Travels with Father

Both Russia, March 1909 and Athens, July 1910 had some fantastic memorable moments along with (for the most part) easy, natural humorous moments...at least two laugh out loud.

I don't know what bothered me more though, that Henry Sr didn't go after Indy or that they never bothered with a suitable reason why he shouldn't.

Baseball, Bibles and Pilgrims to New Jersey, the major themes and many laughs were laid out with a light hand and for the most part enjoyable.

Peasants who can't read knowing, (and celebrating) Tolstoy was almost as odd as Leo playing baseball.

The Odeon scene was tremendously entertaining. An interesting father son dynamic.

That said, incessantly referring to Henry Sr as father became irritating, especially in the moments of high emotion.

I'm still a bit taken aback about a scene where a Scotsman is nude chasing sheep...

Finished Perils of Cupid, (you just cannot go wrong with Max Von Sydow), but enjoyed Travels much more.


Surprising no one started a thread for these already, some nice nods to Hope/Crosby Road pictures...

Henry Senior had a bit of a character arc...great moments becoming a man of action so to say.
 

Montana Smith

Active member
Rocket Surgeon said:
Peasants who can't read knowing, (and celebrating) Tolstoy was almost as odd as Leo playing baseball.

An example of Lucas shoe-horning a real person into a fictional world that doesn't even seem very closely related to that of movie Jones'.

I think the series works best if you imagine it's a set of poorly recollected (or heavily embellished) tales.

Rocket Surgeon said:
I don't know what bothered me more though, that Henry Sr didn't go after Indy or that they never bothered with a suitable reason why he shouldn't...Henry Senior had a bit of a character arc...great moments becoming a man of action so to say.

I found Henry Sr. to be the strongest link to the films. He really did seem to be a younger version of Connery's portrayal.

Rocket Surgeon said:
I'm still a bit taken aback about a scene where a Scotsman is nude chasing sheep...

It's the Welsh (and New Zealanders) you have to worry about with sheep.

The Scots chase haggis, who are at a disadvantage on flat ground since their front and rear legs are of differing lengths to aid grazing on mountainsides.
 
Montana Smith said:
I think the series works best if you imagine it's a set of poorly recollected (or heavily embellished) tales.
That's why Old Indy is so intrinsic to the series...good point. Have to check out Stoo's bookends for the episode now, they should have new meaning, (to me).

Montana Smith said:
I found Henry Sr. to be the strongest link to the films. He really did seem to be a younger version of Connery's portrayal.
There were some shining moments in these to Episodes, and some dull listless moments as well. It fits best with Crusade keeping in mind your "embellished tales" point, otherwise it can be problematic. But not too much.

The Democracy Debate lends itself well to the rift between them...Indy being practical (American) and "Father" :)rolleyes: ) being stubborn, (Scottish).

Should have gone after the sunburn more, especially for humor.
Montana Smith said:
It's the Welsh (and New Zealanders) you have to worry about with sheep.
I just say thanks knowing I'll never have to rely on that info...I hope :eek:

Montana Smith said:
The Scots chase haggis, who are at a disadvantage on flat ground since their front and rear legs are of differing lengths to aid grazing on mountainsides.
Wow, there's a science to it!
 

Stoo

Well-known member
Rocket Surgeon said:
Surprising no one started a thread for these already, some nice nods to Hope/Crosby Road pictures...
Agreed, Rocket. "Travels" has been discussed before in various threads but I can't believe there wasn't one dedicated to it. Glad you've finally seen it and thanks for starting this one!:hat:

I've never bothered watching any of the Bob Hope/Bing Crosby flicks. Care to elaborate on the nods you noticed?
Rocket Surgeon said:
Both Russia, March 1909 and Athens, July 1910...
You may have already found out by now, but the chapters never aired as individual episodes with those planned dates. They were presented together as "Travels With Father" on the Family Channel.

I figured you'd enjoy the baseball bits and you make some interesting observations (Ex. the peasants knowing who Tolstoy is) but I actually like how Indy keeps saying, "father". Calling his father, "dad", just seems a bit too modern for 1910.

The butt/nudity scene & several others are different in the original broadcast.

Various:
http://raven.theraider.net/showpost.php?p=314498&postcount=31
The Bible:
http://raven.theraider.net/showpost.php?p=500763&postcount=83
Rocket Surgeon said:
Interesting that he can't recall why he ran away...lends creedence to the embellishment of his old age...

...and Flannery calls him "Dad."
Good that you linked to my video, Rocket, because it's easy to miss in the other thread. For a detailed analysis of the changes between the bookends and the "Winds of Change" episode, see here:

Dialogue differences:
http://raven.theraider.net/showpost.php?p=365542&postcount=50
Visual differences:
http://raven.theraider.net/showpost.php?p=368476&postcount=53
Montana Smiff said:
I found Henry Sr. to be the strongest link to the films. He really did seem to be a younger version of Connery's portrayal.
Indeed. However, "Travels" does stray from his usual depiction of a cold, stuffy bookworm. Henry Sr. is actually LIKEABLE in this one!
 
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Montana Smith

Active member
Stoo said:
Indeed. However, "Travels" does stray from his usual depiction of a cold, stuffy bookworm. Henry Sr. is actually LIKEABLE in this one!

Like a glimpse into the future, of what 'father' would be capable of becoming later on during The Last Crusade.
 

Raiders90

Well-known member
Montana Smith said:
Like a glimpse into the future, of what 'father' would be capable of becoming later on during The Last Crusade.

Maybe that's how Henry's personality is around when away from Anna.
 
Stoo said:
I've never bothered watching any of the Bob Hope/Bing Crosby flicks. Care to elaborate on the nods you noticed?

I haven't seen them since I was young, but we watched them like Our Gang, The Three Stooges, etc: whenever they were on.

The thought occured durring the more remote arguments, Tolstoy and Little Henry literally on the road, and again on Aristotle's cart...or was that Plato?

Stoo said:
You may have already found out by now, but the chapters never aired as individual episodes with those planned dates. They were presented together as "Travels With Father" on the Family Channel.
I didn't occur to me until I went over to your preservation society and saw the "new begininng."

Stoo said:
I figured you'd enjoy the baseball bits and you make some interesting observations (Ex. the peasants knowing who Tolstoy is)
The glove looked a bit too modern, have to watch again but the other bits were odd.

I actually thought Indy was going to be confronted with death once they talked about going to the train station, because he actually did.

Stoo said:
...I actually like how Indy keeps saying, "father". Calling his father, "dad", just seems a bit too modern for 1910.
I don't mind "father" except at those moments of extreme emotion, and he called him "Dad" in the bookends, which if he desired the affection so much you would have thought it would come out once or twice at least.

It didn't have to be "Dad" either, but PeePaw wouldn't have been an improvement on father...

Stoo said:
The butt/nudity scene & several others are different in the original broadcast.

Various:
http://raven.theraider.net/showpost.php?p=314498&postcount=31
The Bible:
http://raven.theraider.net/showpost.php?p=500763&postcount=83
Good that you linked to my video, Rocket, because it's easy to miss in the other thread. For a detailed analysis of the changes between the bookends and the "Winds of Change" episode, see here:
Thanks for that...I watched again last night with my boy and the "new" crucifix only appears in the close ups. You can see the original as the bible is being moved around. Cool. :hat:
 

Montana Smith

Active member
Raiders112390 said:
Maybe that's how Henry's personality is around when away from Anna.

He gets worse after she dies, and it takes Indy a lot of work to bring the best out of his father again during TLC.
 

Raiders90

Well-known member
Montana Smith said:
He gets worse after she dies, and it takes Indy a lot of work to bring the best out of his father again during TLC.

I don't think he was a bad man before Anna died. Negligent? Yes, but without meaning to be. He wasn't consciously negligent of Indy nor did not value or care about Anna...He was simply too absorbed in his work and in his growing obsession with the Grail to "see the forest for the trees." He loved them both but I think took them for granted to a certain degree. He loved Anna and Indy but his real passion was the Grail. During Travels with Father, most of the time he isn't researching, he's on an "adventure" with Indy and we see hints of the more fun guy that he later became as he got older--And probably more of the man Anna fell in love with and married. Something happened that launched an obsession with the Holy Grail and after Anna died, that obsession consumed him totally. Maybe he was searching for the Grail not just for illumination but also out of a sense of guilt. He'd failed Anna in not stopping her from dying and by not being a more caring husband. He failed Indy in that his son became something of a disappointment who'd rather run away from home and risk being killed in a World War than be at home with him. Maybe he was seeking to be illuminated as to why he was who was, or attempting to fill a void in himself--the way an alcoholic may love his family dearly but fills the void inside himself with alcohol rather than with love and care for those he loves.

When Anna died, I think Henry was broken hearted even if he never showed it (but you can tell he was by getting angry at Indy for even mentioning her in their fight and he gets defensive when Indy claims Anna never understood his obsession with the Grail) but instead of reaching out more toward his son, he drew inward and his emotions totally shut down, he became sort of a staunch Victorian; Children were meant to be seen, not heard. He never told Henry to eat up or wash his ears, but he also didn't ask how Indy was doing or seem to be interested in who Indy was a teen and growing young man. His only interest was to see Indy attend HIS college. He didn't even bother to ask about Indy's experiences in the past 3 years. Anna's death, I think, broke an already sort of emotionally closed off, stiff upper lip sort of guy. He couldn't even really emotionally grasp why Indy felt regret about their relationship in LC, only to say that Indy left--ran away--"just when he was becoming interesting." Your child shouldn't just "start" to become interesting when they're 16.

Even when Indy comes back off the cliff in LC, after Henry thinks he's dead, Henry hugs him and in that moment you can tell he really does love him, but can't bring himself to say he loves him. And right after that little burst of emotion, he goes back to being the Grail focused Professor. Indy collapses to the ground from pure exhaustion only to have Henry rebuke him: "Why are you sitting there resting when we're so near the end?"

He's just emotionally closed off and probably doesn't really know how to express his emotions. Probably was never brought up how to in that repressed Victorian era he grew up in.

Henry actually in both the YIJC and LC makes for quite a compelling, complex sort of character. That's why I love the YIJC. The touches of Indy as a real person, making him more than just a two dimensional adventurer, that we see in LC are fully explored in the Chronicles. We come to understand Indy both as Henry Jones Jr and as Indiana Jones.
 
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