Jaws (Anniversary Edition) [1976] [DVD]

I've broken a golden rule with myself as I vowed never to buy a Blu-ray at its full price if I already owned the film on a multitude of formats (VHS , Laserdisc , DVD)... but some films are just worth paying that extra for , and I honestly couldn't wait for the price to drop as this is one of my all time favourite films.
Its going to be hard not to quote lines from the film or make any corny puns writing this review , so will do my best not too.

After the disappointing picture quality of Spielberg's Jurassic Park box set on Blu-ray , I was more than a little wary of this transfer , but I'm pleased to say that all is excellent with Jaws.
The 7.1 remastering is just incredible through my AV receiver! It was like being sat in the middle of a 94 piece orchestra and has now topped the best sound on any of my Blu-rays.
The scene where the shark attacks the guy in the estuary is a good example of a subtle change in sound. There's a nice deep bass thud through the subwoofer when he is pulled underwater from his upturned boat , and although its a tiny tweak to the sound , it really makes all the difference and now that scene appears more violent than it already was.
The night time attack on the Orca has a similar effect of making a scene more potent , with more bass thudding punch to the sound coming from every direction around your front room when the shark repeatedly hits the boat , and by NO means is the new sound overpowering to these scenes , its just the right touch.

The picture restoration is just fantastic , although I nearly spat my drink out at one point ! Not through being made to jump at a scene but at one stage , I thought Mr Lucas had broken into the editing lounge with his trusty laptop and tweaked about with Spielberg's masterpiece... Thankfully , I wasn't in for a world of hurt , pain and misery , and when I compared the DVD to this Blu-ray , it was more down to the new colour restoration and new clarity that I was unused to with this film. The scene in question is with the two shooting stars , which now appear to have more of a reddish hue making them look more vibrant , and not down to Mr Lucas's destroy, destroy , destroy mentality... PHEW !

Some excellent documentaries with this Blu-ray which is around 4 hours worth , some of which have been transferred straight from the Laserdisc and DVD with a couple of new ones. Notably , The Shark is Still Working documentary , which is a brilliant addition to the extras , but all the features are worth watching again and again.
It just doesn't matter how many times I see the deleted scene of Quint in the music shop , it cracks me up every time and its a shame that actually got cut from the film.
There's also a short documentary on the restoration process , which Mr Lucas might find helpful as to what is appropriate and WHAT ISN'T ! Can't help but think that Spielberg is sending a subtle message to Mr Lucas in one of his interviews by saying that 'less is more' and if he had the technology of CGI back when he was filming Jaws , it wouldn't be as good !

I do know some people who spend vast sums of money on the latest TV to ensure they're getting the best quality picture , but then still watch a film with the sound through their TV speakers , with the attitude of "so long as I can hear it , it doesn't matter" and just don't realise what a dramatic impact a good sound setup can do to any film and can cost as little as £50 for a basic system , and really are only getting half of the whole Blu-ray experience without a good home cinema system.
For me , and this is a personal preference , sound is the most important element that I look for when upgrading a film to Blu-ray , picture quality a very close second and the amount of extras comes third.

This Blu-ray ticks all the right boxes and more and with the new picture and sound it really feels like your watching this film for the very first time , which I know sounds a little cliché , but just can't recommend this Blu-ray highly enough.
All in all , I'm ecstatic with this upgrade and hope that the Blu-ray box set of Indiana Jones due out next month , is as good in quality as this JAWSome film...Sorry , couldn't resist.

If you have not seen it - please go out and get it now. Action films simply do not compare to movies like this. Jaws is subtle, clever and at times hilarious, and unlike most blockbusters does not rely on special effects and trifling acts of sensationalism to sell. The film is about a killer shark, but for the first half of the film we do not see her - this is what makes the film great - we are able instead to concentrate on the way humans react to this unseen force. The scheming town mayor is an accurate satire on the self-important local busy-body who thinks only of the financial ruin the shark could cause. Don't miss the on going duels between the rich college boy Hooper and the working class hero Quint - it is here where some of the best dialogue appears. The first half of the film is so good one almost forgets about the shark as a physical entity, more of an abstract notion which is only conceived by the way the islanders behave. The second half is where all the action happens as far as seeing the shark up close and personal. All in all, a film of two halves which compliment each other exquisitely. Get it - you can watch it again and again and you will always pick up a witicism that you had not heard before. It will never die

This is the set for the ultimate collector. This limited edition set comes in a black box. Don't worry, the box will
fit on your DVD shelf, it is about the same height as a standard
box, and about as wide as two normal DVD boxes put together.

Even if you got the 25th Anniversary edition, splashing out on this one is definitely worth it. As with the normal version you get the two DVDs. Disk one contains the movie in 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen with DTS 5.1 Surround sound. The picture quality is vey good, although there are a few 'white spots' here and there.

The second disk contains a 1 hour 50 min documentary, containing everything from Universal winning the rights to the novel, through production and the mechanical shark not working, all the way to the release of the film. Since the film is quite old, there is not much behind the scenes footages. This documentary is composed mainly of people just talking.

Other features include; a Spielberg interview on set from 1974, some shark facts, 13 deleted scenes, outtakes, storyboard and image gallery.

This collector's edition also includes a soundtrack C.D., a limited edition senitape, 8 lobby cards, 6 publicity stills and a sketch book.