Hmmmm….What Horror Film Starts With The Letter “J”?
I mean, there’s no suspense in my “Horror A – Z” series when it comes to the letter “J”, is there?
“Jaws”
An iconic movie poster for one of the greatest horror films of all time – and yes, killer sharks are horrific, remember?
This is how the film begins: a young woman out for a midnight swim…from that shocking open to the end of the film, “Jaws” delivers one of cinema’s best thrill rides…and it changed Hollywood forever!
You see, “Jaws” changed how films were released forever! On June 20, 1975, Universal sent this big fish out to ONE THOUSAND THEATERS on the same day – that had never been done before! And the lines around the block proved that movie lovers would flock to theaters on day one – and the way films were released changed forever.
Remember the trailer – how could you not want to see this on day one?
As a young kid growing up in Seattle, I made scrapbooks of newspaper ads and Variety’s box office charts…take a look:
I also kept the first review I read in Variety magazine – here it is:
I loved “Jaws” then and still love it today!
But it’s success was not a “sure thing”…in fact, word was that a very young Director was falling apart at sea!
A “Very Difficult” Bruce The Shark!
The stories are legendary that “Bruce” the mechanical shark was notoriously difficult to work with. Yes, he was named “Bruce” after Director Steven Spielberg’s lawyer. Three identical mechanical sharks were built to play the part of the great white: a “left” and “right” shark for side shots, and a full-sized one for the straight on shots.
However, since “Bruce” malfunctioned so often, Spielberg filmed most of the movie’s scenes without him. In fact, the first shark doesn’t appear in “Jaws” until more than an hour and twenty minutes have gone by.
Many Critics point out that the anticipation was one of the reasons the film worked so well!
These production delays caused the filming schedule to balloon. Although principal photography was scheduled to take 55 days, it took a total of 159 days!
Spielberg, reflecting on the protracted shoot, stated:
“I thought my career as a filmmaker was over. I heard rumors … that I would never work again because no one had ever taken a film 100 days over schedule.”
One other fact according to wikipedia:
“Spielberg himself was not present for the shooting of the final scene in which the shark explodes, as he believed that the crew were planning to throw him in the water when the scene was done, something that has since become a tradition for Spielberg to be absent when the final scene of one of his films is being shot.”
I rewatch this film regularly: Roy Sheider, Richard Dreyfus and Robert Shaw are excellent, and the film has led to sequels, spinoffs and yes, even this:
A “Jaws” Bassinet!
Click here to see more details of a hilarious wrong baby bed!
Next up is a look at an Italian Director who has made some of the best scary movies of all time!
“Kill, Baby…Kill!”
Director Mario Bava is the “K” in my “Horror A – Z” lineup, with this 1966 shocker.
In the early 20th century, pathologist Dr Paul Eswai (Giacomo Rossi-Stuart, The Last Man on Earth) is summoned to a remote Carpathian village to perform an autopsy on a woman who died under mysterious circumstances.
With the locals convinced they are being haunted by the spirit of a young girl who died years ago, can the steadfastly rational doctor find a logical explanation to the strange goings-on… or will his rational beliefs be destroyed by the dark secret that lies within the crumbling walls of the ancient Villa Graps?
Here is the trailer:
As noted by a film review site:
“A lot of horror films built their successes on the skills of this film. This is one of Bava’s best and the less you know about the film the better it will be for you. Go in and enjoy this one.”
So check it out without reading anything else about it…and while you are at it, check out these Bava classics too!
Bava’s a master of horror – two of his best are “Blood And Black Lace” and “Planet Of The Vampires” – each offering great retro scares:
And of course, his masterpiece: the classic shocker “Black Sunday”:
Now, let’s head to the 70’s for a very obscure horror film that is now being rediscovered:
Have you ever gone swimming – only to find someone dead coming out of the water? Well, it’s Shocktober, so anything is possible!
“Let’s Scare Jessica To Death!”
How can you not love a horror movie with this tagline:
“Something is after Jessica. Something very cold, very wet…and very dead.”
This 1971 film wasn’t a box office success,, but decades later, it has been remastered on blu-ray and available to stream as well – and it’s a great, moody psychological horror film worth watching!
First, check out this trailer:
A recently institutionalized woman has bizarre experiences after moving into a supposedly haunted country farmhouse and fears she may be losing her sanity once again.
“Let’s Scare Jessica To Death” stands as one of the most subtle, yet truly scary films ever made. It just gets under your skin, despite a sensational title that suggests one of those “let’s do something to get her inheritance” contrived plots…it’s much much more!
There are so many ways to celebration Halloween season, and this “Horror A – Z” series gives you 26 great films to discover…
I shared “Carrie” as the letter “C” on my list – see what my “A” and “B” choices were here:
I love “Carrie”, but I also love this other “C” film that didn’t make the list:
“The Changeling” is a terrific haunted house movie starring the legendary Actor George C. Scott!
See the trailer and more here!
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Categories: 70's Cinema, Cult Movies, Film Fight Club, Great Films, Grindhouse, Halloween, Hollywood, Horror films, Movies, Pop Culture, Revenge Movies, Talent/Celebrities, True Hollywood Mystery
johnrieber 
All great films! My daughter and I watched our own “Jaws” marathon when she visited this summer. And I never fully understood what “Let’s Scare Jessica to Death” is about. But definitely a creepy movie!
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Funny you say that! It’s a brooding, melancholy horror – is she insane? Is any of it happening? It is in many ways confounding, but has seen its reverence and respect grow over the years and is now considered a classic.
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Jaws will always be tops on the scare-o-meter.
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Remember ‘Jaws’ but am only now learning about the ‘mechanical three’ which made it possible. Interesting from the ‘knowledge’ side of things but, from my viewpoint, that baby’s crib gets ‘disgusting’ from me – have a different sense of humour I guess 🙂 ! But thanks for showing me ‘the other side’ !
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Great selection, John. The Changeling is a real chiller!
Best wishes, Pete.
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Agree Pete…and not that well known, although a US home video company did a beautifully remastered edition with special bonus features…I think that helped raise its profile a bit…a really great haunted house film and as with the best horror films, it works because an A-List Actor commits to it!
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Hi John, Jaws is an impressive film. I enjoyed it again recently on the plane from Brussels.
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Yes! I love that the planes now have dozens of films from all eras….I re-watched “Alien” on a flight in August, and they had some 40’s and 50’s films too! Thanks for the comment! You would enjoy”Let’s Scare Jessica To Death” because it’s a brooding meditation on madness with really strong characters.
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Yes, what you wrote about Let’s scare Jessica to death really appeals to me.
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