100 All-Time Films (To see the entire list, click here)
Steven Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Put this side-by-side with The Adventures of Robin Hood and you get the two greatest action/adventure films ever made. Steven Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark features the iconic character Indiana Jones and his struggle against the Nazis (always those evil guys) to find the Ark of the Covenant. What an awesome idea! Delving into religion, history, and archaeology, Spielberg creates the quintessential action film for all ages.
What I like most about Indiana Jones is fully represented in the picture above, he isn’t superhuman. He is smart, brave, and has all of the skills, but his face shows fear (other than snakes) and he gets his ass kicked a lot! His snark sense of humor makes the character as well. Who can forget when he shoots the master swordsman after he twirls his sword multiple times to intimidate Indy? Ford’s performance makes him very accessible to the audience who can believe a character like this exists.
Raiders of the Lost Ark was released during the relative beginning of the box office summer flick that Spielberg himself perfected six years ago with Jaws. It felt like a film from Hollywood’s golden age tailored for a modern audience. With this film and the next year’s E.T., Spielberg firmly defined himself as the king of Hollywood blockbuster filmmaking.
