The Hollywood Blockbuster is Born (1972)
While “Star Wars” might have been the biggest movie of the ’70s, it wasn’t the first blockbuster. That honor goes to either “Jaws” or “The Godfather,” depending on who you ask. Certainly, Francis Ford Coppola’s crime drama, which debuted on March 15, 1972, has produced a more iconic aesthetic, if only because “Jaws” is more about what the audience can’t see rather than what it actually on-screen. Marlon Brando was a big deal long before his seminal performance as Don Vito Corleone, but this is probably the role for which he’s best remembered.