Question: Is this true that Klaus Kinski was considered to play Toht?
Question: During the fight in Marion's Bar, there's a shot with her holding a (makeshift) torch and loading her mouth with alcohol (probably Rum), draining from a small barrel. How did that potential scene of her "spitting fire" at the next opponent not end up being used in the film? Did they really sacrifice continuity for the sake of further establishing her as a drunkard?
Answer: I don't see it as a continuity issue - she uses the burning stick to smash over the guy's head. The fact that it's on fire is likely irrelevant, she just needed a club. As for her grabbing a drink, it's just a quick comic aside rather than trying to highlight any sort of drinking problem. The barrel is shot and draining onto the floor, she doesn't want to waste good rum.
Question: How did the German U-boat know where the ship carrying the ark was? They completely lost track of it after the truck chase, so they should've had no clue as to where it was and where it was going.
Answer: True, but they had agents everywhere and could make an educated guess that Indy and Marion would try to smuggle it out of the country, so they would have been watching the ports and seen them board the ship.
Question: When Indy is in the final room to get the golden idol, how does he know exactly which plates to step on? None of them have moss like the first that he pushed down with the wooden torch. They have no distinguishing features. How can he tell which ones are the safe ones?
Answer: Note how Indy only steps on the darker area surrounding the centre of each plate, but triggered the trap by pushing down the centre area. That could mean that the plates consist of two parts and only the centre part is the trigger. Thus it would've been easy to figure out that "walking on the cracks" is the savest way. Additionally, Indy might be putting on a "genius at work" show for the clumsy assistant. If tomb raiding was revealed as being rather easy, everybody would do it.
Answer: I fully agree with the other answer, and just to expand a bit: we also don't question how Indy knew to "stay out of the light" on the previous trap, or how he knows the idol is on a platform triggered by a change in weight. Clearly, he's done his homework.
Answer: Indy is an archaeologist and would have extensively researched the culture, history, customs, technology, etc. digging up any clue to how and where to find the idol. There may have been other treasure caves found with similar booby traps in place that others tried and failed to overcome. Indy was making a (literal) leap of faith that he had the correct knowledge. There is some "suspension of disbelief" employed here, where the audience accepts that Indy had somehow gained the proper knowledge.
Question: In Raiders of the Lost Ark, the scene when Indy tells Marion to close her eyes, does anyone remember in the original release that the spirits looked directly into their faces to see if they were looking? Since I saw that, I haven't seen it in any version of the film. Does anyone know where this part can be seen, or why it hasn't been included in the various versions? (02:07:59)
Answer: I've seen that scene myself, but the versions I've seen have been on basic cable networks, with commercials, and they've included that scene. Sometimes they edit scenes for running time.
Question: Why does Satipo follow Indy into the boobytrap-filled temple at the beginning of the film, if he's aware of the danger and is terrified to go in?
Answer: He was greedy and probably assumed Indy would disable all the boobytraps getting to the idol, thus clearing the way for him. As for Satipo acting afraid, he was probably faking it so Indy would not suspect that he intended to steal the idol and trap him inside the temple. It also deliberately misleads the audience as to his duplicity, making his betrayal an unexpected twist. He may actually have been afraid but was it was the price for obtaining what he wanted.
Question: How could Belloq know/believe that the Ark is a powerful artifact, but also be completely oblivious to the Bible specifically mentioning that some Bethshemites were smitten for gazing into it and Uzzah was smitten for touching it?
Answer: There were probably many reasons. Propelled by greed, he may simply have chosen to filter out certain aspects of the biblical text, believing what he wanted to believe. He may have misinterpreted or had not bothered with the details of what was written in the bible.
Add in that he was hired by the Nazis to do the job of finding and utilizing the Ark. He had to make sure it worked so he could present it to Hitler.
Question: What exactly are the spirits that emerge from the Ark? I get that they are malevolent ghosts, but what is the purpose of them first emerging from the Ark as beautiful women? Are they supposed to be the ghosts of women from Babylonia, or Jerusalem, or any other significant location from Biblical times?
Answer: They are angels. They are initially beautiful, but become terrifying when they destroy those who look at them. That's why Indy and Marion are spared, as they keep their eyes shut.
Question: The scene where everyone's getting burned and exploding, why didn't the ark burn Marion and Indy too? Is it because they didn't do anything wrong to it?
Answer: They were protected because they did not directly look at the Ark. Indy told Marion to look away. That is what saved them.
Anyone who looks upon what is inside the ark perishes. The ark is used as the wrath of god against anyone who doesn't show respect to it, by not looking at what is inside. Even if what is inside goes outside.
Question: Considering how powerful and dangerous the Ark is, why would Indy hand it over to the United States government, instead of putting it back where it was found and to ensure it's never located, lie to them and say him or the Nazis never found it?
Answer: Indy and Marcus Brody believed that the Ark needed to be studied. They certainly didn't want to put it back where it was found. They believed that the U.S. government would find the best archaeologists, researchers, and scientists in the world to study the Ark. They are both upset that instead, the government has decided to simply lock the Ark away. This is why Indy says, "Fools. They don't know what they've got there," as he is leaving the building.
Answer: To add to the previous answer, there is no way that the ark could have been secretly returned to where it was found and then conveniently forgotten. Too many people already knew of its existence and location. It would only be a matter of time before someone more sinister would retrieve it.
Question: Why is the title of this movie just "Raiders of the Lost Ark" instead of "Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark"?
Answer: The original title was simply "Raiders of the Lost Ark" because George Lucas and Steven Spielberg didn't anticipate the lead character exploding into a cultural icon. After this first blockbuster film, they added "Indiana Jones and..." to the title of every sequel, and "Indiana Jones" became a marketing trademark for a deluge of licensed merchandise (most of which was directed at kids and young adults). Years later, in subsequent releases on Blu-Ray and DVD, Lucasfilm actually went back and retitled the first film "Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark," in order to keep the collected films under the umbrella of the "Indiana Jones" trademark.
Question: When the ark is about to be opened by Belloq and the Nazis, Belloq is wearing possibly a priest style outfit and has a gold staff. Does it explain where he got that from? Was it while digging up the city? Personal collection?
Answer: It was never explained where Belloq acquired the outfit, but as he knew the history of the arc and he was actively searching for it to use its power, he must have intended for some time to wear that clothing for the ritual. Whether or not he knew it was needed or his wearing it was just for egotistical theatrics is a matter of speculation.
Answer: Belloq was working closely with the Nazis who were, of course, already persecuting Jews and confiscating Jewish property on a grand scale back in Germany. As chief archaeologist of the Nazi antiquities acquisition project, Belloq could make any request for necessary equipment (or attire), and the Third Reich would quickly supply it. Belloq anticipated that the ceremonial Jewish high priest costume would be necessary for handling the Ark, and he requested a replica costume in advance. As it happened, merely looking like a Jewish high priest wasn't enough to protect him (or anyone else).
Question: Near the end when Indiana and Marion are tied to the post and the Germans are about to open the Ark, Indiana closes his eyes and tells Marion to close her eyes so they can't look. But how did he know when they should open them again? He wouldn't know the Ark had been sealed again afterwards unless he took a risk and opened his eyes to see.
Chosen answer: The events were quite loud. Once the noise had stopped, and the sound of the ark slamming shut had been heard, he slowly opened his eyes to check it was definitely safe.
Question: In the first sequence, there is a trap with Indy's competition's body stuck on it. Although it is sprung by somebody breaking the beam of light (which I find hard to believe, given that it and other traps were done without any kind of more modern technology we're used to, but suspend disbelief for the sake of the movie), how was it reset without human intervention after Forrestal was killed, and prepared for Sapito?
Chosen answer: Likely, it wasn't. The Hovitos are still guarding the temple. Presumably, they maintain and reset the traps.
You'd think in that case that they would've removed the body.
I don't know, I'd be more afraid to rob the place with a dead body stuck there than without.
Why? It's a good warning to other would-be thieves.
Answer: More than likely, they left Forrestal's body as a warning.
Answer: The character played by Alfred Molina is actually named "Satipo," after a town. "Sapito" would mean "small frog." It's a common typo, but the more you know.
Question: I first saw "Raiders" at the cinema when it was released in Australia and I distinctly remember a scene which has never appeared on video or DVD. After the end credits, there's a cut back to the crate housing the Ark in the warehouse, and the U.S Govt. stamp on the side of the crate is slowly burning off, as if a fire within the crate is scorching it. One other friend (also in Australia) also remembers. Does anyone else remember this, and can anyone shed any light on what happened to this scene?
Answer: I also remember this scene. After the ark is sealed, the camera performs a close up of the side of the crate. The stamp reads "Top Secret Army Intel 9906753 Do Not Open" This stamp is burned off just like the swastika is in the scene on the submarine, because in the eyes of God, no nation is holy or worthy enough to claim ownership of the ark. However, this final scene was cut (the burning of the stamp) from the film for a variety of unclear reasons. While it was in theaters, this scene was not included on the DVD version.
Add me to this. We saw the movie in a "pre release" version in Orlando Florida. No advance warning of the movie. We went to see another flick and at the end were "invited" to see this if we were willing to critique it afterwards. This scene was included. I also always wondered why the change.
I also remember seeing this mysterious 'burning' of the logo, most likely it was on a VHS copy of this movie. Yes, it did exist.
I saw it in former Czechoslovakia in the second half of 80's in cinema (west movies came to the east countries' cinemas years later). And I thought it was a great joke that burning out the swastika wasn't just because the Nazis are bad but because nobody is great enough to own the arc. Then after the Velvet revolution I saw the film again on TV (beginning of 90's) and said everyone around: watch it until the end, wait on the post-credit scene, there will be a surprise.
And there was a surprise. The scene was cut off! I was angry on the TV they didn't show the scene. I cannot be influenced by internet discussion or urban legend. The internet didn't exist yet.
I saw it in Portland, Oregon, and was so impressed with the message it carried, that I told friends and we went several times just to see it. Funny thing was when I mentioned it a few years ago, many people said I was a LIAR that it never happened. I could not convince anyone. It was removed because it wasn't Politically Correct. USA is a force for good, God would not burn off AMERICAN TEXT! BUT WE DID SEE IT. Thanks to our Australian eye witness, we know we did not imagine it.
Answer: I also remember that scene.
Answer: This scene never existed. Plus, the crate never has a US Govt logo stamped on it. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cbr.com/movie-legends-revealed-alternate-ending-for-raiders-of-the-lost-ark/amp/.
Answer: I remember the side of the crate being "charred" when it was in the ship's cargo hold, in the scene when the Nazi's arrived in the submarine. It was the Nazi swastika on the side of the crate that was burned off. It also showed a rat keeling over dead from the energy it emitted. (I just watched this again on the Paramount cable channel.)
Question: Is the golden head treasure in the cave at the beginning of Raiders the same one used in Jim Carrey's film The Majestic, where his scriptwriter movie has a scene in an Egyptian tomb?
Answer: The idol also appears on a table in Dryden Vos' office in Solo: A Star Wars Story. Interestingly, the crystal skull on top of the same table looks entirely human, and was confirmed to be a reference to a novel called Han Solo and the Lost Legacy rather than to that awful fourth Indy movie.
Question: In the scene near the end of the movie at the boat, there is a shot of a box and there is some 'Hitler' sign burning into it (this scene has some 'knocking' music). Does anyone knows what's the meaning of this scene?
Question: When Jones has the bazooka pointed to the Ark and shouts something, Belloq turns around and there's a moment in which you can see an ant or something going into Belloq's mouth. What is what goes into his mouth exactly? Is this a mistake, a joke on purpose, or something more?
Answer: When Indiana threatens the Nazis with a Panzerfaust, you can see a fly creeping into the mouth of Paul Freeman. Contrary to popular belief, he did not swallow it. Freeman explained in an interview years later that the fly flew off at about the instant he uttered the word "bad, " but Steven Spielberg noticed it and decided it would be funny to cut out a few frames so the fly would not be seen flying away. This made it look as though Freeman ate it, and he found the edit highly amusing.
Question: Is it possible for someone to drink to the point of passing out and then moments later appear completely sober (as Marion does)?
Chosen answer: Probably not, but Marion was faking it. She won a betting game that way. If she didn't at least act drunk, she'd never get anyone to compete against her. Sort of like how pool sharks pretend to be bad just to get people to play them, then they play just good enough to be assured of a win, but not so good that the player won't come back for more thinking they have a chance of winning their money back.
Question: Why exactly do the spirits in the Ark kill everyone who looks at them? Do they only kill evil people such as the Nazis, or everyone who looks at them, regardless of how pure they may be (say, for example, would the Pope be able to open the Ark without incident)? Does that also mean after being closed, the Ark was never supposed to be opened again by anybody ever? I was never quite clear on the explanation to the Ark's somewhat malefic nature.
Answer: The idea that the contents of the Ark could not be viewed was lifted from God's statement to Moses that He could not appear to Moses in all His glory lest Moses be killed by it. The Ark would kill everyone who looked at it because, Biblically speaking, "all [Pope included] have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." No, the Ark was never meant to be opened. The Ark is not, strictly speaking, malefic either. It's just too Holy for human endurance. It is humanity's malefic nature that causes the Ark to kill.
Answer: According to Wikipedia, Kinski was offered the role, but he declined it to instead appear in the horror film "Venom" because that role paid more money. Considering Kinski's mental illness and violent tendencies, it would have made for an "interesting" film shoot.
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