Revisit: Raiders of the Lost Ark
A retrospective on Steven Spielberg's 1981 action-adventure classic
Prior to the release of Indiana Jones’ fifth and (hopefully) final installment, Fathom Events temporarily played in theaters across the country Raiders of the Lost Ark, the 1981 action-adventure classic that created a cultural icon and revolutionized movie-making for decades.
Like for countless others, the first Indiana Jones film is one of my favorites — probably top five. Despite the climatic face-melting, head-exploding finale giving a four-year-old me nightmares, nevertheless Raiders inspired my love for film and, I think, even my eventual love for history, which I majored in at UConn. But no matter how many times I’ve seen it (definitely 25-plus), to watch Indy run from a giant boulder on the largest screen possible was a dream (pathetic, I know — but a dream nonetheless).
Raiders was — and still is — beautiful to behold (even though every character is sweaty, dirty and, in some cases, bloody), and thrilling to endure as the famed archaeologist risks life and limb in a globe-trotting pursuit of the Ark of the Covenant against the Nazis. Clocking in at an hour-and-45 minutes, Steven Spielberg creates a relentless pace with a nearly ‘bat outta hell’ energy, with just the perfect amount of space for the characters (and audience) to breathe.
The pace is a lost art in and of itself, as the Dial of Destiny is expected to be a few minutes shy of a two-and-a-half hour runtime — which only signals a bloated adventure film. But that’s not the spirit of Raiders, whose cultural antecedent was pulpy movie serials: cheaply made, quick entertainments to fill the gap in-between the main feature films during the 1930s and 40s. Yet those serials inspired George Lucas to create both Star Wars and Indiana Smith (his original surname — though he was still named after Lucas’ dog); and inspired Spielberg to pick up a movie camera.
But Indiana Jones was more of an afterthought to Lucas — who developed the basic premise with Philip Kaufman — shelving the idea in favor for Luke Skywalker and a galaxy far, far away. It wasn’t until a Hawaiian vacation with Spielberg that Lucas figuratively dusted off the archaeologist, and pitched the character as an alternative to the Jaws director’s pipedream of helming a James Bond movie. Essentially, it boiled down to “Well, I got something better.”
Simultaneously, Spielberg was itching for a challenge: Jaws notoriously ran over-schedule and over-budget, while his most recent outing, 1941, failed at the box office. At that point in his career, he longed to be a “responsible director who came in under budget and under schedule.” The only thing he didn’t like in Lucas’ pitch was the name Smith; Lucas, out of nowhere, apparently replied, “Ok, how about Jones instead?” From then, Raiders quickly developed with the pair — joined by Lawrence Kasdan, screenwriter of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back — conceived the outline and set pieces over a three day period.
But why is this important to the film’s legacy? The creative process was raw, organized chaos, imbuing a kinetic energy throughout the project — mirroring Indiana’s own adventure (“I don’t know, I’m making this up as I go”). In less capable, talented hands, as the numerous copy-cats can attest, Raiders could have been a disjointed, narrative mess, but Spielberg is well-proven to be more than capable. Instead, Indy’s journey feels fresh, as the archaeologist bounces from a shootout in Nepal bar, a street fight in Cairo, and an epic truck chase scene. Artists, screenwriters, directors can spend too much time overworking a project — Raiders proves otherwise that a ‘run-and-gun’ style can be equally, if not more successful.
Raiders is a brutally violent too, which only adds to the realism. As Indy’s friend Sallah (John Rhys-Davies) anxiously warns “death has always surrounded” the Ark of the Covenant — and there are many (apparently 69 deaths in the film). But the realism is also imbued in Indiana Jones as a character, played expertly by Harrison Ford. He is bruised, bloodied, tired and, even out-witted by his nemesis René Belloq (Paul Freeman); he also has an anti-hero background, “falling out” not only with his former mentor, but his mentor’s daughter, Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen). Yet his resilience endures, continuously fighting the good fight.
Which leads to why I’m writing this reflection: like James Bond, Indiana Jones is more of the classic male fantasy archetype — handsome, heroic, intelligent, who overcomes the enormous odds, while ‘getting the girl’ at the end. But the archaeologist does have a character arc (not ark!…) that’s more spiritually in-depth than the serial genre tends to entertain.
Indiana Jones is an agnostic. When chatting with his friend Dr. Marcus Brody (Denholm Elliott), who forebodingly cautions about the magnitude of searching for the Ark, Jones laughs it off saying, “I don't believe in magic, a lot of superstitious hocus-pocus,” reducing the MacGuffin to merely an artifact, devoid of power. This similar dismissive attitude, though to a lesser degree, happens in the prior scene when Indy meets with U.S. government agents inquiring about the latest Nazi excavations in Tanis. When showing an illustration depicting the Ark’s wrath, Jones unconvincingly states the light beaming from the Ten Commandments’ receptacle to be the “power of God or something.”
He understands the magnitude of the Ark’s place in history — as his “shadowy reflection” Belloq suggests (“This. This is history”) — but he never fully comprehends the warnings to not disturb the sacred object. In that way, Indy is closer to Belloq and the Nazis, albeit chasing the Ark for “the museum.” When he is on the cusp of forgoing the pursuit, instead intent on rescuing Marion from Nazi clutches, Belloq gives Indy a chance to “blow [the Ark] back to God.” Even though Indy is in a powerful negotiating position, aiming a bazooka on the villains, he folds, choosing the desire to gaze at the contents inside. He cannot bear destroying “history” itself (as if he had the power to do so anyway).
Yet when the Ark is awoken — and just prior to the angels laying waste to the Nazis — Indy senses the imminent wrath. It’s unclear if he fully believes his warning to Marion (to “keep your eyes shut”), but like Pascal’s Wager — better to believe and fear the Lord rather than incur His wrath, and be divorced from love for all eternity. In the end, Indy chooses the humble act of respecting God’s power, rather than treating the Ark as merely an object, or a “radio transmitter” that can be flipped on and off by human whims.
Side note: You’ll notice it’s not Indy who defeats the Nazis; instead, he is reduced to merely a bystander in the final act of the story. How often does an action movie end like that?
After the dust settles and back in the United States, Indy — with full conviction and newfound belief — is able to say to Marion “They don’t know what they’ve got there,” referring to the U.S. government’s dismissive treatment of the Ark. Now, Raiders of the Lost Ark cannot be totally described as a religious movie, but it does evoke several truths: that some things are beyond human reason; and that God is history. Whether the creative minds fully realize this interpretation of their own film (or the reality of the cosmos) is another story. Regardless, treating the Ark — and God — with a modicum of respect is light-years ahead of what major studio blockbusters churn out nowadays, so it was refreshing to re-witness on the big screen.
However, Raiders of the Lost Ark is not a perfect film. There are noticeable flaws and leaps of narrative logic like: how can stepping into light trigger poison darts?; why do Indy and the U.S. agents hold a confidential meeting in a massive lecture hall?; when did Marion’s basket get switched?; why did Tanis’ inhabitants forge the headpiece to the Staff of Ra/Map Room that would reveal the Well of the Souls’ location in the first place?
Yet all of these are simply accepted — as part of the movie’s suspension of disbelief — because the ride is from start to finish, in a word, perfect.
Appendix I: Seeing ‘Raiders’ on the big screen was, as I said, a dream come true from this cinephile, much like seeing ‘Lawrence of Arabia.’ And after all the times I’ve seen it, I still discovered a few things, most prominently that I could literally see Indy clutching to the submarine as it approached the Nazi island at the end of the movie.
Appendix II: ‘Raiders’ was a critical darling winning five Oscars: Best Art Direction; Best Film Editing; Best Sound; Best Sound Editing; and Best Visual Effects. Although, I still believe it should have won Best Picture over the ‘Chariots of Fire’ and Best Score, but c’est la vie.
Appendix III: How can one write about Indiana Jones without acknowledging the legendary John Williams’ score? Funny enough, Williams actually presented two main themes to Spielberg who, liking both, replied, “Can’t you use both?” And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how cinematic history can happen. More on the music below:
Appendix IV: What are the best action sequences of ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’? Well, here is my list, in order: