Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

Director:

Steven Spielberg

Writers:

George Lucas (story) and
Philip Kaufman (story) ...

Release Date:

12 June 1981 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure

Plot:

Archeologist and adventurer Indiana Jones is hired by the US government to find the Ark of the Covenant, before the Nazis...

Plot Keywords:

Cursed Object | Bondage | Barefoot | Amazon | Mummy

Awards:

Won 4 Oscars. Another 24 wins & 21 nominations

US Showtimes:

(register to personalize)

Cast

Harrison Ford	...	Indiana Jones
Karen Allen	...	Marion Ravenwood
Paul Freeman	...	Dr. Rene Belloq
Ronald Lacey	...	Major Arnold Toht
John Rhys-Davies	...	Sallah
Denholm Elliott	...	Dr. Marcus Brody
Alfred Molina	...	Satipo
Wolf Kahler	...	Colonel Dietrich
Anthony Higgins	...	Gobler
Vic Tablian	...	Barranca / Monkey Man
Don Fellows	...	Col. Musgrove
William Hootkins	...	Major Eaton
Bill Reimbold	...	Bureaucrat
Fred Sorenson	...	Jock
Patrick Durkin	...	Australian Climber

Also Known As:

Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (South Africa: English title) (DVD box title) (USA) (video title)
Aventuriers de l'arche perdue, Les (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Jakten på den försvunna skatten (Finland: Swedish title) (Sweden) [sv]
х.дФ. б ОНХЯЙЮУ ОНРЕПЪММНЦН ЙНБВЕЦЮ (Soviet Union: Russian title) [ru]
A la recerca de l'arca perduda (Spain: Catalan title) [ca]
Arka galduaren bila (Spain: Basque title) [eu]
Caçadores da Arca Perdida, Os (Brazil) [pt]
Cazadores del arca perdida, Los (Argentina) [es]
Dobyvatelé ztracené archy (Czechoslovakia: Czech title) [cs]
Dobyvatelia stratenej archy (Czechoslovakia: Slovak title) [sk]
Elveszett frigyláda fosztogatói, Az (Hungary) [hu]
En busca del arca perdida (Spain) [es]
Indiana Jones în cautarea arcei pierdute (Romania) [ro]
Indiana Jones e i predatori dell'arca perduta (Italy) (DVD title) [it]
Indiana Jones en busca del arca perdida (Spain) (DVD title) [es]
Indijana dzouns - Otimaci izgubljenog kovcega (Yugoslavia: Serbian title) [sr]
Jäger des verlorenen Schatzes (West Germany) [de]
Jagten på den forsvundne skat (Denmark) [da]
Kadonneen aarteen metsästäjät (Finland) [fi]
Kutsal hazine avcilari (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Poszukiwacze zaginionej arki (Poland) [pl]
Predatori dell'arca perduta, I (Italy) [it]
Salteadores da Arca Perdida, Os (Portugal) [pt]

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

USA

Language:

Hebrew | English | German | French | Spanish | Nepali | Arabic

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

South Korea:12 | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Finland:K-11 (DVD rating) | Iceland:12 | USA:PG (edited for re-rating) | USA:R (original rating) | Italy:T | Brazil:Livre | Argentina:13 | Australia:M (re-rating) | Australia:PG (original rating) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Israel:PG | Netherlands:12 (DVD rating) | Norway:15 (re-rating) | Norway:16 (original rating) | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Spain:T | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (re-rating) (2004) | UK:PG (video rating) (1987) | West Germany:16 | Canada:G (Quebec) (re-rating) (2003) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Bushey, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company:

Lucasfilm

Trivia:

Harrison Ford was cast less than three weeks before principal photography began.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Indy pushes a stone block out of a wall to escape from the crypt, it bounces as it hits the ground.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Satipo: [picking up poison dart] The Hovitos are near. The poison is still fresh, three days. They're following us.
Barranca: If they knew we were here, they would've killed us already.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Even Stevens: Raiders of the Lost Sausage (#3.7)" (2002)

Soundtrack:

A British Tar

Ba-De-Da, Ba-De-Da-De-Daaaa, Ba-De-Da, Ba-De-Da-De-Da

If you've seen this movie and heard the score, then my one line summary won't read like a mating call for sheep, but rather the absolutely exhilarating "Raider's March" which stirs my blood and makes me think of an unforgettable hero, Indiana Jones. If not, see it now.

I love going to movies. I always have. I remember when this film came out. My friends had seen it before I had. They boasted it was great, the best film ever. Some even said it was better than Star Wars (utter blasphemy to a devout 10 year old Jedi-wannabe). I thought no way is this film better than Star Wars, but I was still curious and began the begging of my father to take me.

When I was young, almost all of the films that I had seen, I saw with my Dad. He would take me and my mother would stay at home with my siblings. We saw a number of films that failed to generate a reaction with him as they did with me, but this one was different. This one, my Dad might've enjoyed just as much.

Who can forget the scene where Indy faces bandits in the marketplace, fighting swords with his wits and fists, only to be finally challenged by a dark robed adversary brandishing a heavy, dismembering type of sabre as he swings the impressive blade about his head menacingly?

Indiana looks his opponent up and down briefly and draws his pistol casually and shoots the villain dead as if his patience had been tested a moment longer than he could tolerate.

My father, and the entire audience for that matter, laughed and cheered at this incredible scene. And it was the first time I'd actually been aware of his enjoyment of the film. Usually I'm so transfixed that I wouldn't notice if my legs were on fire. He enjoyed it so much, that he still tends to bring up that scene, even today.

My father and I shared a great moment in movie history, and I will never forget it for as long as I live. I will always be grateful for the time we spent together and the films that I otherwise would have been unable to see without him taking me.

Just a side note about the scene I've described above. It wasn't meant to go that way at all. As Steven Spielberg explained in a television interview, the scene was meant to have an elaborate fight sequence, but Harrison Ford was suffering from diarrhea and couldn't go through with the elaborate set-up required. Someone said, "the only way we can finish this scene today is if he shoots him". Steven said, "Wait a minute, we might have something there."

As for where it ranks with Star Wars, it's hard for me to say, so I won't. Star Wars was the first film I ever saw, and there's a story in that as well. Thanks again, Dad.