Raiders of the Lost Ark

RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981) - May 14, 2008 (Fifth or Sixth Viewing)
Wow! It's easy to forget what an amazing director Steven Spielberg was in his prime, but this is a pretty stunning reminder; I think this is very close to being a perfect film. Certainly, it is a perfect summer blockbuster, and the absolute antithesis to the type of garbage we tend to see these days. Spielberg's direction is almost ridiculously good, with the more dramatic stuff faring just as well as the action (and there isn't a hand-held camera in sight, which would be almost unheard of in a contemporary action film, and which proves beautifully that that hand-held/shaky-cam is absolutely not needed to craft an exciting action scene). Then there's the performances -- there's a reason Indiana Jones is such an iconic character; Harrison Ford's performance has just the right amount of charm, gravitas, and badassery. The other actors are just as good. John William's score (which has to be one of the most recognizable scores of all time) is as effective as it is memorable. Man, what a great film this was. I remembered it being excellent but it was even better than I had remembered. ****