The Indiana Jones franchise is one of the most beloved franchises in movie history. The story of its creation is quite something. Director Steven Spielberg wanted to direct a James Bond movie, but was told by George Lucas, “I have something better than Bond.” As a result, one of the best action heroes of all time, Indiana Jones, was born. Our intrepid archeologist gets quite a few stamps on his passport as he travels across the globe, trying to keep rare artifacts out of the hands of some really nasty people. Of course, adventure is only half of a fantastic action/adventure series and the action in the Indiana Jones films remain some of the best action scenes ever filmed. Let’s take a look at which action scenes from the franchise rise a cut above the rest.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
5 The Mine Cart Chase (Temple of Doom)
Distributed by Paramount Pictures
Indy, Short Round, and Willie Scott hop on a mine cart, which will hopefully lead them to an exit from the titular temple. However, the vile Thuggee cult sends some of their own in a mine cart to chase after our heroes. The sequence is quite literally a rollercoaster ride, with a good amount of POV shots of our heroes and the baddies chasing them to further add to the rollercoaster feel. Fast-paced, frantic, this is a fun sequence. Even Willie, the most maligned female partner in the franchise, gets to punch out a cult member, sending his body on to the tracks, which causes the cart chasing them to hit and fly off to its doom. So how does this sequence end? A giant onslaught of rushing water headed straight for our heroes. A typical Tuesday for Indiana Jones.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
4 Indy vs the Nazi Mechanic (Raiders of the Lost Ark)
This fight takes place at a Nazi airbase in Egypt. It begins with Indy taking out one Nazi in quick order, but then a bigger, badder Nazi played by Pat Roach, who would fight Indy in each of the first three films in the franchise. To up the ante, the fight takes place next to a giant Nazi warplane with its propellers running. Not too big a deal until Marion clocks out the pilot (he was trying to shoot Indy during the fight) and his body pushes the controls causing the plane to move. What makes this scene so good is how wonderfully the chaos builds. Indy beats up one guy? Here’s an even tougher one. The Nazis want to provide backup? Marion takes them out with the plane’s machine guns. Of course, Marion also hits some fuel tanks, which add an extra level of danger when the fuel races towards a small fire. Each action and reaction builds so beautifully off of what comes before it. The way the big Nazi mechanic gets taken out is quite gruesome, as he’s sliced to pieces by the plane’s propellors. Luckily, all we see is a splattering of blood on the plane’s tail.
3 The Fighter Plane Duel (The Last Crusade)
The third film in the franchise sees Indy’s dad, played to perfection by Sean Connery, joining in on the fun. The two Joneses hop on a blimp in Berlin to escape Germany, but escape via biplane, where they are pursued by two much more advanced fighter planes. The Joneses’ biplane crashes (Indy can fly a plane, but not land one), causing father and son to steal a car and continue the action. When one plane gets taken out when it tries to pursue the Joneses through a tunnel, the second one gets taken out in a much more unexpected way by the elder Jones, who weaponizes a flock of seagulls (not the ’80s band) to take it down. The transition from air to land is done perfectly, and there’s even some good humor when the wingless plane passes our two heroes in the tunnel. However, it’s also a pretty heartwarming sequence, as after the elder Jones and his seagull allies take down the last plane, the iconic theme music swells as Indy looks on his dad with pride. Who knew that taking out Nazis would be the perfect father-son bonding activity?
2 The Tank Chase (The Last Crusade)
Paramount Pictures
The short-lived real life Republic of Hatay grants the Nazis a tank escort to the location of the Holy Grail. With Indy’s colleague, Marcus Brody, and Henry Jones Sr. being held hostage in the tank, it’s up to Indy, Sallah, and a mysterious brotherhood sworn to protect the Grail to thwart the Nazis. Everything about this sequence is fantastic. The tank itself proves to be a behemoth, able to keep going despite everything that Indy and his allies can throw at it, not to mention the fights that take place on top of the tank. Nazi Colonel Vogel gets some good licks in on Indy, and even Brody and Jones Sr manage to take out a few of the baddies in the tank. There is some humor, such as when Indy takes out three Nazis with one shot from a pistol, but most of the action is really gripping, really fun. The ending is just sublime. The tank goes over a cliff… with Vogel and Indy still duking it out on top of it. How’s our favorite archeologist going to survive this one?
1 The Opening Scene (Raiders of the Lost Ark)
Was there any doubt this was going to claim the spot? It’s one of the most iconic opening scenes of all time. That image of Indy outrunning a giant boulder is pretty much the first thing anyone thinks of when they think of the character and the franchise as a whole. The mystery builds perfectly. What’s in the temple? What are they looking for? The booby traps are cleverly revealed, showing Indy’s cleverness and ingenuity. From Indy and native guide Satipo (a very young Alfred Molina) avoiding all the booby traps, that iconic switching the idol for a bag of sand, and the aforementioned boulder, it’s one of the best opening scenes in movie history and a strong contender for the best first ten minutes of any movie ever.
