A great example of how action movies should be made!

Rating: 10/10 (30 October 2009)

I'm sure you're aware of the immense popularity of this first installment in the Indiana Jones series, created and co-written by George Lucas and directed by Steven Spielberg, two very accomplished filmmakers. "Raiders of the Lost Ark" was released five years before I was born, and even though it made movie history (like so many other classics I've yet to see), it took me 23 years to finally get around to watching it. Previously, I had seen the parody of it at the beginning of "UHF", but it's been a few years since I first saw that, and I've finally seen the source. I was fully aware of this 1981 blockbuster's reputation before watching it, which gave me high expectations, and in the end, I certainly wasn't left puzzled by its popularity!
In 1936, an archaeologist named Dr. Henry "Indiana" Jones, Jr. braves through South American jungle in search of an artifact called the Golden Idol. He finds it in an ancient temple, where he narrowly avoids death on his way out! As soon as he makes it back outside, he finds himself surrounded, and is forced to give the Idol to his old foe, René Belloq. Indiana Jones then runs as the native tribe, commanded by Belloq, chase after him, and the archaeologist manages to escape in a seaplane. Back in the United States, Indiana is soon approached by U.S. Army Intelligence officers, who tell him of Nazi archaeological activity near Cairo, Egypt! Jones believes this is the location of the Ark of the Covenant, a chest carrying the Ten Commandments. This Ark is believed to be very powerful, and Indy must go and find it before it falls into the hands of the Nazis! His mission takes him to Nepal to recruit Marion Ravenwood. Together, they go to Cairo and face many deadly enemies as they attempt to make it to the Ark before the Nazis do!
The first part of the film, taking place in South America, is delightfully haunting and suspenseful, especially while our hero is in the temple (this is the part that was parodied in "UHF"). That is the first of many great action sequences in the movie! It is followed by more, in Nepal and then in Egypt, as Indiana Jones fights his enemies on his great adventure! In addition to the action and adventure, there's some humour, in such scenes as Indy finding a snake on the seaplane while leaving South America. Harrison Ford is charismatic in the starring role, playing a tough, cool guy, and the acting and dialogue in general are impressive. There's really not much to complain about with this film, except maybe that it's a little overlong. However, this doesn't start to show until the last half hour or so, and there are more film highlights towards the end. I'm sure it still would have been hard for me to stop watching by this point.
With classic movies like this, there's probably not really anything I could say that hasn't already been said before. Nonetheless, I've given my opinion on "Raiders of the Lost Ark", the first and most popular Indiana Jones flick, and it seems to basically go along with the film's general reception in the past 28 years. As so many others have probably pointed out, don't expect a lot of depth in this classic George Lucas/Steven Spielberg collaboration, but I guess it doesn't have to have that in order to be tremendously entertaining. It was a great accomplishment without a lot to dislike, and its popularity could continue for generations to come! As with any film, no matter how widely praised, this one obviously can't appeal to all viewers and is considered by some to be vastly overrated, but if you really like action and suspense, I highly doubt you will be disappointed.