THE SHARK IS STILL WORKING: A New JAWS Documentary

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AndyDursin
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THE SHARK IS STILL WORKING: A New JAWS Documentary

#1 Post by AndyDursin »

This ISN'T on the 30th Anniversary DVD, believe it or not....but is a fresh, new documentary on the Making of JAWS, complete with Spielberg and Williams (and other crew members) interviews as well.

Details here (including a production blog):

http://www.sharkisstillworking.com/

There have now been numerous "Making Of" documentaries on this movie -- including the comprehensive Laurent Bouzereau one produced a decade ago for the laserdisc. It IS a little dry, so I presume this "fan made" (but supported by Universal I'm guessing) doc will cover the same ground with more location work and such. I also notice that Roy Scheider is an "Associate Producer."

Here's a synopsis:

THE SHARK IS STILL WORKING

THE LEGACY OF JAWS

In 1975, JAWS was released on an unsuspecting public. Never before had a film been the perfect ingredient for transporting a cynical audience into a fictitious world of thrills and adventure. The Shark is Still Working is a detailed look at the thirty year history of the blockbuster JAWS. Created by fans, for fans, the documentary will detail how the film has influenced some of Hollywood's greatest directors and artists, how fans make a pilgrimage to the island of Martha's Vineyard every season for a glimpse at the movie locations, how the film continues to inspire upcoming movie fans and thrill new generations of audiences.

Interviews will showcase key production personnel and fans as they recount their favorite fan encounters, their contributions and the continued interest in JAWS."

Eric Paddon
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#2 Post by Eric Paddon »

Sounds interesting, though I would never describe the full-length documentary from the LD as dry.

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AndyDursin
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#3 Post by AndyDursin »

Sounds interesting, though I would never describe the full-length documentary from the LD as dry.
Don't get me wrong Eric, I love it, but I find there's a few too many "talking heads" with little to break it up. From what they're doing with this (Martha's Vineyard location work, interviews with fans and locals, etc.), it sounds like it might be better balanced......provided they get all the tasty anecdotes that were in the LD doc!! (And they'd better!).

Eric Paddon
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#4 Post by Eric Paddon »

Actually, I found the organization of the subjects in a chronological fashion without any intrusive narration to be quite effective. Kind of like having access to the raw materials of history at their best. And truth be told, I'd rather hear more from those who made the film then to hear some fan say, "Wow, what a great experience that was when the head popped out of the boat!" For me, the only making of documentary that equals the Jaws one I've ever seen is the AMC Cleopatra one.

I'll keep my eye on this project but I really need to have the original documentary uncut on DVD at long last.

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AndyDursin
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#5 Post by AndyDursin »

Actually, I found the organization of the subjects in a chronological fashion without any intrusive narration to be quite effective. Kind of like having access to the raw materials of history at their best. And truth be told, I'd rather hear more from those who made the film then to hear some fan say, "Wow, what a great experience that was when the head popped out of the boat!" For me, the only making of documentary that equals the Jaws one I've ever seen is the AMC Cleopatra one.

I'll keep my eye on this project but I really need to have the original documentary uncut on DVD at long last.
Well I certainly second that. JAWS is so good there's actually room for more than one good doc, don't you think? But one thing's for sure: the uncut LD documentary NEEDS to be on the new DVD!

There's actually another good one that E! ran as part of their True Hollywood Stories series. It still shows up from time to time. They did their own interviews with Spielberg and the cast (Williams too), and they have some really fantastic footage of Robert Shaw ragging on Richard Dreyfuss, plus Dreyfuss ranting about how awful his role was and how bad the script was -- all from a local TV crew while the movie was being shot. Great footage that I hope works its way into whatever form the new doc is released in.

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Monterey Jack
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#6 Post by Monterey Jack »

AndyDursin wrote:But one thing's for sure: the uncut LD documentary NEEDS to be on the new DVD!

From everything I've gathered about the new 30th anniversary DVD, it will be. :D Add to that the original mono soundtrack (in addition to the lousy 5.1 remix in Dolby Digital and DTS flavors) and this release seems pretty definative, nothing like the usual shameless Universal double-dips (anyone up for yet another version of American Pie? :roll: ).

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