Archaeologist Indiana Jones races against time to find
the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis get there first.

ACTION/FANTASY

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

Directed by Steven Spielberg

Written by Lawrence Kasdan

Starring Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman,
​Ronald Lacey, John Rhys-Davies, Wolf Kahler, Denholm Elliott

Oscar Wins - Best Art Direction, Best Sound Mixing,
​Best Film Editing, Best Visual Effects

Oscar Nominations - Best Picture, Best Director,
​Best Cinematography, Best Original Score (John Williams)

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Connor Eyzaguirre

10/10

The film that started it all. Raiders is one of my all-time favorites and one of the most iconic adventure films ever made. There are few movie characters as badass as Indiana Jones, a role that Harrison Ford considers to be his greatest (and the rest of the world agrees with him).

Raiders is an undeniably fun movie that deals with religious topics in a way that isn't offensive and is very intriguing. The history behind the Ark of the Covenant is quite interesting and the climax where they finally open it is one of the freakiest and impressive scenes in Spielberg's entire career.

With this film, a legend was born. Indiana Jones is cool, intelligent, and has some of the best theme music of all time. While the sequels are excellent in their own way, Raiders of the Lost Ark will forever be known as the best.

Caleb Leger

March 22, 2015

10/10

The first film is always the best. Raiders of the Lost Ark is not only the best Indiana Jones films, it is one of the greatest films of all time. It is a fun, action packed movie full of globetrotting adventures, iconic theme music, and one of cinema's most iconic characters, Indiana Jones. 

The search for the Ark of the Covenant is thrilling and shows how the film smartly deals with religious topics in a way that pleases everyone. The mystery behind it is intriguing and leads to one of the most memorable climaxes in movie history. Even though this is the furthest thing from a horror movie, the climax is extremely frightening and impressive. Kudos to Steven Spielberg. Harrison Ford is perfect as the main character, Indiana Jones. He brings his signature charm and wit to the role, creating an icon of a character. 

This film was the start of a pretty impressive franchise. It features a main character who you continuously root for. It has one of the most recognizable theme music in the history of cinema. It also has some very great sequels. In the end, though, Raiders of the Lost Ark is still the best.