Jaws

2025 marks the 50th anniversary of Jaws, Steven Spielberg’s thriller that birthed the summer blockbuster and instilled a primal fear of the ocean. Released in 1975, the film’s story of a great white shark terrorizing the fictional Amity Island is remembered for its suspense, iconic score, and mechanical shark. Even half a century later, Jaws retains its ability to grip hearts with fear and spark imaginations.

I vividly recall the first time I saw Jaws. We lived in Sumpter County, Tennessee, in a 200-year-old home, once a girls’ dormitory, surrounded by fields and a long lane bordered by a rock wall. With no neighbors or streetlights, the nights were pitch-black. Family had come to visit from Illinois, and my sister-in-law and I decided to go to the movies. We didn’t want to bring the kids, so we told them we needed to visit the fabric store. Naturally, they refused to go, allowing us to sneak off without them. 

The music alone was terrifying, and knowing the shark would claim several lives before the film’s end only heightened the fear. Driving home under a moonless sky, the movie’s tension lingered. Gooseflesh prickled our arms as we fumbled through the darkness to the back door, racing through the creaky, sprawling house to the living room, where our husbands relaxed beside a crackling fire. The warmth and light offered safety, but the shark’s shadow loomed in our minds long after.

To this day, I refuse to swim in the ocean.