Jaws (1975): Celebrating 50th Anniversary of Spielberg’s Iconic Masterpiece–Movies Better than Books
Film and literature are totally different mediums, each defined by its own attributes, conventions, and language.
“The book’s always better than the movie” is a familiar notion. But it turns out that’s not always the case. Sometimes films are able to streamline through a novel’s exposition or jargon. Other times they’re able to bring fantastical worlds to life in a more spectacular way than you might have imagined when reading the books.
Here are some book-to-screen-adaptations that are as good–or better–than their source material.
Jaws
The 1975 thriller Jaws is considered to be one movie that’s at least as good as its source material–I think it’s better.
Spielberg cut out a lot of the side events from Peter Benchley’s 1974 novel, which were distracting from the main plot.
The three lead, Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss, and particularly Robert Shaw as Quint, elevate the material considerably.
Considering that this was Spielberg’s second film, Jaws is remarkable in many ways.
Did I mention the collaboration with composer John Williams, who provided an ominous and iconic score–well deserving of its Oscar win.
My Oscar Book:
