20 Things You Somehow Missed In Jaws
16. One Scene Very Subtly Parodied Bambi
The clip above bears a resemblance to the scene in Bambi (1942) where the titular character is being told by his mother to out-run “man”. To say it’s a direct parody is an exaggeration but there’s no denying the similarities.
In the sequence above, two fishermen are trying to capture the man-eating great white. They underestimate the strength of the shark as it completely rips off the front of the pier into the water, taking the two men with it. One is able to safely get back on to the remains of the pier but the other must swim for his life.
The first similarity comes from Jonny quickly swimming to escape death from a shark much like Bambi must run in order to escape death of being hunted. Secondly, the dialogue of the man on the pier is similar to what Bambi’s mother says – “Keeping swimming” and “Don’t look back” is a lot like the mother’s “Keep running” and “Don’t look back”. Even the music played underneath the scene is comparable: it starts off quiet but the closer the character comes to danger, the more rapid and amplified the score becomes. Additionally, neither of the villains are visible on the screen, only their presence and threat is. They’re both thrilling and intense moments within their respective films and the only big difference being, one ends in tragedy.
Watch the Bambi scene below (and bring your tissues) and then compare to the one above.