In one of the most famous movie franchises ever and the first movie of its installment, Raiders of the Lost Ark become cinema history. With Harrison Ford portraying the heroic Indiana Jones, a professor and archaeologist, there is no turning back from the thrill ride you are about to encounter. Indiana Jones is recruited by the United States government to travel in search of the Ark of the Covenant, the container that houses the Ten Commandments God gave to Moses. He is joined by his love Marion Ravenwood, portrayed by Karen Allen and Sallah, portrayed as John Rhys-Davies.


The characters and their portrayal are truly commendable. Harrison Ford does not disappoint with what he brings to the movie, a theatrical mix of action and adventurous nature. With his fedora and whip, he doesn’t look like your average treasure hunter or really much of a hero at all. As a treasure seeker and a professor, he finds the balance between strength and intelligence. Karen Allen portrays Indiana Jones’ female counterpart, equally her performance is as elegant, with enough emotion and wit to fill the role perfectly. In so many scenes, she is not one to sit back and cry for help, always ready to grasp the knife in her hand to protect herself. There are many minor characters appearing throughout the movie, yet the cast has been thought out perfectly. One of the most memorable scenes is when Major Arnold Toht, portrayed by Ronald Lacey, takes out a chain, only to reveal it is a foldable hanger. This gives such a tense event a lot of comic relief, something to applaud. The way the characters fit into the plot is just astounding, without really needing a subplot to boost the storyline.
Now onto the negatives, albeit few, that need to be addressed. In the sequence of scenes, the screenplay of Lawrence Kasdan was a little stretched. The time set up for low-action scenes actually wears down the movie and makes those select scenes appear slightly less interesting. At the same time many of the high-action scenes are made even shorter, which leaves the audience wondering what has actually happened. The most disappointing and humorous scene, however; would definitely be towards the end when the Germans open up the Ark of the Covenant. In a show of fantastic special effects for their time, they all just die. As simple as that, God has his vengeance and they all die. Within a quick 15 seconds the evil is vanquished. Not much depth went into that; so the resolution was pretty much thrown out the window.
Grossing at over $375,000,000 there isn’t much to be said. Enough action to satisfy almost anyone, the combination of Steven Spielberg and George Lucas sure did not disappoint. Within the 1 hour 45 minutes of pure action, there were scenes that were astounding. The truck chase through the desert keeps audiences on the edge of their seats. Then there are numerous scenes such as the capture of the ship Indy was traveling on or the gunfight in the bar that just makes you want to watch the movie again and again. This movie winning 4 Oscars and being nominated for 4 more is definitely a five star film even though it is close to 30 years old.
While this might not be today’s summer blockbuster, you just can’t go wrong watching this movie. Image all the Paramount Picture films that you remember and see which one can make a profit of over $360 million, which adjusted for inflation the movie is valued way over $2 billion. For those people who thrive on action, entertainment, and adventure, this movie is a definite must watch.