Raiders of the Lost Ark(1981)

1h 55m
- Action
- Adventure

Release Date: Jun 12, 1981 | Wide

In 1936, archaeologists and adventurers of the U.S. government hired Indiana Jones to find the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis could obtain its extraordinary powers.

Releases

Original Release | Jun 12, 1981

1982 Re-release | Jul 16, 1982

1983 Re-release | Mar 25, 1983

2012 IMAX Release | Sep 7, 2012

2023 Re-release (Fathom Entertainment) | Jun 4, 2023

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Box Office Results

All Releases (5)
Total US & Canada:
$248,159,971
Total International
$141,766,000
Total Worldwide:
$389,925,971

Total US & Canada:
$40,742,751
Total Worldwide:
$40,742,751

Current Showtimes

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(U.S. Only)

Director & Top Cast

Steven Spielberg
Director

Harrison Ford
Indy

Karen Allen
Marion

Paul Freeman
Belloq

John Rhys-Davies
Sallah

Ronald Lacey
Toht

Denholm Elliott

Brody

Alfred Molina

Satipo

Wolf Kahler

Dietrich

Anthony Higgins

Gobler

Vic Tablian

Barranca

Don Fellows

Col. Musgrove

William Hootkins

Major Eaton

Bill Reimbold

Bureaucrat

Fred Sorenson

Jock

Patrick Durkin

Australian Climber

Matthew Scurfield

2nd. Nazi

Malcolm Weaver

Ratty Nepalese

Technical Specifications

Sound Mix: Dolby Atmos

Aspect Ratio: 2.39 : 1

Other Details

Country of Origin: United States

Language: English,German,Spanish,Nepali,Hebrew,Arabic

Summaries

Plot Summary

It is 1936, Indy (Harrison Ford) steals a statue from a South American temple hidden deep in the forest, dodging traps & colleagues who betray him but get killed themselves due to their lack of knowledge of ancient artifacts and the defenses designed to keep them safe. Indy is able to navigate the defenses safely and get to the statue, but mistakenly activates a large boulder, when he fails to replace the correct weight of the statue on the mechanism.While escaping the boulder, Indy is cornered by the Hovitos, the local tribe, who are led by Dr. Rene Belloq (Paul Freeman), an arrogant French archaeologist who is a longtime rival and enemy of Indy's. Indy has to give the statue to Belloq. Indy flees and is rescued by Jock (Fred Sorenson), flying a seaplane. Indy reckons Belloq is taking it to Marrakesh. Marcus Brody (Denholm Elliott) is Indy's best friend and the curator of a museum back home and buys the antiques that Indy rescues, for the museum. Indy uses the funds to pay for his travel expenses across the world.The Army officers meet Indy & explain that a German radio cable from Cairo to Berlin says the Nazis have discovered Tanis, an ancient city buried in a gigantic sandstorm in 980 B.C. and the possible burial site of the Ark of the Covenant on which Moses inscribed the Ten Commandments. It holds immense mystical power & can make Nazi's invincible. The officers explain that the cable mentioned Indy's teacher Professor Ravenwood. Indy believes that Ravenwood has the staff of Ra headpiece. The headpiece mounted on the staff at a certain place at a certain time, would point to the location of the Ark in a special map room, with a miniature of the city on the floor.Indy finds his ex-girlfriend Marion (Karen Allen) in Kathmandu, who has the headpiece that point to the location of the Ark. Karen is Abner Ravenwood's daughter. Karen says that Abner is dead. Marion is angry at Indy for abandoning her but joins his quest for the Ark for money (Indy promises her $5000 for her help). They are followed by the Nazi spy Toht. Toht and the Nazi's attack Marion to recover the headpiece. Indy intervenes and a gunfight ensues which sets fire to the bar where Marion works. The headpiece gets knocked around and falls in the fire. Toht burns his hand when he tries to pick the red-hot headpiece. Indy recovers the headpiece and Toht has to retreat. Indy & Marion head to Egypt to find Belloq helping the Nazis dig for the Ark. The Nazis capture Marion and try to smuggle her out of Cairo in a truck. Indy fights the goons and shoots at the truck, which overturns and ends up in a fiery explosion, leading Indy to believe that Marion is dead.Belloq meets a distraught Indy (who thinks Marion is killed) & boasts about finding the Ark. Belloq says that the Ark is a medium to talk to God. Indy goes to see a Shaman who is reading the Ra headpiece after both men have learned that Belloq and his Wehrmacht aide, Colonel Dietrich (Wolf Kahler), have obtained a copy of the headpiece from Toht's burned hand. The Shaman reveals two critical facts: first, that the headpiece gives the precise height of the Staff of Ra, and second, that the staff the Nazis used was too long (Belloq got only one side of the inscriptions on the headpiece from Toht's hand and hence didn't know that there were additional instructions on the back side as well) -- so their excavation is over a mile away from the Ark's actual burial site, which is known as the Well of Souls. Indy enters the map room himself and deduces the correct location of the Ark.Indy finds Marion while hiding from the Nazis. He leaves Marion in the Nazis possession (so as not to arouse suspicion) & then proceeds to dig in the actual site where the ark is buried. The dig reveals a chamber full of snakes. Indy uses fire to carve a path inside the chamber. Sallah (John Rhys-Davies) (Indy's friend in Egypt) follows and the two eventually find the gigantic chest that is the Ark.Meanwhile, Marion seduces Belloq and tries to escape Nazi captivity. Marion is again captured by Toht. Belloq then notices a team working in a portion of the city that he has not authorized and asks Dietrich to gather his troops. The Nazi's throw Marion into the chamber & set fire to it. Indy follows the snakes in the chambers which leads to a German airfield. Marion & Indy escape by fighting off the Nazis with a fighter plane. Indy then hooks up with Sallah to trace the Ark which was being taken to Cairo in a truck & takes it back from Nazis after fighting off the armed escorts around the truck. Indy takes it to US via ship, but a Nazi submarine captures it back & takes it to the top of a mountain on an Island.At an elaborate ceremony atop the mountain Indy and Marion, tied to a pole, can only watch as the Ark is opened, but it contains nothing but sand, the remains of the stone tablets. No sooner is it opened, however, than its spirits suddenly appear. Indy and Marion, remembering an ancient code that requires people to close their eyes and not look at the now-freed spirits, withstand the mayhem that ensues as the energy of the Ark surges forth and its spirits attack the now-terrified Nazis, killing the entire contingent and destroying Belloq in gruesome fashion. The energy mass surges high into the sky before returning to the Ark and resealing it, leaving Indy and Marion drained but freed.Weeks later Indy and Marcus feud with the Army officers over the whereabouts of the Ark, Indy angry that the Army has no idea what it has in the Ark -- though it appears they in fact do understand what they have, as the Ark is sealed in a large crate and stored anonymously in a gigantic government warehouse, never to be seen again.

Storyline

The year is 1936. An archeology professor named Indiana Jones is venturing in the jungles of South America searching for a golden statue. Unfortunately, he sets off a deadly trap but miraculously escapes. Then, Jones hears from a museum curator named Marcus Brody about a biblical artifact called The Ark of the Covenant, which can hold the key to human existence. Jones has to venture to vast places such as Nepal and Egypt to find this artifact. However, he will have to fight his enemy Rene Belloq and a band of Nazis in order to reach it. — John Wiggins As the Third Reich continues its reign of terror, Adolf Hitler is on a quest for the legendary Ark of the Covenant- resting place of the Ten Commandments- whose supernatural powers, legend says, can wipe out entire armies. The U.S. Government turns to Dr. Indiana Jones, for the mission. Relentlessly pursued by Hitler's henchmen, Indy infiltrates their massive digging operation in a race against time to discover the Well of the Souls, where the Ark has lain undisturbed for centuries. — Jwelch5742 With Adolf Hitler 's Nazis rumoured to have pinpointed the secret resting place of the fabled Ark of the Covenant, the sacred artefact that holds the Ten Commandments, the U.S. government enlists the help of the American archaeologist, university professor, and man of adventure, Indiana Jones. Assumed to contain a destructive force of unfathomable proportions, Indiana embarks on a time-sensitive mission, venturing into the perilous mountains of Nepal and the dangerous streets of mysterious Cairo. But as Indy teams up with long-time friends, the road to the coveted relic passes through scheming arch-rivals and sadistic Gestapo commanders. And the question remains. In this frenzied race against time, can Indiana Jones do the impossible and prevent the Ark from falling into the wrong hands? — Nick Riganas Epic tale in which an intrepid archaeologist tries to beat a band of Nazis to a unique religious relic which is central to their plans for world domination. Battling against a snake phobia and a vengeful ex-girlfriend, Indiana Jones is in constant peril, making hair's-breadth escapes at every turn in this celebration of the innocent adventure movies of an earlier era. — FilmsNow 1 more All