising materials...the film was advertised as a horror film. The poster, with the girl swimming and the shark with the jagged sharp teeth swimming beneath her...straight out of a horror movie. The theatrical trailer with the narrator, "There is a creature alive today...it will attack and devour, ANYTHING...it is as if God, created the devil, and gave him JAWS." That's horror movie advertising. Watch the opening scene. There's this ominous lurking presence that we do not see, and only get their point of view. A girl is attacked, screaming...this is all horror movie material. And the number one thing, the fucking musical score! The score to Jaws is horror movie music. Let's see you put that kindof music into an action/adventure movie. The theme to Jaws is looked at as one of the all-time creepiest scores to a film. And one of the most famous scores as well...bottom line, JAWS IS A HORROR FILM.

Not only that, Jaws is almost always in the horror section of video stores anyways. Why? Because it's a horror film.

Another popular debate is that Alien is not a horror and is merely a sci-fi movie...I don't believe that to be the case either, as the original tagline to Alien was "In space, no one can hear you scream." That's a tagline to a horror film. ALIENS is a sci-fi...ALIEN is a horror.

Well anyway, I'm done my rant. Just wanted to add my two cents there.

~Matt

[Matt89]

Oh and another thing...the Jaws DVD is reviewed on this site. What's the site called? HORRORdvds.com...why would they choose to review a movie like Jaws on here? Because it's horror. :)

[baggio]

There is no debate. Jaws is, was and always shall be a horror film. Maybe it's not as scary now as it was back in 1975, but it is still a horror movie. Take a look at the theatrical trailer and original advertising materials...the film was advertised as a horror film. The poster, with the girl swimming and the shark with the jagged sharp teeth swimming beneath her...straight out of a horror movie. The theatrical trailer with the narrator, "There is a creature alive today...it will attack and devour, ANYTHING...it is as if God, created the devil, and gave him JAWS." That's horror movie advertising. Watch the opening scene. There's this ominous lurking presence that we do not see, and only get their point of view. A girl is attacked, screaming...this is all horror movie material. And the number one thing, the fucking musical score! The score to Jaws is horror movie music. Let's see you put that kindof music into an action/adventure movie. The theme to Jaws is looked at as one of the all-time creepiest scores to a film. And one of the most famous scores as well...bottom line, JAWS IS A HORROR FILM.

Not only that, Jaws is almost always in the horror section of video stores anyways. Why? Because it's a horror film.

~Matt

Oh and another thing...the Jaws DVD is reviewed on this site. What's the site called? HORRORdvds.com...why would they choose to review a movie like Jaws on here? Because it's horror. :)


Couldn't have said it better myself. Great post.

[satans-sadists]

True horror and one of the all-time classics! Enough said.

[Peter Vincent]

For the longest, I never thought as Jaws as a horror movie...its just so...Spielburgian/Universal! Can Jurassic Park be considered a horror movie? I mean, in JP man-made Dinos come to life and start EATING the guests on a very dark wet night! I don't consider it horror!

But if by definition of horror, there's a bit of gore and scares..then yes.

[Bobbywoodhogan]

Jaws is one of my favourite films. It has horror elements therefore it comes under the horror umberella.

[baggio]

For the longest, I never thought as Jaws as a horror movie...its just so...Spielburgian/Universal!


It is? I would figure that came down the road with his other films.

[dwatts]

Perhaps a more useful thread would have been "What is the definition of Horror"? If any film that has a horrific scene is a horror film, then I think it's too broad a brush. Same with jump scares.

I just don't think Spielberg set out to make a horror film with this one. It was a action/thriller that was originally marketed as such (yes, sadly I did see this on its original theatrical release... sadly because of hiow long ago it was...) It provided some scares, some thrills. As I recall, even in those days when certification was harsher, it got a 15 in the UK.

Still, I realize I'm one of the few. If this is a hroror film then most thrillers are, imo. I have no issue with that if that's the broad definition we're going with. Jaws is a good fun film.

[Workshed]

Perhaps a more useful thread would have been "What is the definition of Horror"? If any film that has a horrific scene is a horror film, then I think it's too broad a brush. Same with jump scares.

I just don't think Spielberg set out to make a horror film with this one. It was a action/thriller that was originally marketed as such (yes, sadly I did see this on its original theatrical release... sadly because of hiow long ago it was...) It provided some scares, some thrills. As I recall, even in those days when certification was harsher, it got a 15 in the UK.

Still, I realize I'm one of the few. If this is a hroror film then most thrillers are, imo. I have no issue with that if that's the broad definition we're going with. Jaws is a good fun film.

But don't you think this one differs from most thrillers in that it has an actual creature as its villain?

Can you give an example of a thriller that you think constitutes a Horror film if Jaws is one?

[spawningblue]

Exactly, Its 100% a horror movie.



P.S.- Where were all you guys that voted Jaws a "horror movie" during the "the perfect horror film" thread? Which by the way was being shot down as a candidate by a couple of people.:)

http://www.horrordvds.com/vb3forum/showthread.php?t=30742&highlight=perfect

haha that is one of the reasons I thought these polls could be useful. Next time someones choice is plowed down in a thread, we could always call up these and see that mose people on this thread believe it is a horror film, and should thus be counted. I know that this poll isn't proof of anything, but still! :p

And as for Jaws, I always thought Speilberg set out to make a high class horror film, something that would scare people of the water, like Psycho scared people of getting in the shower.

[dwatts]

--But don't you think this one differs from most thrillers in that it has an actual creature as its villain?--

Well, sure. Not all thrillers have sharks in them, for sure. For me though, the presence of a shark doesn't make it horror. There are horrific elements to the film, and S[peilberg uses some horror techniques in some scenes, for sure. I just don't feel he set out to make a horror film, or that he made one. I think, essentially, this was a action/thriller with some horror elements.

--Can you give an example of a thriller that you think constitutes a Horror film if Jaws is one?--

This is part of the problem. We don't have a definition of "horror" to work from - so we're looking at cross-overs and, in my never to be humble view, blurring the lines so much that most thrillers probably would be called horror films. I mean, they have horror elements. But does that mean they deserve the label of "horror film"? Not for me. I think as soon as someone says "it's a action/horror" then it's sufficiently diluted to remain "action horror" rather than deserving of being a simply "Horror" - which is the title of these polls.

Take "When the Wind Blows". A brilliant, and truly horrific little film. But to me, it's not a horror film, it's a powerful drama (slowly dying after a nuclear attack is pretty horrific if you ask me).

I don't know, I'm an old git. Without definitions to work from it's simply a debate that can have no conclusion. Like the Hall of Fame thing - utterly pointless, just a list of films people like. No rules, no guidelines, no boundaries. List it, it's in. While that might be fun to do, it certainly carries
no weight or relevance other than a pastime. Same here.

The trouble is, if I had to write a definition of horror I'd struggle. I think Mutleyhyde has a thread called "What is a classic" or some such thing in the classics forum. I don't think that ever concluded either. It's not easy to do!

[maskull]

Why don't we just call up Spielberg and ask him what his intentions were when he made this film?

Jaws is horror. At least to me it is. It still scares the bejeezus outta me everytime I watch it. There's never been a scarier movie monster.

[KR~!]

Not to mention it is always brought up in best Horror movies ever list on TV and Magazines. Most people think of it as a horror film.

Everything about it was design to scare the crap out of you.

[Criswell]

Gee. Tough one.

No

It does have the slasher structure, but its still not.

[Matt89]

Gee. Tough one.

No

It does have the slasher structure, but its still not.

Then wouldn't that make it horror? Jaws is a horror film, plain and simple.

There is no opinion here, or "well I think..." No. JAWS is a horror movie. It was advertised as one, and still is. Are we gonna say now that Halloween is no longer a horror film because it's not that scary anymore? No. If it was ONCE meant to be a horror film, it will always remain that way, no matter how scary it is 30 years down the road.

http://imdb.com/title/tt0073195/

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/jaws/

http://www.terrortrap.com/creaturefeatures/jaws/index.shtml

People should take a look at those sites...Jaws is under which category?

~Matt

[Fumi]

Yes. It might be action/horror/drama or horror/action/drama or drama/action/horror, but it's still horror. That's the appeal of films like that, different people like different things, and a lot of people can find something to like in that movie. Your typical guy might like the action, his wife might like the drama, and the kids will find it really scary.

[Matt89]

Yes. It might be action/horror/drama or horror/action/drama or drama/action/horror, but it's still horror. That's the appeal of films like that, different people like different things, and a lot of people can find something to like in that movie. Your typical guy might like the action, his wife might like the drama, and the kids will find it really scary.

Exactly.

~Matt

[betterdan]

Oh and another thing...the Jaws DVD is reviewed on this site. What's the site called? HORRORdvds.com...why would they choose to review a movie like Jaws on here? Because it's horror. :)

Hmm so I guess The Losers (a motorcycle action flick) is now considered horror by your logic since it was reviewed on this very site? http://www.horrordvds.com/modules.php?name=Reviews&file=viewarticle&id=363

[Matt89]

No, because I wasn't talking about The Losers, I was talking about Jaws. I was making a point.

~Matt

[maybrick]

No, because I wasn't talking about The Losers, I was talking about Jaws. I was making a point.

~Matt

If you were making a point, then betterdan destroyed it.

[Matt89]

No, because I have other points in my other post to back up my opinion.

~Matt

[betterdan]

So what you are saying is that since you made other points in other posts then that renders the post where you made a wrong and invalid point actually valid?
:hum: Mmmkay
Anyone got an aspirin?

[spawningblue]

Yes. It might be action/horror/drama or horror/action/drama or drama/action/horror, but it's still horror. That's the appeal of films like that, different people like different things, and a lot of people can find something to like in that movie. Your typical guy might like the action, his wife might like the drama, and the kids will find it really scary.

Sums up my opinions exactly! I think people think that if a horror movie has comedy elements, or suspense elements, ect. than it is no longer considered horror. That's basically saying horror movies can't be smart and have other elements to them. It's a monster movie that happens to take place on the sea!

[thrashard76]

Yes

[Shokk]

One of the true Horror genre greats!