Jaws - 30th Anniversary (1 Viewer)

[JasonTil]

I was fortunate enough to see Jaws on the big screen this weekend. Thank God for classic midnight movies.

It had been many, many years and I was shocked at how well the original mono track holds up (even now). The new effects track is truly a bastardization.

Since 2005 is the 30th Anniversary (and Universal is NOT shy about going back to the well), does anyone think that there is a chance in hell of us seeing a new version that has the original 1975 mono track? While they're at it, how about the full documentary from the Signature Collection Laserdisc?

 

[Adam_WM]

I doubt it.

 

[Jeff Swearingen]

Aren't there more important things for Universal to focus on since the last release was pretty darn good?

 

[Malcolm R]

Yeah! Like the next version of the "American Pie" movies.

 

[greg_t]

Yeah, why stop at four different releases

 

[Robert Saccone]

Actually I heard a rumor that for the 30th Anniversary they're going to remove Bruce and CGI in a new shark! Finally we'll be rid of the ventriloquist dummy mouth lines.

 

[Paul_Scott]

in 2 years the disc will be 5 years old.
why is Jaws not deserving of the advances in compression and authoring that have occured in the last three years (and will continue to improve) and have been bestowed on various other ,usually less deserving, titles?
i was using both the DD and DTS disc of this movie to evaluate an upcoming pj purchase, and i have to tell ya, i'm pretty underwhelmed with the PQ here (the less said about the soundtrack the better).

its not that it looks awful.
i'd say its not quite on par with something like the very first release of Starship Troopers...even with the age of the elements factor, its just a fairly adequete looking disc.

i understand with Universal being such a mess, that nobdy wants to encourage re-releases when they have such a backlog of great stuff yet to see one inital release.
But this is a pretty damn substantial catalog title.
if it were owned by Columbia, everybody would be whining "where's the superbit, already?!"

i would love to see this get the spit and polish and a 2 disc set this time to let the A/V breathe.

and yes...for pete's sake, lets have that mono track option.
this isn't a new cut of the film, there is no reason not to include it.

 

[Richard Kim]

If Universal includes the original mono track, I wouldn't mind seeing a new DVD of Jaws. I doubt we'll see the full documentary though.

 

[Dave H]

Jaws looks good, but they crammed an awful lot on one disc (very typical of Universal). I agree wit Paul about the authoring techniques and having this on two discs.

Has anyone compared the video quality of the DD and DTS versions?

 

[Chad R]

Green with envy...

 

[Lyle_JP]

If Universal includes the original mono track, I wouldn't mind seeing a new DVD of Jaws.

This would be the only thing that would get me to buy it again. It would also be nice if the entire 2+ hour documentary from the laserdisc was included.

-Lyle J.P.

 

[Eric Meske]

This would be the only thing that would get me to buy it again. It would also be nice if the entire 2+ hour documentary from the laserdisc was included.

I agree wholeheartedly on both counts. I have the fantastic Laserdisc set, but unfortunately I no longer have a player.

 

[Rob Gillespie]

Of course they will. Knowing Universal it'll be titled the "30th Annivesary - We're Gonna Need A Bigger Boat verson"

 

[Scott Hamilton]

This is the dream JAWS DVD

Offer the option for the viewer to watch Jaws with the original 1.0 mono mix in addition to the new Dolby Digital and DTS tracks. Many fans feel that the new remix degrades and tarnishes the Oscar winning sound and it is the original sound, in part, that makes Jaws the classic that it is. Since others prefer the new tracks, both should be included as well.


Show ALL of the deleted scenes and place each scene on the DVD with a separate chapter selection for each one. To do anything less than what was offered on the Signature Collection Laser Disc was unfortunate and should be corrected.


Show us ALL of the available bloopers and outtakes. There were bloopers and outtakes (i.e., Brody pouring wine over Hooper’s head, The original daylight scene of Ben Gardner’s boat being found) that aired on TV's Bloopers, Blunders and Practical Jokes and on the Laser disc that were omitted from the DVD. Offer an individual chapter selection for each of these as well.


Give us the complete 2-hour documentary. With 2-discs, there will be enough room for it. This documentary was fabulous and needs to be shown in its entirety.

We, the fans, ask for more than simply a foreshortened version of the laser disc. In doing a commemorative DVD, there is so much more that is readily available with only a minimal amount of research and effort, such as:


Include the 1 Hour travel film on Martha's Vineyard that was shot while Jaws was being made. Over half of this is devoted to Jaws, including RARE interviews of Robert Shaw as Quint in his wardrobe as well as some professionally shot behind the scenes footage. This, above most anything new that you could offer, would be the best due to the fact that Shaw's death makes it impossible to do any present day interviews. What an incredible treat this would be to see.


Offer the television news stories that were taped and broadcast in 1974 by CBS and the BBC.


Offer the behind the scenes coverage by The Mike Douglas Show in 1974 and the subsequent actor interviews done in 1975.


Add Audio commentary by key members of the crew and/or cast. Though Spielberg may not prefer doing commentary tracks, perhaps people like Carl Gottlieb, Joe Alves, Mike Chapman, Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss and Lorraine Gary could be involved.


Add an isolated music track for John Williams' Oscar-winning score. Preferably with optional commentary by Williams.

 

[oscar_merkx]

this would be an awesome dvd if ever released

 

[Elias A.]

Jaws is probably my favorite movie of all time, and I'd love to see Universal do a proper special edition for it. That being said, I doubt it's going to happen until the advent of HD-DVD, or whatever the new format will be. Universal doesn't seem to be very interested in what the fans want, and they are more interested in cranking out countless "Ultimate" versions of mediocre movies like American Pie and The Mummy, instead of focusing on their great catalogue titles from the seventies, eighties and nineties. I personally think they need to reissue Jurassic Park as well, which had serious compression artifacts and a defective soundtrack. Oh well, I guess I should just be happy that we can get these movies on DVD at all, even if they're not the perfect version.

If you folks are interested in seeing a better version of Jaws anytime soon, you should sign the online petition. Click here: http://www.jawsmovie.com/bin/petition.asp
Even though I doubt that Universal will listen, the more people who make their voices known on this issue, the better.

 

[Britton]

I'd also like to see a Jaws release with a mono track. I know how it feels when a cherished movie that has been watched over and over and over comes out with a new sound track that just doesn't sound right. Jaws was never one of those movies, but I remember being disappointed when the sound effects in the opening credits for Superman: The Movie were changed.

 

[JasonTil]

If Universal can release Ultimate Editions of crap like Notting Hill and Meet Joe Black, the surely they can recycle all of the extras from the Signature Collection LD and include the original Mono track.

It was absolutely amazing to hear the original track in the theater again...

 

[todd stone]

JasonTil: meet joe black was good

 

[Richard Kim]

If Universal was to rerelease Jaws, I would think that they would produce all new documentary material, rather than recycle the LD doc.