Indiana Jones Film Response
- jessicadawnruiz
- Jun 25, 2015
- 3 min read
Jessica Ruiz
09-16-2013
Most people while watching a movie like Indiana Jones tend to focus on the actors. While their roles are crucial, I wanted to understand more about the other people behind the scenes that make the production possible, so I began researching the various roles. Steven Spielberg was a very busy man in 1981 as he played a huge part of the creative edge behind the movie. Well known for his many other classics, he utilized his creativity and managerial skills to navigate the creation of yet another hit. I had a false impression in the past that the director is just the guy in the background who gets angry when things go wrong. It goes far beyond that. During the filming of Indiana Jones, Spielberg was there every step of the way. He was responsible for the assemblage of footage, reviewing pages of script, suggesting sound effects and music, writing voice over material and many other tasks. After realizing his numerous roles, I have a new respect for the position of the director (Prospects).
I also have found myself very impressed with the role of the special effects technicians. Ben Burtt was the sound effects supervisor, and I found his job interesting. He really had to use his imagination to help create the effects necessary to give the audience a life-like final product. For example, the sound of Indiana's rifle was produced using a 30-30 Winchester rifle. During fight scenes, the sounds of punching and blows were produced using leather jackets and baseball gloves. My favorite effect was what they used for the sound of the snakes slithering on top of each other. The sound team ran their fingers through casserole. The noise of the spirits within the Ark was produced using the sounds of dolphins. I must admit, prior to researching foley work, I thought many of these sounds were produced naturally, and it must take a lot of time to find ways to emulate sounds for the various parts of the movie that necessitate it (Media).
The role of the costume designer was very important in this movie, and I enjoyed listening to the woman who helped create the look of Indiana Jones. Most notably, I remembered her talking about the time and effort that went into the selection of Indiana Jones's outfit. I have seen the image of Indiana Jones my entire life, but I never thought much about the detailed effort that goes into every single intricate aspect of the film. You could tell how much work they put into making the hat looked used. When I actually saw it in the movie, I was impressed with the stories this hat seemed to tell. It appeared to allude that this was not the first adventure Indiana Jones had embarked upon, and it made the viewers wonder, whether or not they realized it, what had led up to his fascination with adventure and archeology.
The climax of the movie where the Ark of the Covenant is opened, unleashing God's wrath, took a lot of hard work. Industrial Light and Magic was hired to take on the job, and they did an awesome job. For instance, the spirits that seemed to be floating across the water were actually rod puppets. Also, when Toht's head appeared to melt, it was actually a gelatin mold of the actor's head exposed to high heat. Finally, the fire storm in the canyon was produced using a miniature canyon that was filmed upside down (Media).
While I found all of these aspects interesting, what I found truly fascinating is the amount of effort the crew went to in order to create the den of snakes. They actually bought and shipped in crates of real snakes! I think this is an aspect where you truly have to respect the actors and actresses for having the courage to complete the scene. And for Marion to actually walk through with her feet exposed is something to ponder. I think most people assumed that they were mechanical or that there were special effects that enabled the actors to work around the snakes. But, to know, behind the scenes, they were actually bitten, is something that makes you have a whole new respect for the work that was put into the making of this movie (Indiana).
Works Cited
“Prospects” Official Graduate Careers Website. February 2011.
Media College.com. “The Film Director” Diana Dannenfelt. http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/film-editor1.htm
Indiana Jones.de. “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” http://www.indianajones.de/indy2/texte/making_of_05.php
Yorumlar