Raiders of the Lost Ark

Question: I need some translation help here. Firstly when Marion is having the drinking contest and has drunken her final drink, she lowers the glass slowly making everyone think that she has lost. Then she shouts a word twice (Bistoti or something like that) and wins. What does that word mean? Also when Indy is mourning over Marion's "death", two guys in suits come over to him and tell him something in a foreign language. While I have a vague idea of what they said, I was wondering if anyone knew for sure.

Gavin Jackson

Answer: It's Russian, погоди or pogodi. In Russian meaning hold it.

Chosen answer: The two men say to Indy "Der Herr in der Bar mochte immer ihnen sprechen". This is translated as "The man in the bar wants to talk to you". The word in the bar that Marion says is "Pistole", which translated means "Hold it! or "Wait a minute!"

Question: Is it true that Harrison Ford stapled his hat to his head so that it would not fall off? I've heard its a myth but also that it was true.

Answer: This started because of an outtake from the movie. Harrison Ford pretends to staple his hat to his head because it keeps blowing off for a particular scene, then they show the scene again and his hat doesn't blow off. Being that Harrison Ford is neither insane nor displays masochistic tendencies, I think it's safe to say that this is untrue.

Ingabritzen

Question: Why on earth does Marion take her bra off before putting on the white dress given to her by Belloc?

Answer: She takes off her bra because the dress has a very low back.

Answer: She was trying to "seduce" Belloc and get him drunk so she could escape. What better way to take a man's attention off your real plans, than to wear a white dress with no bra on.

Mark English

Answer: Strapless and backless dresses usually have a bra-like support constructed within it, and the wearer does not need to wear an additional foundation garment. Otherwise, the dress would not fit properly and would look odd, particularly a backless one.

raywest

Question: When Indy chases after the Ark, which is on the German convoy, where did he get that beautiful white horse from? There is no evidence of horses being kept anywhere in the camp.

Answer: The earlier scenes of the excavation site show several horses being ridden or used for hauling.

Question: Where are the hieroglyphs of C3PO and R2D2 in the Well of Souls? I have spent years searching for them, but have never been able to spot them.

Answer: Here's a picture so you'll know what to look for: http://www.starwars.com/episode-i/snapshot/1999/11/snapshot19991102.html. They're not hugely prominent - they're to the left of a man and a dog-headed man, and to the right of a man in a chair. C3-P0 is facing left, reaching down to R2-D2.

Myridon

Question: What does it mean, that German speech of Nazi soldier who met Indy at U-Boot base? I know he is asking Indy about why is he sleeping and thinks Indy looks like pig, but I don't understand the rest.

Answer: He's asking "Why are you so lazy?" He starts complaining that his jacket is undone and his hair is all in a mess. He is also saying "the general will be here", although he doesn't finish his sentance as Indy kicks him and steals his hat.

alex greenwood

Question: I know this film was made before "Temple of Doom", which was a prequel. Thus the character of Shorty did not exist when this film was made. I'm wondering however if Spielberg or Lucas have ever said anything about where they assume Short Round is during the events of "Raiders..."

Answer: In all my years of watching interviews and behind the scenes footage of the 3 Indy films, I don't think this has never been addressed. Perhaps they might tie up this loose end in the new Indy movie...

Lynette Carrington

Question: After the scene where Indy first goes onto the German U-boat, he runs around apparently looking for something, then the scene changes to the inside of the sub where you can hear that the order has been given to dive. Was there an actual scene cut out of the film where Indy lashes himself to the periscope? (When Raiders first came out in Aus, I vividly remember seeing it with this scene.)

Answer: The scene you describe was indeed filmed. It was cut out of the US release of the film although I cannot speak for the Australian version. The scene also appears in the Marvel Comics adaptation. http://www.theraider.net/films/raiders/deleted_scenes.php has a list of this and the other deleted scenes.

Phil C.

Question: Why does the girl have writing on her eyelids? What is the joke there?

Answer: She has written "I love you" on them. It's why Dr Jones splutters his speech and focuses on them.

David Mercier

Answer: To clarify the other answer a bit. The female student wrote "love" on her right eyelid, and "you" on the left. The "I" in, "I love you," is her actual eyes. She has a crush on Indy.

raywest

Answer: The Angel of Death can only kill those who look directly at her/it, therefore closing their eyes killed only the Nazis and Belloq.

Answer: To add to the previous answer, technically, the Angel of Death can kill anyone if choose to, but simply chooses to kill those who don't show proper respect by closing their eyes.

Revealing mistake: While Indy and Marion are in the Well of Souls, and they encounter the snakes, Indy falls to the ground only to be confronted by a hissing Cobra rearing its head. Look carefully and you'll see the snake's reflection on the safety glass between it and Indy. Briefly you can also see the torch's reflection while he's waving it around. You can also see Marion's reflection when she falls in later on and is face to face with the cobra. [This has been corrected in the new DVD set. You can only see it if you have the original VHS. I think it's visible in the "making of" on the DVD as well.]

More mistakes in Raiders of the Lost Ark

Sallah: Indy, why does the floor move?
Indiana: Give me your torch. [He drops it in and sees why.] Snakes. Why'd it have to be snakes?
Sallah: Asps. Very dangerous. You go first.

More quotes from Raiders of the Lost Ark
Raiders of the Lost Ark trivia picture

Trivia: There's a Star Wars reference to Obi-Wan and C-3PO on the plane rescuing Indy at the start - it has the registration OB-CPO.

More trivia for Raiders of the Lost Ark

Question: After the scene where Indy first goes onto the German U-boat, he runs around apparently looking for something, then the scene changes to the inside of the sub where you can hear that the order has been given to dive. Was there an actual scene cut out of the film where Indy lashes himself to the periscope? (When Raiders first came out in Aus, I vividly remember seeing it with this scene.)

Answer: The scene you describe was indeed filmed. It was cut out of the US release of the film although I cannot speak for the Australian version. The scene also appears in the Marvel Comics adaptation. http://www.theraider.net/films/raiders/deleted_scenes.php has a list of this and the other deleted scenes.

Phil C.

More questions & answers from Raiders of the Lost Ark

Join the mailing list

Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.