Indiana Jones: Breaking Down the Legacy

Posted by FSR Staff (editors@filmschoolrejects.com) on May 18, 2008

THE IDEA

George Lucas starting playing around with the idea of an adventurous archeologist at about the same time he starting writing a space opera that was inspired by his love for the comic book character, Flash Gordon. He put the former idea on the shelf and the latter into production and the end result was a cult phenomenon known as Star Wars.

Lucas wasn’t sure about how the public would react to Star Wars. He couldn’t handle the stress, so during the film’s release he decided to take a vacation to Hawaii to get away from the buzz and invited his friend Steven Spielberg, who in the same year released Close Encounters of the Third Kind, to tag along. While lying on the beach, the two started playing ideas off one another and began thinking about their next projects. Spielberg mentioned that he always wanted to do a James Bond film, but Lucas interrupted his idea and said he had something better. He told him his idea about the archeologist and Spielberg was immediately won over by it.

Lucas named the character Indiana, after his dog. (This might sound familiar to fans, who will remember that Henry Jones, Sr. tells Sallah and Brody that this is where Indy got his name from.) Originally, Lucas tried the name Indiana Smith, which had about as much ring to it as Lucas’s other first name choice, Luke Starkiller. Fortunately, Spielberg suggested a name change, and they eventually agreed upon Jones. Can you imagine if they stuck with Indiana Smith?

CREATING THE STORY – FROM RAIDERS TO THE LAST CRUSADE

The first Indiana Jones film was given the title Raiders of the Lost Ark. A writing credit is given to Phillip Kaufman, who collaborated with Lucas on the original story before he even discussed the project with Spielberg. It was Kaufman who came up with the idea to have supernatural artifact at the center of the film: the Ark of the Covenant. Lawrence Kasdan was brought on to pen the script.

After the success of the first film, an outside screenwriter was brought in for Temple of Doom. Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz (who wrote American Grafitti and went on to write Howard the Duck, both for Lucas), penned the script that took Indy to a different area of the world altogether: India. Indy was given a child sidekick, Short Round (named after Huyck’s dog) and a new love interest, Willie Scott (named after Spielberg’s dog).

Lucas chose this film to have a darker tone, which helped usher in the PG-13 rating. Lucas felt this had worked for The Empire Strikes Back, and he took another page from the Star Wars saga by making the film a prequel that took place a year before Raiders. Spielberg had fun too, as he met his future wife Kate Capshaw during the production.

When it came time to make The Last Crusade, Spielberg wanted to appease his critics from Temple of Doom. He had also agreed to make three of the films with George Lucas, and this time they went back to the tone, feel and villains fo th efirst movie. With Temple of Doom being the only sequel Spielberg directed at the time (with Jurassic Park: The Lost World being his only other sequel outside of the Indiana Jones canon), it was a first for the legendary director.

Jeffrey Boam wrote the script from a story by Lucas and Menno Meyjes, who had adapted The Color Purple for Spielberg. It featured the return of fan favorites like Sallah (John Rhys-Davies) and Marcus Brody (Denholm Elliot), but more importantly it featured Sean Connery as Indy’s dear old dad.

SHUFFLING THE FIRST CAST

Harrison Ford was made famous by Lucas with his roles in Star Wars and American Graffitti. Originally, Lucas rejected the idea of having Ford play the part, saying that he didn’t want Ford to become his De Niro. Tom Selleck was the original favorite to star in the lead but was unavailable because of the launch of “Magnum P.I.” Eventually, Spielberg convinced Lucas to invite Ford aboard. Could you imagine anyone else playing the part? Jones’ character is known for his pluckiness and his appearance, which includes his trademark hat and leather jacket, and his trusty whip and pistol.

Karen Allen was also not the original favorite to play Marion Ravenwood. Sean Young, who later appeared with Ford in Blade Runner, was almost decided on, but she also became unavailable. She and Selleck even did one of the film’s first screen tests together. Spielberg was interested in Allen via the raunchy comedy Animal House and she agreed to do the part. She brought to Marion a feel of total independency and brawniness, as well as a sweet and light side.

BUILDING THE BAD GUYS

Like most sane people in the world today, Spielberg has no love for the Nazis, and he made them the overbearing villains in both Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade. However, these two films also featured a villain that would make up for their lack of brawn with cleverness and scheming in their battle against Indiana Jones.

In Radiers, Belloq is played by the British actor Paul Freeman. Physically, he is not Indiana’s equal. Indy is the daring workhorse that does the dirty work, and Belloq is the sly little weasel who makes his move at the opportune moment. Belloq always seems to be one step ahead of him. In the middle of Raiders, he tells Indiana “There is nothing that you can possess which I cannot take away.”

Similarly, in The Last Crusade, it is Indy’s initial benefactor Walter Donovan who ends up double-crossing him. Donovan, like Belloq, is after antiquities for his own benefit, which proves disastrous to their characters as they die some pretty gruesome deaths.

Laying the groundwork for the Nazi baddies, Raiders gives us Ronald Lacey as Toht, the most intimidating and creepy of the Nazis. Throughout the movie, Lucas and Spielberg are paying their tributes to the classic films that inspired them. While Indy was inspired by the types of character Humphrey Bogart played in the 1940s, Lacey kinda gave Spielberg that sense of creepiness that reminded him of Peter Lorre in The Maltese Falcon. He is easily one of the more interesting villains in any adventure movie ever made. Finally, Wolf Kahler plays the less memorable Colonel Dietrich, head of the excavation. The two villains are most well known for the climax scene in which their faces are completely melted off.

The Nazis return as the villains in The Last Crusade, and the filmmakers continue the tradition of international bad guys with the new release Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, releasing May 22.

Article by Kevin Carr. Additional commentary by Nathan Deen.

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