Rish Outfield's reviews
Jaws was the biggest blockbuster of all time. So, of course they made a sequel. Jaws 2 ended up being another huge hit for Universal. I really liked this film as a kid, seeing it well before the original. Now that twenty years have passed and Jaws is my favourite horror movie, how will it stand up?
Jaws 2 tells the continuing story of Chief of Police Brody and the town of Amity Island, as it is terrorized by another killer shark. He has a hard time proving the shark is out there, and is pretty much on his own this time around in stopping it. And new to the mix . . . teenagers!
With one of the best movie taglines ever, I found the movie to be a lot of fun (a little lighter than the original maybe?), and fun is important. At the eighteen minute mark, I wrote down "So far, this is just as good as Jaws." That didn't last, but I was constantly surprised by how good it all was, in spite of the big shoes it had to fill. They showed the shark early on (at the twenty minute mark), which was wise. The film was scary (Sharks are SO scary, dudes and dudessess)--even if the shark looks even phonier than the first one. There was very pretty photography and great music by Johnny Williams (is it okay to call him Johnny?). It feels a lot like the original, probably due to the people and location, but also the same writers. Roy Scheider, Lorraine Gary, and Murray Hamilton all return. As do Deputy Hendricks and the same "I don't think that's funny at all" lady. Gottlieb was apparently too busy rewriting to reprise his role, but the familiar faces are a treat. The new asshole character makes Murray Hamilton look like a sweetheart. In fact, there's a nice deleted scene on the DVD where Hamilton is Brody's only supporter that I wish had been retained).
It was released in 1978, but it feels ahead of its time--1980 maybe. Scheider is GOOD as poor Chief Brody. Due to the events of the first film, he's now haunted and obsessed with sharks. I like that--the major strength of sequels is that you have a base to build on, whether it's the relationships between characters or the experiences they've already had. On the negative side, of course, you have a story that stretches credibility a bit, especially since the first shark was such a rarity. There was less gore than the original ("So far, no red water. What gives?"). Some of the teenagers got on my nerves--the super hysterical girl needed a severe beating . . . and she didn't get it. I think that was the biggest disappointment of the film. The death of the shark doesn't work as well as the original--but the movie is still surprisingly good. As I said, it's not a classic, but fun, scary--enjoyable.
Line To Remember: Nerd 1: They say sometimes the most beautiful girls are the loneliest.
Nerd 2: That's a crock of shit.
Nerd 1: I know.
I'd Recommend It To: Fans of the original. Give it another chance.

Total Skulls: 11

Sequel
Sequel setup
Rips off earlier film
Horror film showing on TV/in theater in movie
Future celebrity appears
Former celebrity appears
Bad title
Bad premise
Bad acting
Bad dialogue
Bad execution
MTV Editing
OTS
Girl unnecessarily gets naked
Wanton sex
Death associated with sex
Unfulfilled promise of nudity
Characters forget about threat
Secluded location
Power is cut
Phone lines are cut
Someone investigates a strange noise
Someone runs up stairs instead of going out front door
Camera is the killer
Victims cower in front of a window/door
Victim locks self in with killer
Victim running from killer inexplicably falls
Toilet stall scene
Shower/bath scene
Car stalls or won't start
Cat jumps out
Fake scare
Laughable scare
Stupid discovery of corpse
Dream sequence
Hallucination/Vision
No one believes only witness
Crazy, drunk, old man knows the truth
Warning goes unheeded
Music detracts from scene
Death in first five minutes
x years before/later
Flashback sequence
Dark and stormy night
Killer doesn't stay dead
Killer wears a mask
Killer is in closet
Killer is in car with victim
Villain is more sympathetic than heroes
Unscary villain/monster
Beheading
Blood fountain
Blood hits camera
Poor death effect
Excessive gore
No one dies at all
Virgin survives
Geek/Nerd survives
Little kid lamely survives
Dog/Pet miraculously survives
Unresolved subplots
"It was all a dream" ending
Unbelievably happy ending
Unbelievably crappy ending
What the hell?