"The other movie that was really influential to me was Jaws. I was only 12, and that I thought was real! I even thought Charlie’s Angels was real! There was such an innocence in our culture when we were growing up, as if this was real life, and maybe there are cameras watching that. [I thought], “They’re not fake. These aren’t actors. This is real.” I don’t know why our parents weren’t helping us with that."

"Psycho, the Alfred Hitchcock film, the film with Anthony Perkins and Janet Leigh. I thought that film was groundbreaking at its time, and I think everyone else did, too. The shower scene in Psycho, I likened it to people being afraid to go in the ocean because of Jaws. People were afraid after that film to take a shower. I remember distinctly so many people talking about that because of that shower scene with Janet Leigh."

"This is, without a doubt, one of the greatest books about making movies. Gottlieb, who wrote the screenplay for Jaws, gives a day-to-day account of the process of making the film, from choosing the location to building the shark … or rather, sharks! You get to see the magic—and madness—of moviemaking, from the crazy shoot to the blockbuster hit. If you have ever had a fascination with how movies are made, why not learn it from the best?"

"I think there’s something anarchic about it, which appealed to me as a kid, and appeals to me now. It’s Terry Gilliam, a phenomenal imagination, some brilliant performances. I think there’s something, obviously, very enticing and compelling about the story of a little boy swept up into a foreign land, having an extraordinary experience. I think that journey is kind of at the root of a lot of sci-fi narratives, and it’s easy to see the appeal. That kind of vicarious journey that you get to go on, but not actually experience, like the jaws of the dragon. It’s a thrill."