Jaws is a 1975 American horror movie directed by Steven Spielberg and based on Peter Benchley’s novel. Set in the seaside resort town of Amity Island, the film follows police chief Martin Brody, marine biologist Matt Hooper and shark hunter Quint as they try to stop a great white shark that has begun attacking swimmers. More than just a monster film, Jaws became a landmark in modern cinema because of its relentless suspense, unforgettable John Williams score and the way Spielberg turned technical production problems into an advantage by showing the shark sparingly. It went on to become one of the most influential films of the 1970s and is often credited with helping define the modern summer blockbuster.
The film was shot mainly on Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts, and the island is absolutely central to its identity. Edgartown became the heart of fictional Amity, with its harbour, town streets and ferry area used repeatedly, while Joseph A. Sylvia State Beach provided the setting for the beach attack on the Kintner boy and the nearby American Legion Memorial Bridge became the famous “Jaws Bridge” sequence. Menemsha, on the western side of the island, was used for Quint’s workshop and harbour scenes with the Orca, giving the film a rougher fishing-village atmosphere than the more polished parts of Edgartown. The production chose Martha’s Vineyard partly because the surrounding waters stayed shallow far from shore, which made it possible to film at sea while still keeping the mechanical shark workable and land out of frame. As a result, Jaws does not just use the island as a backdrop, but turns its beaches, harbour fronts and coastal waters into the very foundation of Amity’s believable summer-resort world.
Jaws Bridge
Jaws Bridge appears in Jaws (1975), and is closely associated with the bridge, to the point that it is now better known by Jaws Bridge than by its formal one.
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