Jaws Blu-ray SteelBook (Blu-ray + Digital Copy) (1975)

Well, I bought the DVD dts and I think you'll like the extras such as the outtakes, deleted scenes, and especially an excellent documentary. You'll get the behind the scenes from Spielberg, the actors, photographers, and the producers. In today's film world this movie could be made rather easily, but back then you'll see the tremendous undertaking that went into this production. The movie itself, of course, is just amazing. At one point Spielberg says that the shark is the star, but the scenes on the boat will show you 3 stars at the top of their game. The sound quality is outstanding and exact, but I do have one complaint.... on the 5.1 DTS their isn't much activity from the back 2 speakers. The sound coming from the front 3 is great, but they could have done more. This movie is just as suspenseful as when I saw it in the mid-seventies. I hadn't really watched it in awhile and I had forgotten the outstanding acting performances by Scheider, Dreyfuss, and Shaw. Shaw's USS Indianapolis speech is about as good as it gets, while Scheider's everyman performance really rings true. You'll enjoy this DVD and it's at a good price. A good bargain. Buy it!

Jaws was Stephen Spielberg's first hit and after his initial reluctance to release his movies on DVD, it finally makes its DVD debut. We all know the story, a great white shark terrorizes the waters off of Amity Island. The movie is based on Peter Benchey's best-selling novel. This is one of the rare instances where a movie is actually better than the book it was based on. In Mr. Benchey's novel, there is are some extraneous sections such as an affair between Ellen Brody and Hooper that really don't add to the story. The movie streamlines the book and the changes made bringing it to the screen actually improve on the book. The performances of three stars are superb. Roy Scheider plays Chief Brody as an everyman. We can all relate with him as he is just trying do his job and the right thing but is caught in the middle. He wants to close the beaches to catch the shark, but the people he is protecting want them opened as the water is the source of their livelihoods. Richard Dreyfus adds some comic relief to the film as the wise-cracking oceanographer, Matt Hooper. The late Robert Shaw takes what could have been a cartoonish role of the shark boat captain Quint and turns him into an obessive, vengeful man in the mold of Captain Ahab. The real star of the film could be its score by John Williams. The music adds tension and fear to the suspense much like the music from Psycho. The DVD contains some extra material including deleted scences, trailers and best of all a documentary on the making of the movie. This is a must see for all fans of the film. We learn of all the problems the crew experienced while filming on Martha's Vineyard, some original casting choices and other behind-the-scences tidbits. These are nice bonuses, but the movie's first appearance on the DVD format is reason enough to buy it. After 25 years, this movie remains a classic.

Buy Jaws Blu-ray SteelBook (Blu-ray + Digital Copy) (1975) Now

This movie is a credit to everyone associated with it, from the stellar cast of actors and actresses to the direction by Steven Speilberg to the original story (a novel) and screenwriting by Peter Benchley. This is a riviting tale superbly told, with excellent cinematography and special effects, and a scary soundtrack that builds the edge of mystery to a crescendo each time it musically announces the shark's appearence.

The idea for the movie is deceptively simple; a great white shark with a fond taste for the sweet taste of human flesh is patrolling the water off Amity Island (read Nantucket or Martha's Vineyard)and terrorizing the summer tourist population. Inject into this some interesting and novel subplots regarding a burned-out city cop and unlikely undersung hero, a brainy, affable but basically misunderstood young marine biologist, and a wonderfully crusty old mariner turned professional shark fisherman and you have the recipe for an entertaining rollercoaster ride.

This movie is a modern classic, one with a young Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss, and the late Robert Shaw. Watching their characters interact is an afternoon's entertainment well deserved, one that is durable and repeatable. It also is one that translates very well into the DVD mode. One caution; don't view it anytime before going for your summer vacation. You may really be afraid to go back into the water!

Read Best Reviews of Jaws Blu-ray SteelBook (Blu-ray + Digital Copy) (1975) Here

The original summer blockbuster, Steven Spielberg's JAWS quickly became my favorite film growing up, having devoured it on VHS and on ABC's Sunday Night Movie presentation (the one with the added footage) so many times I could recite dialogue before I was out of grade school. Over the years I've been able to see it on the big screen (thanks to a visit with Lukas on Martha's Vineyard back in `96 or so), but despite that and having reviewed numerous laserdisc and DVD releases over the years only now with Universal's Blu-Ray edition do I feel like I've really, completely seen "Jaws." This is a spectacular HD presentation on every level and is sure to thrill fans of this classic 1975 screen adaptation of Peter Benchley's bestseller.

There's not much I can say about the movie that hasn't been written or documented from behind-the-scenes books to countless documentaries since the film's 1975 release date. Spielberg's miraculous direction took advantage of every difficult production situation to create an all-time film masterwork that's always been as satisfying for its unforgettable characterizations, surprising humor and memorable atmosphere as it is a white-knuckle thriller about a great white marauding swimmers off the shores of Amity Island. As I write in my review of the terrific "Jaws: Memories From Martha's Vineyard" book a year ago, "Jaws" itself was a collaborative success, one that saw actors from Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss and Robert Shaw down to extras improvising their lines, giving the film a real, human center that we seldom see in modern filmmaking. The daily shooting schedule couldn't be mapped out all that far in advance since screenwriter Carl Gottlieb spent most nights working on the script with Spielberg combined with our unpredictable and ever-changing weather here in southern New England, "Jaws" relied on the people making it so much that it's because of their efforts as well as Spielberg who marshaled them all together that the movie overcame its physical production struggles. In fact, had the movie not endured such a tumultous shoot, it's likely that "Jaws" never would've become the classic it did.

Universal has produced a number of "100th Anniversary" Blu-Rays this year with remastered transfers the results have ranged from superb to mediocre, but none have looked as brilliantly detailed as "Jaws." Restored from high-res 35mm original film elements, this is one of the most satisfying catalog releases the studio has produced on Blu-Ray to date: Bill Butler's cinematography is richly textured down to the finest detail, with warm colors and just a dazzling appearance that, even though I've watched the movie dozens of times, brings new background details to light with a clarity that I've never seen before in any format (there's also, thankfully, been no attempt here at "tweaking" the movie's color scheme like we've seen on too many BD releases over the years). The water has more depth, the Martha's Vineyard locations come into sharper focus, and just the faintest hint of some filtering is apparent on a transfer that is content to let the movie's natural cinematography speak for itself. It just looks phenomenal. On the audio side, viewers can select from the movie's original mono soundtrack as well as another, "rethought" 7.1 DTS MA stereo remix, both of which are more full-bodied than their DVD counterparts, though purists may still object to some of the alterations in the latter (i.e. the "new" gunshots at the end still sound closer to the controversial 5.1 DVD remix from a decade ago than they do the original mono recording; in other instances, though, the newer effects are much closer to the mono mix than the 2001 version. It's at least a noticeable improvement in that regard).

Extra features are something of a letdown, mainly because they're almost all in non-anamorphic, 4:3 standard-definition and suffer from low bit-rates. The "Jaws Archives," for example, is comprised of direct screen captures from the laserdisc, many of which look blurry and should've been cleaned up for high-def. Ditto for the deleted scenes, which appear to be filtered and ported straight off the LD (and the DVD). The eight-minute "From The Set" segment includes candid footage of the production's first few days on-location in Martha's Vineyard. Included here is priceless footage of Carl Gottlieb falling overboard and into the icy, early May waters of the Atlantic -all for the abandoned first attempt Spielberg made at showing the discovery of Ben Gardner's boat. It's a wonderful segment and it's a shame it doesn't go on longer than it does.

Laurent Bouzereau's dry but essential two-hour documentary from the `90s Signature Collection laserdisc is back, and it's been complemented by "The Shark is Still Working," a 2007 labor of love doc from James Gelet, Jake Gove, Erik Hollander, and James-Michael Roddy that treads over ground previously traveled by numerous other behind-the-scenes docs, as well as profiles other aspects glossed over by them (such as an interview with Percy Rodriguez, who performed the voice over for the film's classic theatrical trailer). Unfortunately, the inferior visual presentation does no favors to the program, with heavy compression and "jaggies" present throughout its 103 minutes. Finally, the movie's original, primary theatrical trailer is also on-hand here, in a likewise poor, non-anamorphic standard-def presentation that's worse than its laserdisc appearance from years ago. Of course, given that the prior DVD didn't have trailers of any kind, it's at least an improvement in that regard (the movie's original teaser is a regrettable omission yet again).

The sole new addition is an eight-minute look at Universal's restoration efforts on the picture, presented in HD, plus a digital copy and Ultraviolet copy. The disc is housed in a standard two-disc Elite case with one of Universal's nice 100 Years slipcovers; fans looking for more deluxe packaging ought to check out Best Buy's exclusive (though pricier) Digibook release, or the UK's Steelbook edition, which arrives in early September.

Ultimately, Universal has done one of their crown jewels proud with a Blu-Ray that boasts one of the format's finest catalog transfers not just from Universal, but any label. Spectacular! (

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WOW! That's all I can say. The picture and sound are 100 times better than any previous versions (and I've bought them all). There are literally hundreds of fascinating details in the blu-ray that I've never seen before. The sound is unbelievable and the rear channels get a huge workout. Williams score never sounded this ominous. I guess someday there will be an 8K resolution that will blow away this version, but for now, this is as close to perfection as anything I've seen from the 70's. I watch it on a 58 inch Samsung plasma and it's truly a beautiful thing. The new documentary "The Shark Is Still Working" is fantastic as well.

Tired of typing just buy it and enjoy your life.