Movie #7: Raiders of the Lost Ark

Movie #: 7
Movie Title: Raiders of the Lost Ark
Year Released: 1981

Director: Steven Spielberg
Notable Cast: Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, Ronald Lacey, John Rhys-Davies, Denholm Elliott

Short Description: Archaeologist and adventurer Indiana Jones is hired by the U.S. government to find the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis. (IMDB.com)


Rank on the Top 100 Lists (as of 1/7/2013)

AFI.com: #66
IMDB.com: #27
Ranker.com: #15
Lifed.com: #20
Empire.com: #2
FilmCrave.com: #15
FlickChart.com: #4



Date Watched: 12/15/2016

Grade: 3.5 out of 5 (Very Good)

Rationale: Simply put, Raiders of the Lost Ark doesn't connect with me the same was that Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade does. Maybe it's the fact that Indiana Jones is a better developed character by the third movie or that Sean Connery is a better sidekick than Karen Allen is. I don't know. What I do know is that the jungle and temple escape scene at the beginning of Raiders is justifiably iconic. I do know that I'm a fan of John Rhys-Davies so it was nice to see him have a larger role in Raiders compared to The Last Crusade. Finally, I do know that Harrison Ford commands the screen and no one is a better fit for the Indiana Jones character.