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Religion and Theology, Movie Review

Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark

Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark

The film ‘Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark’ was written in 1981 by Lawrence Kasdan and directed by Steven Spielberg. Frank Marshall filmed it for the Lucas movie company with the desire to develop a modern kind of serial cinema in the 1940s. More so, the movie accrued about $389 million in revenue globally, becoming the most famous and highest-paid movie of 1981 (Tomasulo 331). In the following year, the movie received eight Academy Awards for filming the best pictures, editing, visual effects, art direction, and sound (Raiders Of The Lost Ark – IMDb). The film remains the most popular and greatest showcase ever since its production, and in 1999, the American National Film Registry included it in its library as a culturally aesthetical film. The movie belongs to the action-adventure genre as it entails looking for treasure while facing opposition.

The film is about a character named Indiana Jones who struggles to walk through the jungle with two men while looking for the golden idol. He later finds it and leaves the sanctuary, but a group of locals waits for him outside with several traps (Raiders Of The Lost Ark Analysis | Shmoop). Rene Belloq leads them as Indiana is forced to surrender the idol and escape. When he gets back to San Francisco, two intelligence agents with information that the Nazis are seeking for his mentor, Abner Ravenwood, who is a professional archeologist and acquired a Staff of Ra artifact, visit him (Tomasulo 335). Immediately Indiana undertakes that the Nazis are after the Ark of the Covenant, which is the most valuable piece of art globally (Smith 130). Moreover, people believe that the artifact has God’s power, and the person in its possession will be invincible.

Video: Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark – The Golden Idol

Consequently, Indiana commences the journey to Egypt with the help of his past lover, Marion, who helps him locate the correct location of the Ark. However, the Nazis, in collaboration with Rene Belloq, caught up with them and forcefully took the Ark, leaving Indiana to die in the shrine full of snakes. Determined to survive, he successfully finds a route out of the temple and catches up with the vehicle carrying the Ark, but the Nazis see him on board and hide the Ark (Tomasulo 337). At that moment, Rene Belloq convinces the Nazi leader to open the Ark and retrieve the tables, but instead, they find souls of the dead who take every person in it (Tomasulo 339). Luckily, Indiana and Marion remain alive because they chose to close their eyes. Ultimately, Indiana retrieves the Ark and takes it to the intelligence agent, who informs him that it is kept in a safe place.

Figure 1: Marion, the lover of Jones (Tomasulo 339)

ANALYSIS OF THE FILM ‘RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK’

The film ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ seeks to describe the location and influence of the mythical Ark. As such, the religious piece demonstrates controversy, particularly to whether its existence is real or unreal, as well as its present resting location. In the Bible, the scriptwriters first mentioned the Ark during its construction in the book of Exodus. They later depicted the artifact being moved to Canaan during the Israelite’s conquest and later taken by the priesthood during the fall of Jericho (Deacy, p. 2). The film uses the religious theory that the Egyptian Pharaoh Shishak carried the Ark to Egypt after they invaded Palestine in 925 BC to demonstrate Indiana Jones’s discovery of the artifact in the primeval Egyptian region.

Figure 2: Indiana Jones acquiring the Golden Idol (Deacy 2)

Besides the interesting story, the movie demonstrates an intriguing course of action and adventure that aided in making it among the most popular films in the history of cinema. Due to its popularity, the film became the global representation of archeology and showed the epitome of the archaeological character. Furthermore, Indiana Jones’s influence across the world and in the entertainment world has created awareness of biblical archaeology (Ganzevoort 135). However, recently, biblical archeology has been criticized for its commercialization of treasure hunts and for not basing it on proper scholarship. One of the reasons for this is the commonness of amateur archeologists who focus on finding certain biblical artifacts in the confidence that they are supporting the biblical text.

The film reflects the religious development of humankind as Jones grows positively as a person. He comprehends himself on a deeper level and decides to undertake a quest to understand and feel profound theological truths. Jones pursues the Ark, although he is a pagan, and engages in a moral fight against the evil Nazis. More growth is seen when the archeologist encounters one of his ex-lovers, whom he had parted ways with and protected throughout the adventure. Reflecting on the Old Testament in the Bible, Jones embarks on a journey to Egypt, fights the worldly power, and lastly, experiences the power of the dead. Ultimately, the movie takes its narrative into Christian theology, where the main character grew from being a selfish robber to a savior of the world by seeking the Ark.

ANALYSIS OF NINIAN SMART’S SEVEN DIMENSIONS OF RELIGION

The Seven Dimensions of Religion are part of a theory developed by Ninian Smart analyzing world religions. Smart’s literal work is descriptive and fundamentally focuses on the theoretical component of comprehending religion. In the religious experience of humans, Smart states that the knowledge of the invisible world was the seal of religion (Bocking 155). These religious beliefs and rituals fundamentally relate to Smart’s work; he focuses on the emotional reactions of people and rituals of a believer as well as the particular visionary, meditative, and inspirational experiences.

Figure 3: The Seven Dimensions of Religion by Ninian Smart (Smart)

Video 2: Ninian Smart’s Seven Dimensions of Religion

THE DOCTRINAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL DIMENSION

Smart presents the systematic development of religious philosophy or doctrine in an intellectual and coherent structure by examining people’s patterns in living a spiritual life. From the traditional periods, humans used the language of symbols, images, and structures to demonstrate religion. He accepts that all religious and nonspiritual conviction frameworks advance tenets and theory for different reasons (Bocking 158). For instance, the film uses the Ark as a symbol of great power and theorizes the entire movie to lure the audience to the importance of the object and its historical bearing (Deacy 4). These contrasting teachings or methods of philosophy are incorporated with different viewpoints of religious beliefs because they provide clarification and defense for the seven dimensions.

THE RITUAL DIMENSION

More so, most religions demonstrate their practical beliefs through a show of rituals. That is, rituals comprise religious activities such as worship, pilgrimage, sacrificial rites, meditation, sacrifice, and rites of passage (Smart). In many religious groups, rituals indicate the fundamental features because of their intimate relation to other dimensions. In the film ‘Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark,’ Jones and the other characters believe that the Ark has immense power over the world; thus, they show their emotional reactions and develop the need to acquire it (Audissino).

THE NARRATIVE DIMENSION

In the film, the plot demonstrates the mythic and narrative dimension through the belief in the power of the Ark. Furthermore, the characters believe that for ancient priests to protect people from using its power to destroy the world, they hid the Ark in Egypt (Audissino). As such, this perspective relates to Smart’s illustration that myths are anecdotes about the invisible, divine, or sacred world humans have not yet seen (Smart). Fantasies recount the narratives of the authors or the principal characters of these religions. For instance, there are tales about the birth, life, demise, what’s more, the revival of Jesus or stories about the life, adores, or magical forces of Krishna or anecdotes about the Buddha’s life, allurements, and illumination (Smart). Various religious stories address such measurements as the moral, social, monetary, and political points of view. This perspective is well represented in the film, particularly when the Nazis desire to acquire the Ark to gain power over the world.

THE EXPERIMENTAL OR EMOTIONAL DIMENSION

The experiential or emotional elements of religion illustrate what goes on inside the individual. This is the emotional aspect of religion. Certain encounters might be very noteworthy in the history or foundation of religion; for example, Jones, the main character in the film ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ immediately understands why the Nazis are after his mentor and instinctively embarks on a journey to help the intelligence force retrieve the Ark (Audissino). The mystical experience provided to Jones and his companion when they witnessed the Nazis being swallowed by ghosts in the Ark increases their belief and the need to secure the Ark. Also, every religion allocates a distinctive sort of importance to these encounters. There are accompanying sentiments and feelings identified with noteworthy religious encounters just as customs (Smart, n.p). Without them, the beliefs would be untrustworthy, mechanical, only outer, and not so much worth undertaking.

THE ETHICAL AND LEGAL DIMENSION

Alongside philosophy, fantasies, customs, and enthusiastic viewpoints, a religious convention offers moral and legitimate objectives, which might frame the center of the religious practice. For instance, The Bible as a set of orders is key to conventional Judaism; the Shari’a is basic to Islam; Buddhism avows the four extraordinary ethics; Confucianism sets out the ideal mentalities of the honorable man (Smart). Thus, in the film, the story seems to be based on the theology of the Ark of Covenant, built by the Israelites in their journey from Egypt to the Promised Land. The story is based on the movement of the Ark by priests and how it was hidden in Egypt.

THE SOCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL DIMENSION

In his scheme of study, Smart also illustrates the social element, which structures the authoritative part of the religion. In his words: ‘Any custom will show itself in the public eye, either as a different association with ministers or different religions’ (Smart). Furthermore, the specialists, functionaries, appealing figures, and heavenly people in the film show in their contrasting ways the importance of the Ark and its power, thus demonstrating various methods of religious articulations.

THE MATERIAL DIMENSION

Another significant component shared by these conviction frameworks is the material measurement, which is shown in the film through the Christian churches and houses of prayer; Muslim mosques; Hindu, Buddhist, Taoist, and Jewish sanctuaries; religious symbols, artworks, statues, sacred texts, books, and podiums. For instance, when the Nazis attacked Jones, they left him in a temple full of snakes. This illustration shows that the movie demonstrates the religious aspect through the use of churches in the plot (Seven Dimensions of Religions). In the world setting, new images have developed, which could help people review religion in a relative or a phenomenological way (Van et al. 105). This extraordinary methodology comprises educated compassion and is helpful for the comprehension of the other.

Smart ascertains that individuals originating from different cultures can hold a positive dialog that bases mutual understanding and assists humans in reasoning globally in an interrelated manner. This cultural and religious understanding is widely demonstrated in the film during the interaction between Jones and the intelligence force, where they reach a common understanding that the world needs saving from the Nazi’s intentions with the Ark. He hopes that humans may universally get used to doing well and holding sensible dialogs regarding the commonalities and contrasts as well as be tolerant of debatable ways. Furthermore, he asserts that conducting debate and positive thinking is inevitable; thus, the notion of phenomenological will surely be global and deep. These perspectives promote optimism and modern thinking. Therefore, Smart’s work on the system of religious beliefs is outstanding as he illustrates the direction toward instilling harmony among people from numerous religions by developing a path to develop a universal religion.

Works Cited

Audissino, Emilio. John Williams’s film music: Jaws, Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and the return of the classical Hollywood music style. University of Wisconsin Press, 2014.

Bocking, Brian. “Study of Religions: the New Queen of the Sciences?.” Religion: Empirical Studies. Routledge, 2017. 151-164.

Deacy, Christopher. “Is Film the New Religion?.” Sociology Review 20.4 (2011): 2-5.

Ganzevoort, R. “Silence speaks. Theological musings on silence in religion and film.” Blessed are the eyes that catch divine whispering. Silence and religion in the film (2015): 123-137.

Smith, Jeffery A. “Hollywood theology: The commodification of religion in twentieth-century films.” Religion and American Culture 11.2 (2001): 191-231.

Smart, Ninian. “The Seven Dimensions of Religion.” University of California Cambridge University Press,. pp9–21 Smith, SA (2008).

Tomasulo, Frank P. “Mr. Jones goes to Washington myth and religion in Raiders of the Lost Ark.” Quarterly Review of Film & Video 7.4 (1982): 331-340.

Van Esch, Patrick, Linda Van Esch, and James Cowley. “The dimensions of religion as underpinning constructs for mass media social marketing campaigns: An emerging concept.” International Journal of Marketing Studies 5.1 (2013): 96-106.

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Question 

Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark

Capstone Essay

Throughout the course of the semester you have learned about the basic dimensions of religion, and how they manifest in various world traditions. We have explored and enhanced this knowledge through the use of film. For your capstone essay, you will write a film analysis that emphasizes the Religious Studies theory that we focused on in class. You will choose your own film with religious content, and then analyze it using the theories and ideas covered in class and present it in a traditional film review. You may also add additional methods of film criticism if you desire. Before writing, you should familiarize yourself with the suggested resources on how to write a film review, but remember our analysis will emphasize the seven dimensions of religion.

This essay ought to thoughtfully reflect your learning throughout the semester. Remember to use examples from the film and citations to support your ideas.

Each essay will be between 1500 to 2000 words long. This is a formal academic essay, and students must cite their sources. MLA is the preferred citation style in Religious Studies. Do not present other people’s film reviews as your own.

This paper will require 2 submissions.

  • If you have questions regarding how to cite or what to cite, ask me BEFORE you submit your essay. If you turn in your paper and you “accidentally” plagiarize parts of your essay, you will fail the assignment & be reported to the dept. It is better to be safe than sorry! To reiterate, ask me before the due date if you are unsure about how to cite your sources.

    Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark

    Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark

  • If you have questions regarding how to cite or what to cite, ask me BEFORE you submit your essay. If you turn in your paper and you “accidentally” plagiarize parts of your essay, you will fail the assignment & be reported to the dept. Better safe than sorry! To reiterate, ask me before the due date if you are unsure about how to cite your sources.

Capstone Essay (Part I)

For your capstone essay, you will write a film analysis that emphasizes the Religious Studies theory that we focused on in class. You will choose your own film with religious content, and then analyze it using the theories and ideas covered in class and present it in a traditional film review. You may also add additional methods of film criticism if you desire. Before writing, you should familiarize yourself with the suggested resources on how to write a film review, but remember our analysis will emphasize Ninian Smart’s Seven Dimensions of Religion.

Part 1 will cover the basic background and information about the film, and should be at least 750 words.

Capstone Essay Part 2

For your capstone essay, you will write a film analysis that emphasizes the Religious Studies theory that we focused on in class. You will choose your own film with religious content, and then analyze it using the theories and ideas covered in class and present it in a traditional film review. You may also add additional methods of film criticism if you desire. Before writing, you should familiarize yourself with the suggested resources on how to write a film review, but remember our analysis will emphasize the seven dimensions of religion.

The final draft will include part 1, as well as the analysis of the seven dimensions as it relates to your chosen film. The final paper should be between 1500 to 2000 words.

The Seven Dimensions of Religion by Ninian Smart

  1. Experiential and Emotional
  2. Narrative or Mythic
  3. Practical and Ritual
  4. Doctrinal and Philosophical
  5. Ethical and Legal
  6. Social and Institutional
  7. Material

Incorporate at least: 3 website links, 3 pictures, 1 YouTube video

Attached File: example essay, and part 1 of essay (intro on film)

Should contain everything related to the Seven Dimensions and your analysis of them in you chosen film. You are making an argument so you will need to provide evidence or examples from the film to support your assertions.

Resources: