Sponsored Video: Jaws arrives on Blu-ray

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1 September 2012 No Comment

The time has come. Jaws arrives on blu-ray in the UK Sep 3rd. Steven Spielberg’s masterpiece, that still terrifies audiences, debuts in glorious high definition plus digital copy and Ultra Violet.

10 reasons Jaws is the best film ever made!

The time has come. Jaws makes its debut on blu-ray following a short re-release across cinemas in the UK. I was lucky enough to catch the new high-definition print on the big screen – my first viewing of Jaws in the cinema – and it was astonishing to see the clarity and glowing colours of a film now over thirty-five years old.

The digitally remastered played nationwide, admittedly on an unfortunately limited amount of screens, for audiences to experience Jaws on the big screen – many for the first time! This theatrical hors d’oeuvre prepared us for Jaws’ debut on high definition home video.

The landmark motion picture that still makes audiences afraid to go in the water will be available on blu-ray on Monday September 3rd. Featuring an all-new, digitally remastered and fully restored picture, as well as 7.1 surround sound, the Jaws blu-ray (which also includes Digital Copy and UltraViolet) gives fans the ultimate way to watch the breathtaking and terrifying action-thriller.

Despite the film being more than thirty-five years old, its recent theatrical run was the first opportunity I’ve had to see it where it truly belongs. I wasn’t born when the film first terrified cinemagoers in 1975 but it has long been a favourite of mine having watched it countless times at home – firstly on television, then from an overworked VHS tape, and more recently DVD. Now we can all enjoy the film in glorious high definition – I can attest to the quality of the new digital re-mastering. The film has been painstakingly restored from 35mm original film elements and features a stunning DTS-HD 7.1 soundtrack.

For those who haven’t seen Steven Spielberg’s classic “blockbuster” the story begins when a young girl goes for a late night swim and is attacked by a shark. The town’s authority ignores the pleas of its Chief of Police to close the beaches, which leads to further deaths. Eventually succumbing to the request of the island’s best fisherman and professional shark hunter Quint (Robert Shaw) for a hefty sum of money in order to catch the deadly fish, the Mayor agrees to the pay up. Accompanied by marine biologist Hooper and police chief Brody, the three set out on Quint’s aging boat the Orca in order to kill the beast.

The film laid the groundwork for the modern day blockbuster and forever secured Spielberg’s place as a Hollywood legend. Made for the now seemingly tiny sum of $9 million (which was way over the film’s originally intended budget), its worldwide grosses topped $450 million. Of course, it is little surprise the film wowed audiences. Its relatively simple premise offered the perfect framework to hang a number of choreographed scares while its implied violence meant it could appeal to audiences young and old. To this day it is still the quintessential high concept thriller – leanly plotted, paced like an out of control freight train careering down Ben Nevis, and featuring the greatest jump-out-of-your-seat moment ever seen.

Watch the trailer for the new blu-ray here:

Sponsored Post – Courtesy of Universal Studios

For more on Jaws and Steven Spielberg check out our week devoted to the director’s films:
Steven Spielberg Week on Top10Films
Day 1 Intro – The Coming of the Blockbuster | Introducing the Man behind the Camera | Top 10 Spielberg Characters
Day 2 E.D. Cameron looks at Spielberg’s influence on the film industry | Spielberg makes the impossible possible
Day 3 Jaws 5 – the movie pitch!
Day 4 Classic Scenes #6: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom | Film Review: 1941 | Spielberg dares to parody himself in Jurassic Park
Day 5 Spielberg’s success in a single image | Film Review: Duel | Top 10 Steven Spielberg Moments
Day 6 Lawrence of Arabia: The Film that Inspired Spielberg
Day 7 It wasn’t all a bed of roses between David Lean and his most famous fan Steven Spielberg | Film Review: Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Day 8 Film Review: The Sugarland Express | Did Spielberg direct Poltergeist? | Film Review: The Terminal | 10 Reasons Jaws might be the best film ever made | Top 10 Steven Spielberg Films

The new blu-ray – released September 3rd 2012 – will feature the following extras:

Blu-ray™ Bonus Features:

· The Shark is Still Working: The Impact & Legacy of JAWS: A feature-length documentary featuring never-before-seen footage and interviews with cast and crew including Steven Spielberg, Richard Dreyfuss and Roy Scheider.
· JAWS: The Restoration: An all-new, in-depth look at the intricate process of restoring the movie.
· The Making of JAWS: A two-hour documentary featuring interviews with key cast and crew.
· From the Set: An insider’s look at life on the set of JAWS, featuring an interview with Steven Spielberg.
· Deleted Scenes & Outtakes
· JAWS Archives: Take a peek inside the JAWS archives, including storyboards, production photos and marketing materials, as well as a special segment on the JAWS phenomenon.
· Original Theatrical Trailer
· UltraViolet™: The revolutionary new way for consumers to collect movies and TV shows, store them in the cloud, and download and stream instantly to computers, tablets and smartphones.
· Digital Copy: Viewers can redeem a digital version of the full-length movie from a choice of retail partners to watch on an array of electronic and portable devices.
· pocket BLU™ App: The popular free pocket BLU™ app for smartphones is now even better with newly updated versions for iPad®, Android™ tablets, PC and Macintosh computers, with features made especially to take advantage of the devices’ larger screens and high resolution displays.

o Advanced Remote Control: A sleek, elegant new way to operate your Blu-ray™ player. Users can navigate through menus, playback and BD-Live™ functions with ease.
o Video Timeline: Users can easily bring up the video timeline, allowing them to instantly access any point in the film.
o Mobile-To-Go: Users can unlock a selection of bonus content with their Blu-ray™ discs to save to their device or to stream from anywhere there is a Wi-Fi network, enabling them to enjoy content on the go, anytime, anywhere.
o Browse Titles: Users will have access to a complete list of pocket BLU™-enabled titles available and coming to Blu-ray™. They can view free previews and see what additional content is available to unlock on their device.
o Keyboard: Entering data is fast and easy with your device’s intuitive keyboard.

· BD-LIVE™: Access the BD-Live™ Centre through your Internet-connected player to access the latest trailers, exclusive content and more!