MovieChat Forums > Jaws (1975) Discussion > Garbled and unintelligible lines

Garbled and unintelligible lines


Loved Jaws my whole life. One of the distinguishing features that's always tickled me, that I'm certain was a stylistic choice, is the amount of garbled or unintelligible lines of dialogue there are.

Sometimes they are caused by overlapping dialogue, walkie-talkies, the mannerisms or emotion in the delivery, the intentional sound design and mixing, or just the accents.

Obviously the opening scene sets the trend. You could just assume that Chrissie is not really verbalising but if you listen closely (and spend forty odd years leaning in to the speaker and spending lots of money on ever improving home video releases) you can just about tell that she's saying actual lines like "Oh God it hurts."

Other notable instances are :

Hooper's pretzel stuff mouth during the night-time discover of Ben Gardner's boat. "You don't say. Wanna pretzel?"

Another favourite of mine is the one right after Quint and Hooper try to snag the first barrel and tie it on, but the shark leaps out causing them to lose it. Quint says "Haul in the line or it'll foul us." It took me decades to pin that one down.

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I've thought the same many times. it took me forever to realize after Quint destroys the radio that Brody says he's Certifiable.

There's another time Quint tells Hooper that "out here your nothing but a super cargo." At least that is what it sounds like.

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A testament to the LQ VHS tapings from TV we all grew up with.

For years I wondered why Ellen mouthed 'I've got yours' to Brody, but the gag is she's saying 'I've got Sean', and then we see Sean running after his brother in the very next shot.

Also thought Alex Kintner asked his mother for 'asprin' and then to go back in the water.

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I always wondered if the man who escorts the Kintner mom onto the dock is her father. She looks a tad old to be the mother of Alex.

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Well, Lee Fierro was about 45 when the movie was being filmed. Given that Alex is probably in his early teens I'd say it's not out of line with biology. They may have made her up for the dock scene to make her seem a bit more distressed.

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He was six in the book; assumed he was about 10-12 in the film.

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I just looked it up, the actor was 12-13 at the time of filming but either way...

His last name is Voorhees... Seeing your name here is also Voorhees I'm starting to get a sneaking suspicion about this all. Are *you* really Alex Kintner?!?!

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Hahaha no!

I'm a big fan of JASON Voorhees is what that's about. I forgot his name was Voorhees though - cool!

If I were him I think I'd know what the line of dialogue was also : )

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Those pretzels are making me thirsty.

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Is that how you're gonna say it?

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I'll have to workshop it.

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Quint: "What were you doin'?, you knew I had to get a clean shot right in the head!"

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'You ain't go one thing on here I ordered, not a beach umbrella, not a sun lounger"

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I aint see no gofdarn shark in besch wa

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One line that I have never been able to make out.

Stupid kid with fake fin: He made me do it! He glug glug something something.

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"he made me do it..he told me to do it".

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Thank you!

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"...He talked me into it!"

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