It's got Indiana Jones in it.
One of the signature movies in its director’s filmography, and one of the key texts of you are interested in action cinema, either as a spectator or a filmmaker, Raiders of the Lost Ark makes its seeming frivolity seem so easy.
Made by Spielberg following the commercial disaster of bloated farce 1941, there is an energy to Raiders, not just in his love of serials and James Bond, but a desire to economise.
Following a series of successes in which he went over-budget and schedule, Raiders was a bit of a last chance saloon for the director. Every frame is packed with tension and humour.
Every character is memorable and specific, defined by behaviour and action.
The clarity of action is razor sharp - the truck chase is a brilliant example of cause and effect.
This action is bracketed with great comic beats - Marion taking a swig of the liquor pouring out of the barrel, Indy shooting the swordsman, Toht unveiling a sinister chain and stick contraption that turns out to be a coat hanger.
I have not watched it in years but it still carries a charge of excitement.
Having watched more cliffhanger serials and being more aware of Humphrey Bogart’s filmography, the film’s sense of pastiche is more overt, but the film never feels like a facsimile.
It is more than the sum of its influences - it feels like filmmakers taking their influences and elevating them, with an earnestness and sense of fun.
Famously cast as a last-minute replacement for Tom Selleck, Harrison Ford is so cemented in the role it is almost impossible to imagine anyone else under the hat. Exasperated, exhausted, always struggling, Ford’s Indy epitomises that mythic everyman quality that lies at the foundation of his star persona.
A dynamo of flinty, comic outrage, Karen Allen matches him as Marion.
On this viewing I was impressed by the villain, Belloq (Paul Freeman).
He tends to get overshadowed by Ronald Lacey as the villainous Toht, but Freeman is great.
Remorseless, self-satisfied and always a step ahead, or with another trick up his sleeve, he is truly Indy’s equal, his dark shadow (down to his white hat).
His motivation feels like a combination of pure greed and narcissism. He seems to be defined by a need to best Indy - including his desire to ‘possess’ Marion Ravenwood.
The supporting cast are amazing: Not just future recurring players (Denholm Elliott and Jonathan Rhys-Davies) but even Alfred Molina as Indy’s treacherous sidekick in the opening sequence.
There is nothing much to say about Raiders - it has been copied and sequelized, but on this viewing, it is a beautifully pure and unique object.
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