Jaws Essay - Film language for Effect in Opening Sequence'

Explore the use of film language for effect in an opening sequence to a thriller. How does the director engage the audience? – Jaws

The scene starts with a wide shot of teenagers huddled around a campfire; they’re smoking and drinking which shows their recklessness and carefree nature. The camera then tracks two people running away, Chrissy and Cassidy, as they are running away from the safety of the group and the fire, the audience assumes that they will be the first victims this is because a common theme of thriller/horror films is teenage murder.

Spielberg uses a wide shot as he is tracking them running towards the water, to create a sense of isolation, as they are the only people in shot. Spielberg also uses a lot of back lighting and chiaroscuro, which means Chrissy and Cassidy are just silhouettes, which increases the tension in the scene as the audience can’t see any features of either character. The only sound during this section of the scene is diegetic, from them talking and the atmospheric sound from the sea. This creates a feeling of fear, as all seems calm and peaceful but the audience knows that something is going to happen.

As Chrissy swims out to sea, Spielberg uses an extreme-long shot to show the vast expanse of water that surround Chrissy, showing that she is truly isolated and no-one can save her, this is enforced by a cut back to Cassidy on the beach falling over, unable to get in with her. As soon as the music starts to play, it cuts to a point of view shot, from under the water. This creates tension as its moving closer and closer towards Chrissy, but the audience doesn’t know what the threat is, except it is dangerous as the music gradually gets louder and louder as it gets closer. The scene then cuts back to a wide shot of Chrissy above the water with no indication of any danger, it then cuts to a close shot of her face. This is the first time we see her features, she is smiling and laughing completely unaware of the danger underneath which creates tension as the audience is fully aware of it.

As the shark gets right next to Chrissy, the iconic ominous tune starts to play. The next sequence shows the shark tugging her underwater and Chrissy screaming and thrashing trying to escape, from the wide shots above the water, the audience still can’t see the shark creating the sense of fear as they are unaware of where the shark is. On the close-ups of Chrissy thrashing, the camera stays fixed on a point and she is constantly moving around the frame, this is terrifying as you feel as it a spectator watching her death unable to do anything about it. The scene then cross-cuts back to Cassidy, resting on the beach; this scene is juxtaposed with shots of Cassidy on the beach to give the impression that he might be able to save her. As the scene cuts to the beach again the music stops, when it next cuts back to the sea, the music is louder and faster, showing the contrast between the peaceful beach and the terrifying sea.

The next time we see Chrissy she is holding onto a ringing buoy, which is normally used for safety, but the audience knows that nothing can save her now. She is pulled down again and all nondiegetic sound stops leaving only the atmospheric sound of the waves creates the image of peace. This also creates a sense of terror and shock for the audience as they know that under the water lays a dead Chrissy and the deadly shark. The scene then cuts to a shot of Cassidy lying down, completely oblivious to the murder of Chrissy. The scene then cuts back to a terrifying wide shot of the sea, the same one used before when Chrissy was being pulled under, but this time there is only the sea and silence, which represents the stillness of death and the vast emptiness of the sea. The only sound in the rest of the scene is the ringing buoy which is ominous and ironic as the buoy normally signifies safety but at this point it is showing where Chrissy’s dead body is lying.

To conclude, Spielberg is able in the opening scene to establish Jaws in the thriller genre and create a mood of fear and terror that reoccurs during the rest of the film. He manages to involve the audience via the build-up of tension which keeps the audience on the edge of the seat. He manages to do this by the now iconic point of view shots from the shark’s perspective under the water looking up at a helpless Chrissy; this means the audience never see the shark at all during this scene.