Honestly, my favorite gag in the film is the buildup & payoff with the coat hanger. The dude pulled that scene off like a master.

I think people who say it's a "plot hole" that Indy doesn't affect the plot are missing the point. The movie isn't about the effect Indy has on the Ark, it's about the effect the Ark has on Indy.

Fun fact: In the "final boss" fight, Harrison Ford had severe dysentery at the time, so the long and involved fight sequence with the swordsman they had planned got changed to one of the most iconic scenes in cinema.

Hitting Harrison Ford in his wound in the 1930's is definitely a dick move. Doing it to him in a future cyberpunk setting is a Philip K. Dick move.

The exposition scene at the college with the army intelligence, is still one of the best examples of exposition in a movie. No wasted words, everything you need to know is explained, not to mention the awesome music/theme that plays that sets the tone. So well done.

The Nazi submarine featured in Raiders was borrowed from Das Boot, which was being filmed at the same time. If you've never seen it, Das Boot is absolutely one of the best war films ever made - a must watch

Alfred Molina tells a funny story about how the spider scene was shot. He’s having spiders put on him by a spider wrangler. After he finished, Steven Spielberg came over and asked the wrangler, “Why aren’t they moving?” The wrangler explained that all the spiders were male and would need a female with them to compete over. Spielberg said, “Put a female in there,” and the wrangler did so. As Molina put it later, “All hell broke loose!” Spielberg turned to the cameraman and shouted, “Shoot! Shoot!” He told Molina, “Alfred, look scared!” To which Molina responded, “I’m scared! I’m scared!”

The original headpiece had all the information to get the correct length of the staff. The bald guy only got half, the front end of the headpiece, burned into the palm of his hand so that's why the Na26is were digging in the wrong place. They didn't have all the information from the headpiece to get the correct height. The guy who could read the writing, where the monkey was poisoned, stopped Indy and Sallah when they were talking about the length of the staff and then turned the headpiece around to read the rest of the writing and there it said to take back one kadam to honor the Hebrew God whose ark this is.

Guy's been up for two days, worked all through the night, fought snakes and Nazis all day, been punched a hundred times, shot, and thrown under a truck. And he got his jaw broken with a mirror. I think we should give him a break for falling asleep this one time. :) Actually, I like the fact that Marion did. All she said was "We can't catch a break."

John Williams is still active scoring at age 91. He even scored the recently released INDIANA JONES 5 (DIAL OF DESTINY). In fact, he made Oscars history earlier this year by being both the oldest ever Oscar nominee (he was nominated for Steven Spielberg's THE FABELMANS (2022) just shy of his 91st birthday) and the only person ever to be nominated in 7 different decades (he has been nominated every decade from the 1960s to the 2020s inclusive).

This was Alfred Molina pre pretty much anything. He'd only had a few small roles, and was getting ready to quit acting and go home to England, when he got the call. This was his first credited role.

The thing with 'Indy doesn't change anything' is that it kind of speaks to one of the main themes of Raiders and the series overall. Because the one thing he does really change is that Marion would have died in Nepal if not for him. And ultimately the core of the film and series is realizing that that quest for knowledge or power isn't worth sacrificing love and friendship for. In Raiders, Indy's tested three times: he fails when he doesn't rescue Marion from the camp because it would mean losing his chance for the Ark, and again when his threat to destroy it to save her is exposed as a bluff, but then he *passes* the final test when he gives up his chance to know what's inside the Ark in order to save Marion's life, literally closing his eyes to knowledge because he realizes she's more important. So the only thing that Indy really changes is, ultimately, the only thing that really matters. And that's the film's central message.

One thing that gives Raiders its unique feel - you can almost seat your watch to it. It is an homage to the old Saturday morning serials (Rocky Jones Space Adventurer, Undersea Kingdom, etc) that Spielberg and Lucas grew up on. Each was a single reel long, shown before a Saturday matinee, and the reel was ten minutes long. If you watch this movie with a stopwatch, there’s a major scene or set piece for each 10-minute section of movie.

"Is this area 51?" Nope, Warehouse 13. Look it up. Great series.

The ending scene became the inspiration for the TV show "Warehouse 13" 😯

Tom Selleck was supposed to play Indy, but he couldn't get out of his commitment to Magnum P.I. He later made a movie called High Road to China which Roger Ebert called a "pale echo of Raiders."

The opening is a perfect good news-bad news action sequence. Thanks for the reaction, Jacqui. Nice Die Hard reference BTW; "monkey in the wrench". Not Area 51, it's Warehouse 13. 😆 If Indy had not been in the story, Marion would probably be dead. That's about it.

I’ve seen this movie arguably a 100 times, and just now realized that the other guide who was with Alfred Molina from the beginning was also the Nazi spy with the eye patch and monkey.

I think iconic movies like this are under appreciated later on because they have been emulated so many times over the years and people have seen something like it. But when this first came out? Wow!!!

At 28:31 Indy says "I don't know. I'm making this up as I go". I heard that was an ad lib by Harrison Ford because he forgot the line, but they liked it so much they left it in.

I've been rewatching them all for The Dial of Destiny and I can tell you that both this film and The Last Crusade are some of my all time favorite films, especially The Last Crusade. You're going to have a lot of fun with these! 🤗

I have watched many reaction videos for this movie and you are the first person to understand it. "Not for the eyes of mortals" Smart woman!! Way to go!

I knew a martial arts teacher who had two completely different types of class. He taught people to compete in competitive tournaments, and he also taught self defense classes. In the competition classes he taught you to follow the rules, but in self defense classes he taught you to fight dirty. If you are fighting to defend yourself, you want every advantage. Trying to fight clean will only increase your chances of losing the fight. You fight dirty because you are fighting for your life.

I enjoyed the entire franchise. The Last Crusade is my favorite with Raiders the second. There is something about Harrison Ford and Sean Connery costarring together that is a work of art. They meld well together in the story and the acting is wonderful.

This movie is one of the Best "ODTAA" movies ever- "one darn thing after another". Some big problem happens, gets resolved, the audience gets time for ONE deep breath, and Something Else happens...

Did you know... The freighter captain, Katanga, would go on to play Kingsley SHacklebolt in the HP films

38:45 That's actually true of all the IJ movies. For example: You mentioned watching 'Last Crusade'? If the Nazi's found the Grail, they couldn't have taken it out of the cave anyway. Indy isn't the hero of these movies, he's the protagonist. In a lot of ways, the narrator. It said so point blank at 35:23 Indiana Jones is passing through history. He's fighting the bad guys, and he's saving the damsels, but history takes care of itself.

Indiana Jones is one of my favorite franchise. I am so glad you discover this movie Jacqui and I’m so exited to see your next réactions 🤠

As usual another great review. I really like all the little extra things you insert into your videos. Keep up the good work!😎👍

9:51 - 9:52 I love Indy looking at Sallah with that "what are you, fuckin' kidding me?" look after he tells Indy to go first. 😂😂

In The Last Crusade, the Arc is mentioned and is in a picture and Indiana's father asks Indiana if he is sure it is the arc. Indiana replies, "Pretty Sure." He is sure because he went through this movie. haha.

I want to shout out to Marion (and Karen Allen). Hands down the best female character in the whole series. For my money she (both as written and as performed) is one of the best female characters out there. Btw, what were the names on a couple of the buildings at USC SCA? And you hadn't seen Raiders? Tsk Tsk 😂

The actor playing the villain Beloc played the priest in the Simon Pegg movie “Hot Fuzz”.

The scene where they Indy encounters the guy with the sword was suppose to be an elaborate sword v whip fight, but it was a really hot day, they had already done several takes and everyone was tired. So i=Indy pulls his gun and shoots. Everyone played along. The sword guy fell down, and even the extras cheered. It worked so much better they kept it.

For me, folks who say Indy's presence doesn't matter in this adventure are missing a basic point. The ark is a MacGuffin, he and Marian matter in the story because it's their journey and adventure together. They are changed by the experiences and come out as wiser, possibly better people. That's a successful hero's journey even if the two heroes weren't needed to stop the bad guys. The two heroes took a humble leap of faith and left the bad guys to their fate.

One thing you might find cool is Steven Soderbergh's edit of Raiders of the Lost Ark. He desaturates it to black and white, and replaces the soundtrack, including dialogue, with atmosphere synth. It's an exercise in drawing attention to Spielberg's masterful use of blocking and framing in Raiders, and it's really effective in showcasing what a uniquely brilliantly directed film it is.

Many stories likely have the same "flaw" of the main character being unnecessary. You could say the same about other characters in movies, such as the villain, or love interest. It is the interaction of those characters which makes the story, and a story worth telling. Thanks for the awesome reaction.

The famous scene in which Indy shoots a marauding and flamboyant swordsman was not in the original script. Harrison Ford was supposed to use his whip to get the sword out of his attacker's hands, but the food poisoning he and the rest of the crew had gotten made him too sick to perform the stunt. After several unsuccessful tries, Ford suggested "shooting the sucker." Steven Spielberg immediately took him up on the idea, and the scene was successfully filmed.

Hi Jacqui, Just want to say, I really enjoyed your video and your genuine reaction(s) to this Spielberg/Lucas Classic I love this movie :) I remember seeing this with my parents, when I was a little boy, and my dear dad laughing at Harrison Ford’s greatest ad-libbed scene.. When he just shoots the s.o.b who’s swinging the sword. What’s even greater is, that after all these years, seeing someone see that scene for the 1st time and still have the same wonderful visceral reaction. I enjoyed watching the joy in your face. Thank you, Fabian

3:35 - This is why he eventually grew to hate Spider-Man.

In case it wasn't clear, the German got branded with only one side of the medallion. That's why their staff was too long and they were digging in the wrong place. If Indy hadn't been there, maybe they'd have gotten the medallion from Marion and known the right length for the staff. Or maybe they'd have stumbled onto the Well of Souls just by persistence. In case you've never read any of them, Indy owes much of his existence to H. Rider Haggard, a 19th and early 20th century writer who created Indy's precursor, a Great White Hunter named Allan Quatermain and his adventures beginning with King Solomon's Mines in 1885. His books are kind of amazing and not nearly as racist as we might expect given the material and their setting. Haggard also gave us Ayesha, AKA She Who Must Be Obeyed, as well as many other compelling characters.

Great reaction to a classic! Such a great script, cinematography, and direction, as you pointed out. Especially with the use of light, shadows, and silhouettes. And the amazing Williams score. Toht only has the amulet's one side burned into the palm of his hand. That burn/branding is how they were able to make the headpiece that they used to dig. But with only half the instructions... Marian was an example of the kick butt female lead that was pretty standard in a lot of the post-WWII serials that were the inspiration for Indy. She was smart, capable, and beautiful. Another example of such a character is from the 1946 serial The Crimson Ghost, wherein the female lead can fly a plane, drive a heavy duty truck, fire a gun, she also participates in many of the action scenes and pretty much wears pants throughout the serial. The Crimson Ghost is also known for having the actor who later played the Lone Ranger, Clayton Moore, as a bad guy. 😀 One thing that no one ever seems to get though is that she's NOT faking in the drinking contest with Belloq. He's grown up drinking this stuff from childhood, and it isn't affecting him as badly as she expected. She asks about the stuff they're drinking when she realizes that she's at her edge of functionality and he's still upright. When she learns that he's going to be impossible for her to drink under the table, she goes with the Plan B that she, smart cookie that she is, prepared just in case: the knife. It's an even better scene that way because it shows that she knows she's at the limit of her functionality and instead of pursuing a plan that will likely leave her incapable of aiding in her own escape, she smartly changes tactics and holds the unarmed and inebriated Belloq at bay with her knife. And then Toht walks in. The jerk. He'd sober anyone up. As would all the snakes in the Well of Souls. Strongman/wrestler/actor/and all around nice guy Pat Roach is in this movie twice and dies each time. He dies as the big Sherpa in the gunfight at Marion's bar and as the burly bald boxer who is more focused on Indy than the propeller. 😲 He would go on to appear in, and die in, the second and third Indy films, though his death scene in Last Crusade ended up on the cutting room floor, but he does appear briefly in the movie anyway. Speaking of people who die in movies, this movie also has an appearance of one actor who, this time, did not die. 😀The mustached suit and tie Army Major at the beginning and end of this movie ("Top. Men.") was previously seen in another Lucas/Spielburg film. He played the ill-fated Jek Porkins/Red 6 who did not survive in Star Wars. I am a HUGE practical FX guy. I grew up watching Harryhausen FX in movies and worked on trying to create some of my own primitive FX for theater and the Super 8 films we made as kids. Though horrifying to my 13 year old eyes when I saw this on release back in 1981, the practical FX of the deaths of Toht, Belloq, and the German commander were just so cool to me. 😀 And yes, they had all been judged and their remains were just gone as if they had never existed... 😀 Loved that! The final scene of the many many many ad infinitum crates in the warehouse was said to be the inspiration for SyFy's wonderful show Warehouse 13. I so love that show! The Indiana Jones trilogy is all there is. They waited too long and didn't have as good a script for Crystal Skull, and it only got much much worse for Dial of Destiny from what I've been told.

Historical fact, Raiders of the Lost Ark was supposed to be a B movie, but became a box office iconic master piece.

I think you were right. You're the first reactor I've seen who commented, "I wonder if he has the right side." Without both sides, the Nazis were digging in the wrong place. The side burned into his hand got them a clue where to dig, but not having the other side was crucial.

About the snake pit scene, before they digitized some of the effects, you could see Indy's reflection in the glass that separated him from the snakes

I saw Raiders when I was 10 years old in the theater during its original theatrical run, and it blew my mind right through the back wall of the room! It remains to this day one of the very best theatrical experiences I’ve ever had, and influenced me and my young, impressionable mind to never give up when going for something. I wanted that grit and determination that Indiana Jones had. It also made me do things physically that probably raised my mother’s blood pressure significantly, as I kind of became an adrenaline junkie after that. But seriously. This movie is EVERYTHING, and remains my all time favorite film to this day. The scene blocking is amazing, the way each shot is set up and executed is flawless, the performances are believable, and that score is just the glue that puts it all together! Near perfect film!

From what I've heard, in the scene with Indy being dragged behind the truck, tere was a shallow ditch made for Harrison Ford to be dragged. The truck was driving slow, to prevent injury, and the film sped up in post.

The most amazing part of this movie for me is that it is only 1h 55m long. How they crammed so much into a movie less than 2 hours long is a true masterpiece of film making.

I'm old enough that I was in college when Snakes on a Plane came out and one of the YTMND memes was the scene with Indiana Jones in the plane with a snake. It said "The original Snake on a Plane." :D

I've always interpretated that last shot as an homage to the last shot of the movie "Citizen Kane", where they are cataloguing the accumulated possessions of Charles Foster Kane after his death.

Great review. I ❤ your facial reactions & sense of fun & themed clothes. Please keep it up.

The Nazis only had the limited information that they had BECAUSE of the scar on Toad's hand. Indy had BOTH sides of the headpiece. Penny's assertion was that the Nazi's would have eventually found the ark, just by sheer dumb luck, but then everyone on the island with the Ark would have died, and the Ark would be stuck on that island.

I'm glad you mention the Big Bang Theory episode about Indy's involvement in the film. Technically, Indy is kind of detrimental to the plot, though he does get the girl at the end. Also, had the Nazis found the Ark without Indy's involvement, it probably would have gone to Berlin and incinerated the actual leaders of the High Command including Adolf himself upon being opened. If anything was left of the Nazis afterwards, though, they would have probably would have realized to shut their eyes when the Ark is opened and wound up using the Ark to decimate the Allies. So, in that way, Indy did contribute to the plot. Plus, he rode off into the sunset with Marion. Win there.

I love the piece "Marions Theme" as well as "Raiders March". This is one of my favourite movies, and why I love games set in the 30's. "Dial of Destiny" was OK but probably about the same level as TOD

If Indy hadn't been in Nepal, the Nazis would have gotten the medallion right away and been able to read both sides from the start.

I feel that when they made this movie it was like they caught lightning in a bottle and the feel of this movie has never been able to be duplicated in any of the sequels. Everything in this movie was just perfect for an adventure entertainment movie: the use of lighting and shadows (as you have noticed), the pacing, the dialogue, all the iconic elements, the basis for the story etc. There are other movies I feel the same way about that I thought should have been left as a stand-alone in my opinion such as The Matrix and Highlander to name a few.

Maureen McCormick, from the original Brady Bunch series, was called in to audition for the part of Marion. She was cracked out and blew it.

Saw the last one last night. Nice send off to the franchise.

The Last Crusade is my favorite of the 5 Indiana Jones movies! Raiders of the Lost Ark is my second favorite. Great reaction. I hope to see your reactions to the other movies in the near future. 😊

Great reaction! saw this when it came out, thought it was the best movie I had ever seen. OH and love your nails.

Since you’ve already seen The Last Crusade my head canon is that Abner Ravenwood is the archeologist who finds and sells the Cross of Coronado that Indy steals.

Random casting note - the guy who played the captain of the freighter went on to play Kingsley Shacklebolt in the Harry Potter films. Damn' fine actor who's been in loads of stuff over the years. 😃 I reckon I'm going to be in the minority, but I enjoyed the hell out of "Dial of Destiny" and don't care what anyone else thinks. There was one chase too many for me - one of them seemed like it was there because someone decided they needed another thing to happen - but that's more of a modern action movie thing than anything egregious that this movie committed. If "Last Crusade" didn't have Sean Connery in it I would put "Dial of Destiny" a notch above it - everyone looks at "Last Crusade" with rose tinted glasses so that they overlook some of the jaw-droppingly slapdash, lazy shit that we see in that movie. No idea what happened - maybe Lucas and Spielberg were tired of Indy by then? "Dial of Destiny" has one of the best conceived villains of the series, second only to Belloq in this but none of the other movies really wrote a good villain, relying on damn' good actors to breathe life into them - Mads Mikkelson is really good without trying to steal the movie. So that's what I think. 🙂

One of my favorite movies. I got a movie reaction suggestion for you it's another one of my favorite movies, The Final Countdown (1980) The U.S.S. Nimitz goes back to December 6th, 1941. It's filmed on the Nimitz.

As you surmised, every kid wanted a whip after 'Raiders' came out, and I was no exception. My sister and I got cheapo toy whips at the local fair, and we even bought the official Indiana Jones fedoras. A big oak tree in our yard had a sturdy dead limb sticking out, so you can guess what I did. That cheapo whip broke halfway through the swing and dropped me hard on my ass. That was one of two times I tried to mimic something I'd seen in a movie. I'll tell you about the other one if and when you do a reaction to 'A Christmas Story.'

38:14 I believe it’s Warehouse 13 😂. Love that show!

"Raiders of the Lost Ark": An homage to cliffhanger movies of the 1930's, it had enough stunts for THREE Action movies of the era, second choice Harrison Ford created another movie icon, "two-fisted Marion Ravenwood" stood tall as Indy's equal, and a generation of college students were persuaded to "dig in the dirt" as now-Cool Archeologists.

Glad you finally caught the film that is the gold standard for the genre, and started the iconic franchise. I hope you review all of the other films (including a rewatch for your thoughts on Last Crusade). I was 10 when this film came out. Talk about influential.... :)

Inside the Ark was except for the stone tablets Aarons rod and a jar of manna. The relics did burn on the ship to keep them away.

I'm glad you recognized Alfred Molina. He was also in the credits although he didn't last long, lol

I didn't see the Indiana Jones movies until I was a teenager. My grandparents had both Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade on VHS so I borrowed both of them from them when I was in high school and loved both. I didn't see Temple of Doom until it was on TV at some point in the late 2000s, when I was in my early 20s.

So for all the references this movie generated that you call out, it’s kind of worth pointing out that Spielberg references many many cowboy movies he grew up watching, including a famous stagecoach chase where the character needs to slide under the stagecoach and is dragged just like that behind it… much like with Indy and the green truck.

I took a drink every time you said “iconic” and now I’m dead.

One of my fave lil facts for the movie is that the sound of the big Boulder chasing Indiana is the sound of one of the filmmakers lil 80s Toyota driving on gravel that they just stuck a mic next to lol

Jacqui, I suppose I am a good parent, as far as movies go. I made sure my children saw these when they (my kids) were in their early teens. Now they are 33 and 31 respectively, and they both appreciate the entire first three of this series.

The scene where Indy shoots the guy with the sword was supposed to be an actual fight. They practiced for a long time on it and when the day came to shoot Ford had been sick for days and came up with the idea to just shoot him himself. The swordsman was reportedly upset over it. The warehouse at the end was the inspiration for the TV show Wraehouse 13.

26:38 Stuntman/Actor Pat Roach got to play TWO minor characters who lost their lives fighting Indy in this film. The first was the giant Nepali in the "fire fight" at Marion's tavern. The second was as the gargantuan German who challenged Indy to a fistfight and should have watched out for the propeller. George Lucas cast Roach in a larger role a few years later in the movie "Willow", as General Kael.

The Wilhelm Scream is used in every Indiana Jones movie and Star Wars movie.

Yes, I was a kid when it came out and got a leather bullwhip at a giftshop at Six Flags Over Texas. Not only did I get good at hitting things and snapping it, but I could wrap it around a pole, and with a criss-cross motion, get the whip to tie around itself, so it could be swung from. (Granted, I probably weighed 100 pounds, lol.)

Steven Spielberg & George Lucas took a lot of inspiration from b-movies and serials from the 30s and 40s, but another inspiration that isn't mentioned enough is James Bond. That was a big reason why they got Sean Connery to play Indy's dad in Last Crusade. Have you seen any of the Bond movies? Edit: OK, I just saw that you have seen the first 2 Daniel Craig films, but you need to see the classics, particularly the Sean Connery ones.

For film students, this is a perfectly directed, produced, written, cast, shot, edited, scored, and choreographed film!

Just found your Channel your review first time watch of Indiana Jones and Raiders of the Lost Ark was delightful you are amazingly Charming

Watching Marian participate in that drinking contest at the beginning had me laughing a bit. If I remember right, there was a similar drinking contest between Gimli and Lagolas in the Lord of the Rings movies that I don't remember being in the books. lol

Went to a multiplex theater to see Dragonslayer back in 1981…finished watching that movie and snuck into the adjacent theater to see another which happened to be Raiders of the lost ark. We had no idea what it was about and hadn’t seen any trailers…needless to say…our minds were blown!

I was really little when I first saw this in the theater - but I was saved from nightmares because I took Indy at his word and kept my eyes shut along with Marion at the end, so it was years later before I saw the melting Nazis. It stayed one of my all-time-favorite movies and I even dressed as Indy for Halloween when I was 10.

19:44 when they spread all the snakes they had over the floor, there weren't enough, they had to bring in more. When Indy falls and ends up face to face with the viper, there's a very slight reflection that can be seen on the sheet of glass that was between him and the snake (though on some DVD editions it was erased)

I watched this Movie when it first came out in the Movie Theatre. it was amazing seeing Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones after seeing him as Han Solo. It was 2 Iconic roles for him.

I read a screenplay review of this movie where the screenwriter claimed what made Raiders of the Lost Ark great was that everything Indy tried to do failed but still advanced the plot until the end. By the way, the writer of that review wrote (along with this writing partnet) many movies including Pirates of the Carribean.

When Indy and Sallah are first lifting off the cover off the Ark, over Indy's right/screen left shoulder you can see C-3PO and R2D2 carved in with the Hieroglyphics

I remember seeing this in the theater when it released. When the monkey died, everyone gasped a little, but one guy in the audience said, "Ha! Dirty little Nazi monkey!" Then almost the whole audience laughed their asses off. It was way too funny! Interesting note: The scene where he drops into the chamber with all the snakes and comes face to face with a cobra, that was a real cobra and there was no CGI in that scene. Ford and the cobra were separated by an extremely clean plate of glass, if you pause and look closely, very faint reflections can be seen on the glass.

I was14 when Raiders was released. I saw it with my Mum and Gran. We all loved it and I was an instant fan. On leaving the cinema I said 'Mum, can i have a whip for my birthday"? And I did. I now have an Indy costume made by the costumiers for the film in London. A big thrill was meeting the lovely gentleman at Herbert Johnson in London that created his legendary Indy Poet.

Fun fact: Tom Selleck was originally signed to play Indiana Jones...but CBS gave a hard NO, as Sellect was already signed to do _Magnum, P.I._ and they would not suspend the show for Spielberg and Lucas. Left without a lead, they called Ford, who jumped at the role -- which is how he also got both the Han Solo and Deckard (Blade Runner) roles.

I've always thought the iconic rolling boulder is likely inspired by a similar scene in 1959's Journey to the Center of the Earth. The big guy in the Nepalese bar fight also fights Indy under the plane and is Pat roach, an ex-wrestler turned actor. Spielberg & Lucas were on holiday together when Spielberg mentioned he'd like to do a 007 Bond movie but Lucas said 'I've got something better'. Notice in the movie it begins with the climax of the previous adventure, like in 007 movies its always his previous mission pre-credits. if you look closely at the truck falling over in the square, the mechanism which pushed it over is visible - a large tube just under the rear wheels. And in the other truck scene, you can just make out the shallow trench that was dug for the stunt guy to slide in since he needed more clearance under the truck.

excellent commentary on this pulp classic. You noticed the small things that fans appreciated.

Glad I’m not the only one who saw Last Crusade first. I didn’t see Raiders until middle school, but I’d seen Last Crusade dozens upon dozens of times before that. Still my favorite, though I will grant that Raiders is a better movie. 3:37 Not only was this Alfred Molina’s first movie, the scene with the spiders was his FIRST DAY on set. Welcome to the party, pal. 30:25 Possibly the greatest practical stunt ever performed. Harrison’s stunt double, Vic Armstrong, really was dragged under the truck for this sequence. If you look really closely, you can see they dug a small channel in the road because his chin didn’t quite clear the gearbox under the truck, so they lowered the center of the road by an inch or so. It’s also shot at a slightly lower frame rate so it could be sped up to look more dangerous. 34:40 I can never remember where, but there’s a loudspeaker announcement in the sub pen that says, “Eins, eins, drei, acht,” or 1138 in German. This is a reference of George Lucas’ student film, and first theatrical film, THX-1138.

I like the references to Casablanca in this movie.

Fun Fact: In Lego Indiana Jones: The Videogame, the scene with Belloq and Indy argue over the idol is longer and funnier. Indy attempts to bribe Belloq with a diamond, a rubber ducky, and Threepio's Head, to which Belloq does a pretty fair impression of ol' Goldenrod.

The prop depiction of the Ark is an excellent interpretation of the very detailed description (actually a set of instructions of what the Israelites were commanded to build) found in Exodus 25:10-22.

The monkey you’re thinking of is named Crystal and her filmography includes George of the Jungle, Night at the Museum, Community, The Big Bang Theory, and more recently, The Fabelmans.

Fun fact: although it was actually based on the colors of the German Imperial Navy flag, the Nazi flag had the same colors as (as mentioned in Plato apparently) the type of brickwork done in Atlantis, which the Nazis believed was the prehistoric origin of the Aryan ethnotype. Related fun fact: it was not actually Hitler but Himmler (Hitler’s right-hand man, commander of the SS and head of the Gestapo) who was chasing around the world after mystical artifacts. He was a major funder of the Ahnenerbe (“Ancestral Heritage”) Organization which provided the archaeological teams digging in various sites, trying to uncover the lost history/mythos of the Aryans. They were the ones Indy faced at Tanis.

The Bible has detailed descriptions of how the ark was built. When studying the design, it's a wooden box plated on the inside and outside with gold, essentially becoming a massive capacitor. Carrying it through the desert with it's hot, dry winds would build up an extreme static charge. Anyone touching it would look like they were being struck by lightning from the static discharge. The description was also specific on using wooden poles to carry it - insulating the carriers from the ark.