Indiana Jones: The original Adventurer

One of the most iconic screen heroes of all time is now on DVD. Of course I am talking about Indiana Jones who was cracking whips and conquering Nazis long before Lara Croft came along into the fantasies of computer game geeks. Those of you who brought the Star Wars DVDs will know well enough the polish of Lucasfilm’s releases – great menus, amazing picture and sound quality and truly excellent bonus material. This Package is no different and shows that Indy is the original and still the best in adventure movies.

Here are the films included in the Box set:
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Temple of Doom
The Last Crusade
Bonus Disc

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) is still the pick of the bunch here, and is still one of the coolest adventure films you’re ever likely to see. It follows Dr. Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford), the handsome professor and tomb raider, with his feisty brunette heroin (Karen Allen) in tow, on a quest to recover the archaeological treasure of Ark of Covenant, the chest which held the Ten Commandments given by God to Moses, before it falls into the hands of the dreaded Nazis who plan to turn it into an unimaginably powerful weapon capable of wrecking destruction of Biblical proportions. Along the way, Indy treks from Africa to Egypt to Nepal. Raiders also boasts the opening scene of Indiana Jones being chased by a gigantic stone boulder in what is one of the most memorable opening moments to an adventure film ever.

Temple Of Doom (1984) is a darker, more violent film. After narrowly escaping a fracas in Shanghai, saved by his hilarious Vietnamese sidekick, Shortround (Ke Huy Quan), Indy winds up in India where he uncovers an evil Thuggee religious cult from whom he tries to steal a sacred Hindu stone and rescues his feisty damsel-in-distress, Kate Capshaw. This film has its moments, but it’s probably the weakest of the three films (even though it is an entertaining romp).

Finally, The Last Crusade (1989) chronicles the quest of Indy and his father, Dr. Henry Jones (played by Mr. 007 himself, Sean Connery) to find the Holy Grail, the Biblical cup prophesized to bring immortality. The journey from the watery, rat infested sewers beneath the Great Library of Alexandria in Venice to the desert of the Middle East. Again, back are the Nazis as the villains of the piece, including a cameo from Hitler himself and Indy’s treacherous love interest, art historian Dr. Elsa Schneider (Alison Doody). Last Crusade is bursting with some rip-roaring action set pieces, including a daring escape from a Zeppelin and a chase through the desert with Indy on horseback staring down a fearsome German tank.

After watching the trilogy again on DVD, all imitations pale in comparison. After all the Indiana Jones films were the kind of entertainment a generation of kids grew up with. Even now, they remind of what it was like to be 10 years old again. It’s great stuff, with every punch, whip crack or gunshot Indy would deliver a deadpan one-liner with a wry smile. Harrison Ford was really great as Indiana Jones, it’s hard to believe anyone else fitting the role as well as he did. Nobody, with the exception of Arnold Schwarzenegger, will ever be able to deliver corny jokes the way he could.

Considering that these movies were made in the 1980’s, the transfer to DVD is astounding – you’d almost think it was shot yesterday. The digitally-remastered image is as sharp as a Hovito dart, and the new Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack is crunching.

Each of the three Indy films comes on its own disc, with the fourth devoted entirely to the extras. The special features include an in-depth ‘making of’ for all three films, as well as featurettes on the stunts, sound, music and special effects. Fans will enjoy seeing Tom Selleck’s audition tapes for the role of Indiana Jones, as well fresh interviews with Lucas, Spielberg and Ford on their Indiana Jones Memories. It also contains a host of never-been-seen archival footage including outtakes, screen tests of the leading actors and deleted scenes.

Along with the original Star Wars trilogy, Indiana Jones must certainly be the best thing George Lucas ever wrote. Like the early James Bond films, the special effects may have aged, but all three Indiana Jones movies are still flawless escapist entertainment. A must-have release for Adventure fans.

Bye.