Indiana Jones and The Power of Nostalgia
To mark the 40th anniversary of Raiders of the Lost Ark, I braved my way into movie theater. It was one of the best cinematic experiences I have had in a long time. Not to mention, the first theater experience I have had in nearly 17 months since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. The movie itself was newly restored in 4K. Raiders had never looked or sounded better. The most important thing for me though was crossing this item off my bucket list: See Raiders on a big screen. I can now die a happy man knowing that I have done this, and that for a fleeting moment, I knew what was like to be 10 years old in 1981. The anticipation of the upcoming fifth film and this screening really made me want to go back and evaluate why I love this series so much, and how formative it is for me.
When I was around eight years old, I saw Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. This weirdly enough was my first introduction to Indiana Jones. I knew Harrison Ford from Star Wars already, so I was stunned to know that he had played another character that was just as iconic. Over the course of that next year, I learned about Indiana Jones. I was and still am captivated by this character and the mythology around him — and there is a ton. There is enough that it warranted its own TV series simply known as The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. So captivated that I would take a bomber jacket and cheap fedora and imagine myself as Indy. That’s the point, right? To go to the movies on a Saturday afternoon and experience a fun mindless popcorn adventure. That’s what it does. It also does the opposite. It gives you characters with very human flaws and very real problems to deal with. How does it do this? How is it relatable in that sense?
Once I saw Crystal Skull, I asked my Dad to find me the other Indiana Jones films. I remember this is one of the early things that we bonded over. He was more than enthusiastic to show these movies to me. And now, a little bit about my Dad: he loves John Wayne. He grew up on films such as The Quiet Man and The Searchers and was lucky enough to experience the peak of American cinema in the late 70s and early 80s. He has uttermost respect for figures such as Johnny Cash and John Steinbeck. My Dad loves a good thriller as much as the next guy and loves going to the movies — just like myself. Over the course of three Friday nights in winter of 2010, we watched the rest of the Indiana Jones series. From there, I built the LEGO models and played the LEGO games. I watched fan films. I was Indiana Jones on the school playground. As a bonus, I learned the name of Steven Spielberg and the impact that he has had on modern cinema.
For the record: Star Wars did the exact same thing to me.
In the spring of 2012, the walls closed in around my family. My parents separated and I was thrown into a world of my own. I had just turned 11 years old and I was beginning to discover my knack for writing and looking for ways to express it all. This was also the summer that the first Avengers film came out — but I’ll save that for another time. It was at that time, that I had a rediscovery of these movies, only this time — it would be different. This time I would see the shear brilliance of the stories being told. This time I would see the depth of the relationship between Harrison Ford and Sean Connery in The Last Crusade. I would hear subtleties of John Williams score in Temple of Doom. I would appreciate the sheer brilliance of the production value in Raiders of The Lost Ark.
A lot of the mystique around Indiana Jones is in the way that Harrison Ford portrays him. He is no superhero, and Ford never forgets that. Neither does Steven Spielberg or George Lucas — who was inspired by Clint Eastwood and James Bond to create this character. Indiana Jones is still a human being with human flaws and emotions. He still bleeds — especially when he is dragged beneath the bottom of a truck. Harrison Ford brings wit and passion to his character which is seen his smile, he brings terror in which is seen in his eyes, and he brings style in the way that he dons the leather jacket and iconic fedora that are forever associated with the image of Indiana Jones. All of these things build the character up in a way that makes him fun to look at and makes you curious as to what his next move will be. It doesn’t matter what is happening on screen, Indiana Jones is a badass. Plain and simple.
The name “Indiana Jones” is simply a moniker. Because by day, he is a college professor that teaches archaeology. Here he is known as Professor Henry Jones — JUNIOR! Sorry, damn it. I had to. Anyway, he shares a name with his father, who is ALSO a professor of archaeology. There is a moment in Crystal Skull where he refers to his teaching as a ‘part time’ job, implying that he takes his infamous persona as ‘the eminent archaeologist’ somewhat more serious. In fact, he sees it as a distraction from everything else. For me, this is the appeal of Indiana Jones. Indiana Jones is a man searching for something bigger. Which is the reason he nearly risks his life for The Ark of the Covenant and later The Holy Grail. Really at the core of it all, is a man searching for validation from his own father. Indy has always felt invisible and subservient to him and uses the globetrotting as a way to escape this problem and a name that he shares with someone else. The entirety of The Last Crusade rests on the idea of miscommunication. They spend the whole movie ignoring what the other has to say — also, a lot of the humor in this movie comes from that. They only ever see eye to eye at the end of the film. After saving his father’s life, Indy is forced to make a serious choice. The Holy Grail or a fruitful relationship with his old man. Indy chooses the latter and takes his father’s help.
In this moment, the senior Jones understands that his son is his own man. He also understands that some items such as The Grail aren’t worth losing his son over. Indy also understands this. You can see this in Ford’s brilliant portrayal of the moment. His eyes change from desperation to grief in a matter of seconds. It’s here where, he understands that there is more than the treasure, and that family is more important. This extends down to Marion Ravenwood, who he nearly lost trying to obtain The Ark of the Covenant years prior. And again, with the “Sankara Stones” in Temple of Doom. The “fortune and glory” is Indy’s mantra up until this moment. The moment where his own father decides to acknowledge him. The entire story and character rests on moments like this and it’s the reason that I continually get sucked in by these movies. There hasn’t been a year that hasn’t gone by where I haven’t sat down and revisited them. It’s also one that I own in multiple mediums: I have the DVD set, the Blu Ray set, and I will probably empty my wallet for the new 4K restorations sometime in the next few weeks here.
To answer my original question — These movies use character and melodrama to get you invested. It’s why Short Round saving Indy’s life in Temple of Doom is so meaningful. It’s why the drinking contest in Raiders hits, because you realize Marion is an alcoholic at her core. It’s why the father and son relationships within these movies resonate. While I was working on this, I was texting back and forth with my Dad about the first time we watched these movies together. He told me that The Last Crusade was his favorite of the four films, and I can see why. He himself grew up in a troubled environment and in that sense the film strikes a chord for him. He pointed out Sean Connery almost instantly upon telling me about his thoughts on it, and without a doubt he is the highlight of the film. As mentioned before, I’ve bonded with my Dad over these movies. In many ways, Indiana Jones serves as my origin story for my love of cinema and of Spielberg’s other works, and the relationship I share with my Dad. And for those reasons alone, these movies will always remain a cornerstone for who I am today.
