Indiana June: Eyes on the Prize

This post is inspired by two factors.

First, as I mentioned in my post from earlier in this Indiana June, I had intentions to mark the fortieth anniversary of some of those films spawned by the success of Raiders back in 1981: King Solomon's Mines and Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold; Firewalker, and perhaps others. I didn't manage to make myself watch those, however, beyond the first one. And it was terrible. It was rife with racist comments and the production values were low. After sitting through it, I gave up on the intention of watching any more like it.

Second, circumstances on Father's Day unexpectedly gave me a chance to watch Raiders of the Lost Ark in a movie theater. My wife and son had gone to visit her parents, leaving me free to do as I wished, so I took advantage of the opportunity. This is a movie that I've seen scores of times; we watched the VHS tape of it so often that it broke and we had to use Scotch tape to fix it. Even so, I thoroughly enjoyed it. While I was watching, it also started me thinking about the Prize—the first element from the “7 Ps of Designing Adventures and Campaigns”—and why Raiders works while films like King Solomon's Mines don't.

It's the prize. In Raiders, that prize is, of course, the Ark of the Covenant. Several times during the movie, characters talk about how important it is. Marcus Brody says its “Not like anything you've gone after before,” while encouraging Indy to be careful. Sallah cautions that it's not of this earth, something man wasn't meant to disturb. Finally, Belloq describes it as “A transmitter. A radio for speaking to God.” Indy downplays their concerns at first, even telling Brody, “We're on the verge... and your'e talking about the boogie man.”

His attitude changes throughout the hunt, building toward the climactic confrontation on the Greek island that houses the Nazi submarine base, when Indy threatens to blow up the Ark unless the Nazis turn Marion over to him. Belloq tells the Nazi soldiers to step back and let him do it—and he can't. By this point he has recognized how historically, and perhaps even spiritually, important it is, and he can't destroy it. He lets himself be captured, and that sets up the ceremony in which Belloq opens the Ark with face-melting consequences. It is spectacular.

In King Solomon's Mines, on the other hand, the Prize is the titular location, which should be a source of incredible wealth. That should have the benefit of historicity, since it is connected to the story of King Solomon from the Bible. I think it works in the novel, because H. Rider Haggard seems to have a deep respect for Africa, and it ties into the lore there. The movie has none of that respect, however, as it delves into racist comments. And so, since the Prize lacks any sense of gravitas, all of the action that happens in connection with it lacks that gravitas, too. That goes a step further in the sequel, in which Quatermain and his fiancee seek some “Lost City of Gold” which is entirely lacking in both historical inspiration and interest.

Here, then, is my list of the Indiana Jones movies, ranked in order from the least amount of gravitas for their Prizes to the highest.

1. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

This movie leaned into the pulpy science-fiction of the 1950s, with results that didn't thrill me. While it does have some good elements, I just lose interest when it becomes clear that the crystal skull is related to beings from another dimension. This does nothing to embellish any of the other elements, such as chase scenes and the development of the Indy/Marion/Mutt family dynamic.

2. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

I like a lot of the elements from this film. It has great set-piece action sequences, such as the fight in Club Obi-Wan, the mine cart chase, and the confrontation on the rope bridge. I especially like the scene in which Indy, who up to this point has been motivated by winning fortune and glory, decides that they need to free the captive children before they can leave. As far as the Prize goes, however—the Sankara stones—it falls short. They have some connection to Hindu lore, but not much, and thus are just an excuse for the action to happen.

3. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

As the lone Disney entry into the franchise, released fifteen years after Crystal Skull and thirty-four years after Last Crusade, this one always ran the risk of seeming unnecessary. The Antikythera mechanism, however, was in my opinion a solid choice for a Prize. While its link to predicting “fissures in time” might seem a little hokey, but at the least it is a relic with its own Wikipedia article, letting the curious fan read more about it. It also lets the franchise take a dive into the history of Ancient Greece, which is intriguing. It doesn't elevate the film to the level of its predecessor, but it worked well for hooking me.

4. (tie) Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

In terms of gravitas, these two Prizes represent perhaps the most important relics from the Old and New Testaments, respectfully. They were immediately recognizable to this American kid in the 80s. As such, the gravitas that they bring enhances the other strong elements from those movies: the temple escape, Raven bar fight, airfield battle and desert chase of Raiders; and the various chase scenes (tank!), family dynamic, and puzzles of Last Crusade.