Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) *Gillian Pick*

As I have often said, I did not have much of an imagination as a child. If my G.I. Joe was missing an arm I could not pretend that his arm was there. Instead he had lost it in battle somehow (that is if I played with him at all). When I wanted to be one of my heroes, whether it be Dick Tracey or Indiana Jones, I couldn't get past the fact that my shirt had a picture on it and their shirts did not. I would go so far as to turn my shirt inside out so that I could use my makeshift whip without worrying about the Harley riding duck on my shirt. Sadly my imagination hasn't gotten better, but at least my love for Indiana Jones has not diminished.

Raiders of the Lost Ark is the first installment in a series of great films. Henry "Indiana" Jones Jr. is an archaeologist who, thanks to his OSS training, is able to survive some hairy situations. Raiders of the Lost Ark takes place during WWII, and follows Indiana as he looks for the Ark of the Covenant, hoping to find it before the Nazis do.

It's important to note that none of the stories in the Indiana Jones series are very believable. The viewer is able to overlook this fact because the dialogue is super funny, the action is superb, naturally people want a story that shows someone triumph over Nazis to be true, and religious beliefs come into play because the object of interest is some sort of religious artifact. Rather than focus on making a movie soaked in realism, the movies do a perfect job of melting scientific logic with the religious to make a fun family favorite.

You know something is good if it gets spoofed by Weird Al. Check out this clip from the great 80's movie UHF.


If it hasn't been made perfectly clear, I love this movie! To be honest, The Last Crusade is my favorite movie in the series, but Raiders of the Lost Ark is still one of my favorite movies ever. It is a must see.

The Bottom Line:
Rating: 4.8
Would I own it? Absolutely! I love Indiana Jones!
Would I recommend it? I'd be crazy not to.

North by Northwest (1959) *Gillian Pick*

What is it about spies that captures our imagination? Could it be the "Red Scare?" For those of you that don't know, the "Red Scare" was a period of Anti-Communism focused on Communists infiltrating our government. Back then, everyone was a potential spy, and it shows in the entertainment industry. I don't think it's simply a coincidence that the "Red Scare" was from 1947-1957, that Ian Flemming created James Bond in 1953, and North by Northwest was made in 1959. Whatever the real reason for our fascination with spies, North by Northwest addresses the issue, "What if you were mistaken for a spy?"

The synopsis, as told by Netflix, is "Cary Grant [stars as] an advertising executive who looks a little too much like someone else and is forced to go on the lam. Hitchcock's sure-handed comic drama pits Grant against a crop duster and lands him in a fight for his life on Mount Rushmore -- a true cliffhanger if ever there was one." I am sorry but everything about that sounds awesome. I love Hitchcock's work, Cary Grant is everything I want to be (He is dashing and has a great voice), and crop dusters daredevils disguised as farmers. Here is a trailer:



I must first express my disappointment that for being a spy movie there was no shoe phone like on Get Smart, but I suppose I have no choice but to live with it.


Really though, this movie was pretty good. Compared to some of the other garbage I've had to watch, this was a nice change. I don't know if I would say it belongs on AFI's list, but it definitely has more of a right to be on there then some of the other movies.

Quick tidbit: Like Hitchcock's other movies, he has a cameo in North by Northwest. Look for him missing a bus at the end of the opening credits.

The bottom line:
Rating: 4.0
Would I own it? Only after I buy Psycho and and Rear Window.
Would I recommend it? I certainly would.

Jaws (1975) *Gillian Pick*

Everyone has been hounding me to use my vacation time to catch up on all my blogs. Ok fine you jerks! Here is my next review.

One of the main reasons I started doing this list, besides wanting to occupy the TV so my former roommate couldn't watch anything, was to watch movies that I have always heard of, but never seen. Jaws was one of those movies. I don't know why I have never watched it until now, but I am glad I have finally seen it.

Jaws is about a shark with big jaws, and with his big jaws he terrorizes a town of people that are scared of his jaws. Jaws takes place on fictional Amity Island. At the beginning of the summer season, a shark attack threatens to destroy the town by keeping away "summer dollars." The town council wants to keep the attack a secret, despite pleadings from the local sheriff. When more attacks send the town in an uproar the sheriff, an oceanographer, and a shark hunter set out to destroy the blood-thirsty beast.

The most recognizable thing about this movie (even for those who haven't seen it) is the soundtrack. The main "shark" theme is an alternating pattern of E and F, and when Spielberg heard it for the first time he though Williams was joking. Later, however, he said that the movie would have only been half as successful without Williams' music. Here is the shark theme in all it's glory:



It seems to me that every scary movie was only scary for someone because they either watched it in a loud, dark theater, or because they were very young when they saw it. I must say that even though I saw this movie as a 24 year old, it scared me. I wasn't biting my nails by any means, but it was terrifying at some points.

Let me just go off on a tangent here, and say that it also seems that every scary movie ever made has to have a million sequels until the plot has become so bastardized that it is unrecognizable. While I have not seen the other Jaws movies, it has enough sequels that one could think that:



I really enjoyed this movie, and was surprised how good it was. I have watched so much crap I would have settled for a movie that was simply watchable, but Jaws pulled past the "watchable" stage and into full fledged "classic."

The bottom line:
Rating: 4.4
Would I own it? I could see it happening.
Would I recommend it? Do sharks have jaws?