Raiders of the Lost Ark

Prior to class on Wednesday I had not watched The Raiders of the Lost Ark because I was very skeptical and thought that it would not be a very good film. Oh Boy was I wrong, it was great! The movie had great special effects, acting, costumes, music, action, and use of colors. It was interesting to watch an archeologist go on adventures to find artifacts and survive against nature and the “bad guys”. The main adventure of the film was to find the original remains of the Ten Commandments stored in the lost ark.
Indiana was definitely the hero in this film, he was the individual always overcoming the obstacles to retrieve the artifacts and he was able to take down ten men on his own. Indiana was also the individual who saved the girl, Marion of whom he had a deep attraction for. I also liked that the director had Indiana use a whip instead of a gun for most of the film, seldom was Indiana’s gun used unless there was a shootout. I think that the director was trying to tell the audience that Indiana was a gentle and kind individual that liked to go on adventures and only used violence when absolutely needed.
Red was a color that was seen worn by individuals that were going to die. I think that red was the warning color of danger. When Marion was presumed to be killed in a car blowup she was wearing a red dress. When Marion was found to be alive, but still in danger, she was wearing the same dress and was tied to a wooden post. Once Marion was untied she changed into a white dress, which led me to believe that she would escape and be okay.
During scenes that Indiana was home he was dressed professionally and had a clean shaved look to his appearance. The moment that Indiana got ready to go on his adventure he changed into his costume that had a rugged, strong appearance. The costume included his rifle, hat, and whip. What I found was amazing (as also stated in Real Archaeologists Wear Whips) was that through all of the beatings, rivals, gunshot wounds, and being hit by Marion, Indy was still able to keep his hat. I think that Indy’s costume was wonderful and was very popular among the public that watched the film as children bought costumes like Indiana’s for Halloween.
I saw Indiana as a role model for young children. Until I read the article Real Archaeologists Wear Whips, I didn’t notice that in the movie Indiana never screams, yells or loses control, no matter what he is faced with. The only time Indy shows fear and “freaks out” is when he is by snakes. I thought that he was going to jump out of the plane when he found the pet snake, and I didn’t think he was going to survive the million snakes he saw when he discovered the ark. The article also pointed out that Indy is portrayed as a innocent and honest man. Indiana was never tempted to reap the financial rewards of the discovery of artifacts, for Indy the knowledge was the reward and the discovery an adventure. He believed that all the artifacts belonged in a museum for people to study and admire. At his college Indy told the students, “Archaeology is about fact, not truth, giving us all a little truth worth hoarding.” Indiana was portrayed as a brave and very knowledgeable man, a fictional role model.
Like most great movies there was also a love story within the movie. Indiana reunited with a past love, Marion and the two of them continued on his adventure together. Right away the actors shared gazes in each others’ eyes and their body posture told me that their romance would be rekindled. At the end of the movie Indiana and Marion shared a passionate kiss on screen which showed that they were once again in love.
At rogertebert.com I found it interesting to read about the religious satire. I had noticed the symbols but did not interpret them in the way the article does. An example of the religious satire is when Indiana is holding on for dear life to the Mercedes truck and grabs onto the hood ornament and snaps it off. It was not coincidental but well thought out and a great idea. I did however notice that the Nazi officer was uneasy about opening the ark because of it being a Jewish ritual.
This film’s title depicts exactly what the movie is about. The raiders are the Nazis and the ark was the Ark that held the Ten Commandments given to Moses on the hill, which is of great importance to the Jewish and people of Catholic faith. This was a great movie with non-stop action, it is one of those movies that you can watch over and over and learn the scripts of the characters. I will definitely be watching it again.
(Within the summary I included aspects learned from lecture and the book such as: costume, color, theme, evaluation of character, and symbolism.)