Analysis of Steven Spielberg's Creation of Tension and Suspense in Jaws

Analysis of Steven Spielberg's Creation of Tension and Suspense in Jaws

The essay is about analysing the ways the director builds suspense and

scares the audience I shall explain the effects of the following:

Sound and music, camera shots, red herrings and tension in the plot. I

will also include a conclusion and will give my vies on the scariest

moment of the film and provide my reasons for this

The film is called Jaws. We get some idea of what the movie is about

by this title.

Steven Spielberg directed the film.

The story involves a series of attacks on swimmers by a great white

shark. The effects of the shark attacks threaten the future of the

resort's tourist business, and. Finally, there is an epic attempt by

three men to track the shark and kill it. The film is set in a

fictional place called Amity Island in 1975.

The film begins with a title sequence, which last for approximately

two minutes. We get a point of view shot; this is where we see a

camera shot of what a character or, in this case shark can see. This

includes music; the music is deep and slow; it eventually builds up to

be quite fast and heart throbbing. The music indicates to us that

something is in the water. As the music builds up to a crescendo, the

shot dramatically cuts to a beach party with a happier atmosphere. It

is happier because of the soft harmonica and because we, as an

audience know that they are safe. It is also happier because we have

just hade this really tense moment where we are led to believe that

something will happen. The second scene focuses on a young girl who is

isolated. We know she is isolated because she is not going along w...

... middle of paper ...

..., leaving Brody to fight the

shark and get back to shore alone. I thought the oat was going to sink

right at the last minute and Brody would die despite all his brave

attempts to kill the shark. The tension really starts to happen here

as the shark draws nearer and nearer, Brody's quick thinking and

actions helped him to defeat the shark.

Steven Spielberg's use of camera angles and shots plus the dramatic

and chilling music in a repetitive manner, builds suspense and fear of

what will happen next. The final dramatic scene when it almost becomes

a battle of mind of muscle (Brody v The shark)

Is a truly brilliant piece of direction. As history has shown, the

effects on the audiences at the horrific scenes in the film, have left

a long lasting effect on peoples perception of sharks and fear of

swimming in the sea.