Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) Paramount/Action-Adventure-Fantasy RT: 115 minutes Rated PG (language, violence, scary moments, frightening images) Director: Steven Spielberg Screenplay: Lawrence Kasdan Music: John Williams Cinematography: Douglas Slocombe Release date: June 12, 1981 (US) Cast: Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, Ronald Lacey, John Rhys-Davies, Denholm Elliott, Wolf Kahler, Alfred Molina, Vic Tablian, Anthony Higgins, Don Fellows, William Hootkins. Box Office: $242. 3M (US)/$389.9M (World)
Rating: ****
It’s one of the defining films of my early teen years. Raiders of the Lost Ark is one of the first movies that really impressed me. I will always remember 1981 as the year I began making regular trips to the movies. It was a passion that my family and friends didn’t quite understand or appreciate. Consequently, I saw many of them by myself.
I first read about Raiders of the Lost Ark in a magazine at the supermarket around March or April of that year. When I saw it was about an expedition to locate the Ark of the Covenant, I knew right away I had to see it. The many years of religious education forced upon me by my well-meaning parents finally paid off in a small way. I already knew that the Ark is the chest that contains the original stone tablets on which the Ten Commandments were inscribed by God and given to Moses. It sounded like a great idea for a movie. I couldn’t wait to see it.
I found out about an upcoming advance sneak preview of Raiders of the Lost Ark at a nearby theater and talked my dad into taking me. Little did I know that it would be a life-changing experience. The date was Friday, May 29. I could barely contain my excitement. It was the first time I ever attended a sneak preview. The theater gave out promotional materials in the lobby. It was nearly a full house. Then the lights went down and the Paramount logo came up. Magic time!
The iconic opening sequence introduces us to archeologist/adventurer Indiana Jones (Ford, Star Wars) as he makes his way through a Peruvian jungle to an ancient temple rigged with all sorts of deadly booby traps. He’s after a golden idol and manages to retrieve it with great difficulty. He survives the quest only to be confronted by arch-rival Rene Belloq (Freeman, The Dogs of War) outside the temple. Jones has no choice but to hand over the idol seeing that Belloq is accompanied by a tribe of Hovitos sporting spears and poison darts who give chase when he flees. He makes his getaway via a waiting floatplane only to find a snake at his feet. Indy hates snakes.
When he’s not travelling the world acquiring treasures, Indy teaches archeology at Marshall College. One day, a couple of Army Intelligence agents show up to talk to him. They need his help. It seems that the Nazis are searching for the Ark of the Covenant as they believe its powers will make their armies invincible. In order to find it, they need the headpiece of the Staff of Ra which is in the possession of Indy’s mentor. The US government wants Indy to find the Ark before the Nazis do.
He flies to Nepal to speak with his old friend only to discover he died. The headpiece is now in the possession of his daughter Marion (Allen, Animal House) who still resents Indy for how he ended their romantic relationship. She’s a tough cookie this Marion. She runs a tavern and can drink anybody under the table. She tells Indy she has to think about it. Right after he leaves, bad guy Arnold Toht (Lacey, Red Sonja) shows up with a group of Nazi soldiers. He also wants the headpiece and plans to obtain it by any means necessary. Indy shows up in the nick of time and a spectacular fight ensues during which the tavern burns to ground. With that, the hero gets more than he bargained for. Marion is his new partner. Will romantic sparks fly once again? What do you think?
The pair travel to Cairo where they meet up with excavator Sallah (Davies, the LOTR trilogy), an old friend of Indy’s. He informs them that Belloq is working with the Nazis to acquire the Ark. He’s heading a huge dig for the Well of Souls which will reveal the location of the Ark. So begins the race to obtain the Biblical artifact.
Raiders of the Lost Ark is a roller coaster ride of a movie. Director Steven Spielberg (E.T.) pays homage to the movie serials of the 30s and 40s. Virtually every scene ends with a cliffhanger. The movie hits the ground running and doesn’t stop for nearly two hours. Ford is an excellent choice to play Indy, but he wasn’t the first actor approached for the role. Spielberg wanted Tom Selleck, but the actor was too busy with his TV series Magnum P.I., so Ford stepped in and the rest is cinematic history. Allen is the best female co-star of the entire series. Her character isn’t your typical damsel-in-distress. She’s a fighter!
Everything about Raiders of the Lost Ark is perfect. The rousing score by John Williams (Star Wars) really adds something to the movie. The sets and special effects are simply amazing. The climactic sequence still remains one of the coolest scenes I’ve ever seen in movie. It ranks right alongside the parting of the Red Sea in The Ten Commandments (1956). And to think, Spielberg and company did it all on a budget of only $18 million. It looks so much better than today’s $200 million-plus movies that rely on CGI effects.
The thing that separates Raiders of the Lost Ark from today’s so-called “event movies” is that it has a great story to back up the visuals. The screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan (The Big Chill) is based on a story written by George Lucas (Star Wars) and Philip Kaufman (The Right Stuff). Simply put, Raiders of the Lost Ark is one of the best summer movies I’ve ever seen. I saw it five times in theaters and several more times since. Movies don’t get much better than this.
