4 ms·

It's bad storytelling. In stories you break up routines by introducing characters and problems which then eventually get reintegrated. If a big part of the sto

It's bad storytelling. In stories you break up routines by introducing characters and problems which then eventually get reintegrated. If a big part of the story cancels out during reintegration it doesn't feel right and the ending won't feel satisfying. Obviously in this case the story doesn't get ruined, but in general it's a good idea to not introduce things into a story that won't be needed later on.

hairofadog 5y ago
I love the movie, and I agree with you. Big Trouble in Little China is an example where I think they did this intentionally and it worked; Kurt Russell’s character (arguably the main character) doesn’t actually do anything but witness the story, and everything would have turned out more or less the same if he hadn’t been there. In the case of Raiders, I don’t think it was intentional and it didn’t work (though like you say the rest of the movie was so strong and fun it doesn’t matter). I do love the warehouse scene at the end, however, and think about it all the time. Top. Men.
- Vaslo 5y ago
  I think the great Top Men comments is another excellent detail. When I was a kid I thought there might be some secret team that could work for the government and Indy would have to believe. But now that I’ve worked in research, it’s clear that whatever research field you work in, you absolutely know who the best is. We talked about the best Synthetic chemists all the time. It would be next to impossible for Indy to not know those big names (in the same “notorious” way he knew of Belloq) so it really adds more to the government BS.
- mjcohen 5y ago
  BTLC makes more sense if you consider Kurt Russell to be the sidekick.
- ASalazarMX 5y ago
  "Fast reflexes" wrapped up perfectly the movie, though. You see it at the start, you forget it because Burton is mostly useless, then bam, Chekhov's gun ending.

hairofadog 5y ago

I love the movie, and I agree with you. Big Trouble in Little China is an example where I think they did this intentionally and it worked; Kurt Russell’s character (arguably the main character) doesn’t actually do anything but witness the story, and everything would have turned out more or less the same if he hadn’t been there. In the case of Raiders, I don’t think it was intentional and it didn’t work (though like you say the rest of the movie was so strong and fun it doesn’t matter). I do love the warehouse scene at the end, however, and think about it all the time. Top. Men.

Vaslo 5y ago
I think the great Top Men comments is another excellent detail. When I was a kid I thought there might be some secret team that could work for the government and Indy would have to believe. But now that I’ve worked in research, it’s clear that whatever research field you work in, you absolutely know who the best is. We talked about the best Synthetic chemists all the time. It would be next to impossible for Indy to not know those big names (in the same “notorious” way he knew of Belloq) so it really adds more to the government BS.
mjcohen 5y ago
BTLC makes more sense if you consider Kurt Russell to be the sidekick.
ASalazarMX 5y ago
"Fast reflexes" wrapped up perfectly the movie, though. You see it at the start, you forget it because Burton is mostly useless, then bam, Chekhov's gun ending.