Jaws 2

Summary

Just when you thought it was safe to get back in the water…

In 2020, Universal Studios released the three sequels to Jaws in an affordable three movie Blu-ray pack that also featured Digital HD copies of the films. This set collected the three previously released Blu-rays from Universal very reasonably priced. I couldn’t help but purchase this set and on a recent trip to Florida my family watched the sequels (except for Jaws 3-D, which we waited to watch until we returned home so we could watch it in 3-D.) It was a lot of fun returning to these films after a couple decades had passed. When I was a child, TBS and TNT often would run marathons of a chosen famous film and its sequels. I know that at some point I watched every single one of the Jaws films, but the only films I vividly remembered were Jaws and Jaws 3-D. After watching Jaws on 4K, our family gathered again and watched Jaws 2 the next night. Even my youngest son (who is six) got in on the action. 

Jaws 2 was released three years after the seminal first film. Steven Spielberg had moved on to other projects including Close Encounters of the Third Kind starring Richard Dreyfuss. For the sequel writer Carl Gottlieb, who had worked with Peter Benchley on the prior screenplay, returned and worked with Howard Sackler on a script. The film was the highest grossing sequel ever produced until Rocky II was released the next year.

The plot of the film picks up after the events from the first film. Off the coast of Amity Island, two scuba divers are killed by a great white shark while inspecting the wreckage of The Orca. Their camera takes a photo of the shark during the attack. On the island, a new Holiday Inn has just been opened. Ellen Brody (Lorraine Gary) has been working to help on the hotel project. A female water skier is killed by the shark and the driver of the boat attempts to kill the shark with a flare gun. She accidentally sets fire to the boat and when it explodes she is killed. In the explosion the shark’s face is burnt on one side. When a killer whale carcass washes up on the shore, Martin Brody (Roy Scheider) immediately realizes that a shark is in their waters again. He tries to warn the Mayor (Murray Hamilton,) but his warnings are not taken seriously. The Mayor does not want anything to interrupt the town’s bicentennial celebration and the grand opening of the new hotel. When Brody causes a false alarm on the beach, his job is put on the line. Brody’s teenage son Mike and youngest son Sean desperately want to be able to enjoy themselves in the water against their father’s wishes. When the photograph from the diver’s camera is developed, Brody is proven correct. It is not long before Brody is once again tasked with finding and eliminating the killer shark.

Jaws 2 is a pretty solidly made sequel. The biggest stumbling block for the film is just how good Jaws was. The script by Gottlieb and Sackler is fairly effective at introducing strong plot points related to the bureaucracy in the town and also has an enjoyable ending. It is slower moving and can’t quite match the thrills of the prior film, but the film is very well shot. Cinematographer Michael C. Butler worked well with director Jeannot Szwarc to create film with a strong visual sense. It did not hurt that the film was given a $30 million dollar budget as well. The fact that Jaws 2 turned out as well as it did is something of a miracle. The original script by Sackler was revised by Gottlieb once filming had commenced. The original director – John Hancock – was replaced by Jeannot Szwarc after filming for over a month. Somehow, the film still managed to turn out pretty well.

The film was shot in two places – Martha’s Vineyard was used once again for some shots, and Navarre Beach, Florida was used for the majority of the other shots including sequences at the Holiday Inn Holidome and some shots at the original Hog’s Breath Saloon. 

Roy Scheider does his best to commit to the role, but he had tried his very best to avoid appearing in the film. The rest of the cast seems game. Lorraine Gary, Jeffrey Kramer, and Murray Hamilton are welcome returning cast members, and the addition of Joseph Mascolo is also enjoyable. The cast is sorely missing Richard Dreyfuss and of course can’t make up for the absence of the wonderful Robert Shaw.

Overall – Jaws 2 is a worthy sequel that does a good job of following up a classic picture. It is not in the same league as the first film, but fans of the first film who want to see more of Amity Island will enjoy the picture.

Video

Jaws 2 was originally released on Blu-ray in 2016. Utilizing an MPEG-4 AVC encode in 1080p in an aspect ratio of 2.39:1, the film looks pretty great. A 4K scan would certainly be welcome for the film, especially after seeing how beautiful the 4K scan of Jaws turned out, but I was impressed with the natural looking image on display for the second film. Fine detail and clarity are not an issue, and aside from a little bit of crush, there is a lot to enjoy about this presentation. One of the strong suits of the film is the cinematography by Michael C. Butler and director Jeannot Szwarc. Fans of the film should enjoy this presentation.

Audio

Jaws 2 features a totally serviceable lossless DTS-HD MA. 2.0 track. As one might guess, it is not as immersive as surround tracks that have been made in the forty years since the film’s release, but the score by John Williams still shines through. Clarity is never any real issue. For a track on a catalog release, this is pretty solid overall.

Supplements:

• Deleted Scenes
• The Making of Jaws 2
• Jaws 2: A Portrait by Actor Keith Gordon
• John Wiliams: The Music of Jaws 2
• The “French” Joke
• Storyboards 
• Theatrical Trailers

Overall Scores:

Video – 4.5/5

Audio – 4/5

Supplements – 4/5

Overall – 4/5

Jaws 2 was not ever going to be able to fully compete with the classic Spielberg directed Jaws, but it is definitely a noble attempt. The script does a solid job of delving further into the town’s bureaucracy and providing some excellent shark attack sequences. The film, given its troubled production history, should have been a disaster. Instead, it is a pretty well made and well shot sequel that gives viewers a chance to return to Amity Island with Martin Brody one more time. Fans of the first film, should find plenty they enjoy about the sequel as long as they are able to adjust their expectations. The Universal Studios Blu-ray from 2016 is attractive technically and features some good supplemental material. That disc has been included in the Jaws Three Film set which is very affordable and also includes Digital HD copies. That set certainly comes recommended for fans of the first film.