Customer Reviews

The Jaws Log, 30th Anniversary Edition

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What a great way to celebrate Jaws 30th Anniversary. Reading this book is almost as good as watching the film itself. If you ever wondered how Spielberg turned Peter Benchly's book into one of the scariest movies of all time, you need to read this book. It's kind of like being there while the filming was going on. Tons of insider stuff here.

Frankly, I never liked the water much but Jaws just pushed me over the edge. I'm content to view the ocean from a safe distance. No need to get my feet wet. At this point I'm not too sure of the bathtub either. Don't miss this one.

Duh-DUH. Duh-DUH. DUH DUH DUH DUH DUH DUH DUH! Don't go in the water!

If you're like me, you consider the 1975 film Jaws to be one of the best motion pictures of all time. Before the age of CGI and various special effects, then novice director Steven Spielberg had to depend on an often irritable and uncooperative mechanical shark, underwater film footage, phenomenally well cast actors and a superb script. And the rest, they say, is cinematic history.

Carl Gottlieb, one of the screenwriters on Jaws, recounts the several years long battle not only to get this iconic movie made but also the bumps and problems encountered along the way. Particularly fascinating, in my opinion, was that with the exception of one notable scene, Jaws was shot on the ocean. Fantastic for film viewing but not so much for the overtaxed crew who had to deal with sinking boats, choppy waters, weather and passing sailboats. And remember, this was a time when movies were primarily shot at the studios (or a water tank at the studio). And that aforementioned scene? That was the infamous "Ben Gardner's head" shot with Richard Dreyfuss . . . and that scene was shot at editor Verna Fields' pool (with help from a little milk to make the water look murky).

Also fun was reading about the two mechanical sharks (jovially nicknamed Bruce by Spielberg, who coined the moniker after his lawyer's first name) and the many difficulties they brought to the film set. Their problems were our reward in the end, as not seeing the shark, or only seeing quick glimpses, made it that much more frightening.

Spielberg is presented in a warm and extremely creative light by Gottlieb and his longstanding tradition of never being on set for the final day of filming is explained here (and started with Jaws). Interesting to note, as well, that Spielberg was not the first choice as director and was convinced throughout much of the filming that Jaws would be dead in the water and would bury his Hollywood career (which consisted of one film up to that point). Ah, how the tides turned.

The chapters on the casting of the central characters made for informative reading. Only Murray Hamilton as Mayor Larry Vaughn was the first choice actor cast with all others being second or lower choices. Could we really imagine anyone else but Roy Scheider as Chief Brody or, especially, anyone but Robert Shaw as the tough old Quint?

Gottlieb also shares behind the scenes friction between Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss, which translated well into their characters' animosity on film, as well as Shaw's well reported drinking and flying to Canada on off days to avoid taxes.

And remember Roy Scheider's famous line "You're gonna need a bigger boat?" Per Gottlieb, that line wasn't scripted but was improvised by Scheider.

Of particular interest is how the film was received upon release and how long it was in first run at the theaters (from June 1975 well into December 1975 - - unheard of today). In case you didn't know, Jaws was the first ever summer blockbuster, making over $100 million.

Gottlieb also provides updates on many of the central characters who are still with us - - you will be happy to know that Lee Fierro (Mrs. Kintner) still resides at Martha's Vineyard and is still acting in the local theater group and Jeffrey Vorhees, who played her son, Alex Kintner, owes a sandwich shop on Martha's Vineyard that serves an Alex M. Kintner meat sandwich.

I would recommend The Jaws Log to any film lover or anyone who wishes to have a companion to the phenomenal movie. You can't go wrong.

Got this for my brother for his birthday as he is a big Jaws fan. Very informative and we searched some of the places out when we went to the Vineyard for a vacation together with the entire family...

Carl Gottlieb has done a great job of giving the reader a true inside feel for the jaws filming process. The accounts of Dinner meetings with editor Verna Fields, Spielberg, Dreyfuss and Scheider were very interesting. If you are a jaws fanatic, pick this book up just for the story of Robert Shaw rewriting Gottlieb, rewriting Howard Sackler's account of the USS indianapolis scene.
ps... the entire book was updated from it's original version with footnotes and where are they now's in 2003.

Entertaining. Adds to my enjoyment of viewings and rereads of Peter Benchley's, Spielberg's amazing view. Comforting the photo of Robert Shaw and Bruce the shark relaxing between 'takes.' Eases the pain of losing Quint at the end. I had never before considered the implications of the casting of 'Jaws' w actors as opposed to STARS, but it works incredibly. Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfus and Robert Shaw are soooo perfect. Just a wonderful book, movie and log.

It is a really cool and informative book. However, it is much smaller than it would appear to be. I expected this huge book packed with info. Not worth the money because of the size, but the read was pleasant.

I bought this out of curiosity, as a fan of JAWS for many years I decided I wanted to find out about the 'behind the scenes' part of this classic movie.
The Log book is filled with humour, great pics and interesting facts about the making of a shark film in the 70's that would become one of the highest grossing films of all time.

Wonderfully written by screenwriter Carl Gottlieb, a great companion to the DVD.

Fans of Jaws,this is the book about the making of the movie,
and is great !!
..many stories and pictures on the set...
A must Have !!

JAWS ! In my opinion the greatest "Summer Flic" ever made, and one that gets better each time with repeated viewings. A must for 4th of July weekends. Besides being a great thriller, with numerous "gotcha" bits that will make you toss your popcorn, the film is full of wonderful character development moments that contribute to making JAWS the classic it is. Carl Gottlieb, who adapted Peter Benchly's bestseller into a superior screenplay, wrote a marvelous book on the making of the film back when the film was released and I'm thrilled to see it finally come out on the Kindle format, with the black and white stills from the set included I might add!

The Jaws Log is a great book about the making of a hit movie. Carl Gottlieb, one of the writers who worked on the script for "Jaws", shares some interesting information of how the movie was made. This book is a primer of what can go wrong and what can go right when a movie is made. Gottlieb's book is informative and entertaining at the same time. The Jaws Log is a "must own" for any true movie buff.