Director: Steven Spielberg
Story: George Lucas, Philip Kaufman
Cast: Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman
Music: John Williams
Time: 115 minutes
Bottom-line: A taut story and terrific action sequences make this film a classic adventure story
A treasure hunt film that has gone down in history as one of the greatest adventure films ever made, Steven Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark is one film, where you will be glued to your seat no matter what happens around you. Starring Harrison Ford, the man who has made his name synonymous with Indiana Jones, supported by Karen Allen and Paul Freeman, the first installment in the Indianan Jones series is often considered the best film of the lot, and a classic in Hollywood cinema.
In 1936, archeologist Indiana Jones, a.k.a Indy (Ford) narrowly escapes from a booby-trapped filled temple in South America, after taking a gold idol from inside. Jones somehow escapes from there, and comes back to US. Here, we see that Indy is actually a professor of archeology. He is approached by two Army Intelligence agents, who request him to find the Lost Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis can (as the Nazis believe that possession of the ark will make them invincible). The key to finding the location where it is buried, is a headpiece of an artifact, which is currently possessed by Marion Ravenwood (Allen). Indy travels to Nepal. She gives Indy the headpiece, and they travel together to Egypt. At the same time, Belloq, Indy's arch rival, is also on the quest for capturing the Ark. The rest of the film is whether or not Indiana and Marion find the Ark, and more importantly, whether or not they can do so before Belloq can.
The story is excellent. From the first minute, when we see Indy in the South American jungles, till the last ten minutes or so, all we see is non-stop thrills and action. I consider this a ‘treasure hunt’ film, but it does not contain only code-breaking like say, The Da Vinci Code, does not contain only action, like R.L. Stevenson’s Treasure Island, does not contain only booby-trap filled caves/ temples, but this film is a perfect mix of all the elements required for a treasure hunt. This film was ranked #10 in the American Film Institute’s list of top 100 thrillers, and Ford as Indy was ranked the second greatest hero of all time, after Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch.
There are plenty of twists and turns along the way. The sequence where he escapes from the temple in S. America is one of the most exciting scenes in the film, though it adds very little to the actual story. First we see Indy replace the gold idol carefully with a bag of sand. Nothing happens… almost immediately after he turns, the temple starts collapsing. The scene where he is followed by the huge boulder is quite famous, and very exciting to watch. Another thrilling sequence is when Indy and Marion are trapped in the pit full of snakes. This looks pretty gross, but while watching it, you will definitely clutch something tightly, as the tension is at screaming point here. Throughout the film, the suspense is well-maintained, and the story almost never goes offbeat.
All the three lead actors have acted well. Ford has acted so well, and his character is so famous, that every time you ask someone, “Do you know Harrison Ford?” they are like, “Yeah, he is that Indiana Jones guy.” Few dialogues are funny and few are memorable as well. John Williams’ score is brilliant. The Indiana Jones theme music is good, and in almost every scene where there are no dialogues, the music plays a role in giving the entertainment.
The sets are also excellent. Most of the film takes place in Egypt, and the beginning is in S. America. The settings of both these places have been created very well. The South American temple shown in the beginning is certainly a place that will give you the creeps, even if you only watching it on screen, and Spielberg makes the most of such a location to make his viewers glued to their seats. Along with the sets, the visual effects also play a role, especially in the last twenty minutes, on the island in the Aegean Sea.
To conclude, Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark is one such thriller where each and every scene is exciting to see. With good acting, an electrifying story, great score and great direction from Spielberg, this film will be a classic for its top-notch action sequences. No matter how many more Indiana Jones films are made, the first one is still unmatchable in every aspect.
My Rating: 5/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 95%
Story: George Lucas, Philip Kaufman Cast: Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman
Music: John Williams
Time: 115 minutes
Bottom-line: A taut story and terrific action sequences make this film a classic adventure story
A treasure hunt film that has gone down in history as one of the greatest adventure films ever made, Steven Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark is one film, where you will be glued to your seat no matter what happens around you. Starring Harrison Ford, the man who has made his name synonymous with Indiana Jones, supported by Karen Allen and Paul Freeman, the first installment in the Indianan Jones series is often considered the best film of the lot, and a classic in Hollywood cinema.
In 1936, archeologist Indiana Jones, a.k.a Indy (Ford) narrowly escapes from a booby-trapped filled temple in South America, after taking a gold idol from inside. Jones somehow escapes from there, and comes back to US. Here, we see that Indy is actually a professor of archeology. He is approached by two Army Intelligence agents, who request him to find the Lost Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis can (as the Nazis believe that possession of the ark will make them invincible). The key to finding the location where it is buried, is a headpiece of an artifact, which is currently possessed by Marion Ravenwood (Allen). Indy travels to Nepal. She gives Indy the headpiece, and they travel together to Egypt. At the same time, Belloq, Indy's arch rival, is also on the quest for capturing the Ark. The rest of the film is whether or not Indiana and Marion find the Ark, and more importantly, whether or not they can do so before Belloq can.
 |
| Ford as Indiana Jones. A scene from the South American temple |
 |
| Karen Allen as Marion |
The story is excellent. From the first minute, when we see Indy in the South American jungles, till the last ten minutes or so, all we see is non-stop thrills and action. I consider this a ‘treasure hunt’ film, but it does not contain only code-breaking like say, The Da Vinci Code, does not contain only action, like R.L. Stevenson’s Treasure Island, does not contain only booby-trap filled caves/ temples, but this film is a perfect mix of all the elements required for a treasure hunt. This film was ranked #10 in the American Film Institute’s list of top 100 thrillers, and Ford as Indy was ranked the second greatest hero of all time, after Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch.
 |
| Freeman as Rene Belloq |
There are plenty of twists and turns along the way. The sequence where he escapes from the temple in S. America is one of the most exciting scenes in the film, though it adds very little to the actual story. First we see Indy replace the gold idol carefully with a bag of sand. Nothing happens… almost immediately after he turns, the temple starts collapsing. The scene where he is followed by the huge boulder is quite famous, and very exciting to watch. Another thrilling sequence is when Indy and Marion are trapped in the pit full of snakes. This looks pretty gross, but while watching it, you will definitely clutch something tightly, as the tension is at screaming point here. Throughout the film, the suspense is well-maintained, and the story almost never goes offbeat.
 |
| Ronald Lacey as Toht, a person working for Belloq |
All the three lead actors have acted well. Ford has acted so well, and his character is so famous, that every time you ask someone, “Do you know Harrison Ford?” they are like, “Yeah, he is that Indiana Jones guy.” Few dialogues are funny and few are memorable as well. John Williams’ score is brilliant. The Indiana Jones theme music is good, and in almost every scene where there are no dialogues, the music plays a role in giving the entertainment.
 |
| The famous 'boulder scene' |
The sets are also excellent. Most of the film takes place in Egypt, and the beginning is in S. America. The settings of both these places have been created very well. The South American temple shown in the beginning is certainly a place that will give you the creeps, even if you only watching it on screen, and Spielberg makes the most of such a location to make his viewers glued to their seats. Along with the sets, the visual effects also play a role, especially in the last twenty minutes, on the island in the Aegean Sea.
 |
| Indy's friend Sallah asks, "Indy, why is the floor moving?" As Indiana throws the torch down, we see that the floor is not 'moving' but is full of snakes! |
To conclude, Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark is one such thriller where each and every scene is exciting to see. With good acting, an electrifying story, great score and great direction from Spielberg, this film will be a classic for its top-notch action sequences. No matter how many more Indiana Jones films are made, the first one is still unmatchable in every aspect.
My Rating: 5/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 95%
No comments:
Post a Comment