Indiana Jones: The Adventure Collection

Review By: Rocco Passafuime
RoccoPassafuime@TheCinemaSource.com

The Indiana Jones film series has become one of the most beloved in Hollywood. Provided proof positive through a slew of imitators from films like the National Treasure series and Jackie Chan’s rather comical Armour Of God and Operation Condor to campy TV fare like The Relic Hunter and The Librarian, it’s also continuously proven to be one of the most influential.

Now, after almost 20 long years, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg plan to revive the franchise with their newest entry Indiana Jones: The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. To celebrate it, all the previous movies have been freshly released on DVD in the new box set Indiana Jones.

The first movie in the collection is none other than the film that started it all Raiders Of The Lost Ark. In 1936, archeologist Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) is on a mission to obtain the Ark of the Covenant, which allegedly allows the user to “communicate directly with God.”

However, as he teams up with ex-girlfriend Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen) to find it, also seeking the Ark are a group of nefarious Nazi agents who want to retrieve the artifact for none other than Adolf Hitler himself. The next film in the series is the notorious and controversial Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom.

Taking place one year earlier in 1935, Indy teams up with young thief Short Round (Ke Huy Quan) and is saddled with whiny nightclub singer Willie Scott (Kate Capshaw) as they make their way from Shanghai to India. As they make their way into Pankot Palace to retrieve the legendary Sankara Stone, Indy and his stumble upon a bloodthirsty Kali cult who engage in human sacrifice and enslave children.

The collection rounds off with the third film in the series Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade. After a brief jump back to 1912 where we encounter our hero’s (River Phoenix) youthful beginnings as an obtainer of rare artifacts, we go forward to 1938 where Indy searches for the long-sought after Holy Grail, of which the blood of Christ, when drunk, will bring everlasting life.

He also searches for his rather aloof and whimsical long-lost father Henry (Sean Connery), who has vanished and whose diary of his research was mysteriously sent to him. Soon enough, father and son reunite and attempt to rekindle their cooled relationship as Indy and Henry attempt to stop the Nazis from using the Holy Grail to achieve their diabolical plans of world domination.

Intriguingly enough, the three Indiana Jones films are each set up in terms of atmosphere not unlike his venerable Star Wars trilogy. They all each benefit fromHarrison Ford in the venerable role, who refines his tough, yet hilarious character archetype he brought to Han Solo.

However, while Raiders continues to be a classic as a groundbreaking, enthusiastic homage to adventure serials of the 1930’s and is given added support by Karen ...