Which Indiana Jones finale was most impressive to Indy?

Which finale was the most incredible in Indy's eyes?


  • Total voters
    56

Dr.Jonesy

Well-known member
Indiana Jones films have always had that bombastic ending in which the supernatural elements in the films come to an explosive conclusion. But which film would've been the most impressive to Indy had he been a real person?

For me, it's almost a toss up between 'Last Crusade' and 'Kingdom of the Crystal Skull'.

In 'Last Crusade' he sees Petra, meets a 700 year old Knight, witnesses the death and deterioration of Donovan, and the healing powers of the grail.

In 'Kingdom of the Crystal Skull', he sees the collection of the Aliens/IDB's, Akator's advanced technology and city, the Crystal Skeleton (One moving), Oxley's telepathy, temple being sucked up into a portal to another dimension, and the subsequent destruction of Akator and take off of the Flying Saucer.

Actually it's more clear now, 'Kingdom of the Crystal Skull' wins for me. You can just see it in his face. If he had had his eyes open in 'Raiders of the Lost Ark', then that would've been it for me.

What say you?
 
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Matt deMille

New member
My vote is for Kingdom, actually, because it was the first time he was really out of his element.

The first three films had a basis in theology if not archeology, things Indy would have studied, and so while being skeptical, he still could piece things together and come to an understanding. But the UFO and aliens were so far outside his understanding that he was just bewildered.

There's a subtle but strong quality to Lucas as a storyteller and Ford as an actor. In 1957, UFO info was really suppressed, so Indy wouldn't have known about it nearly as well as he would have, say, the Ark. One criticism about "Kingdom" was how Indy seemed to be a dope, not "getting it" until he saw the wall paintings in Akator, but I think this criticism was baseless, being made by a culture who have been flooded with UFO literature for decades. How much would a professor really have known in the 1950's? Seriously? There wasn't much to know, and what was out in the public domain was ridiculed, so Indy probably wouldn't have had an interest in it. For a guy really having his first foray into UFOs, he figured things out pretty damn quick, actually.
 

Montana Smith

Active member
Matt deMille said:
My vote is for Kingdom, actually, because it was the first time he was really out of his element.

The first three films had a basis in theology if not archeology, things Indy would have studied, and so while being skeptical, he still could piece things together and come to an understanding. But the UFO and aliens were so far outside his understanding that he was just bewildered.

There's a subtle but strong quality to Lucas as a storyteller and Ford as an actor. In 1957, UFO info was really suppressed, so Indy wouldn't have known about it nearly as well as he would have, say, the Ark. One criticism about "Kingdom" was how Indy seemed to be a dope, not "getting it" until he saw the wall paintings in Akator, but I think this criticism was baseless, being made by a culture who have been flooded with UFO literature for decades. How much would a professor really have known in the 1950's? Seriously? There wasn't much to know, and what was out in the public domain was ridiculed, so Indy probably wouldn't have had an interest in it. For a guy really having his first foray into UFOs, he figured things out pretty damn quick, actually.

Choosing the most impressive is very difficult. Indy did see dead aliens back in 1947, so he had some forewarning of events.

I think I'd have to say the Sankara Stones, as that event took place first, in 1935. After that he'd be more prepared for the unexpected.
 

michael

Well-known member
I'd have to say the finale in the Last Crusade. To me, it left Indy in a state of awe.

The 'three challenges' themselves would be enough for anyone, but add on meeting the Grail Knight (who is living proof of the powers of the Grail), 'false' grails turning men into skeletons, and the Grail healing his father's wounds. I'd say that would leave a guy like Indy, very, very impressed.

We even see it right before they ride out into the sunset. While the look may not say "Impressed" it does show us a glimpse at Indy trying to take in all of what just happened. So much did just happen, and the movie doesn't make it feel congested, which was an incredible feat.

Still wondering, about the Knight who might still be alive, the fact the Grail was inches from his grasp, his thoughts on Elsa's demise. All the while it was supposed to be Henry Sr.'s quest, but it turned into Indy's.

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mattzilla2010

New member
Matt deMille said:
My vote is for Kingdom, actually, because it was the first time he was really out of his element.

The first three films had a basis in theology if not archeology, things Indy would have studied, and so while being skeptical, he still could piece things together and come to an understanding. But the UFO and aliens were so far outside his understanding that he was just bewildered.

I voted for Kingdom too, for this exact reason.

With the ark his eyes were closed, with the stones it's almost like he already knew something would happen if he started saying those Hindi words (after "you betrayed Shiva"), and the whole knight/grail thing is pretty close. But everything in Crusade is grounded in something Indy's already familiar with, the grail legends, stuff in the Bible, etc. But with the portal and the saucer flying away, he's just like... "What just happened?" :confused:

So basically I just regurgitated what Matt deMille said :p
 

Goodeknight

New member
First reaction was it's a toss up between Grail and the saucer. ((That is if I stretch myself to acknowledge KOTCS -- which is a big stretch for me...)

But after thinking about it, I have to go with the Grail, reason being that you can't beat the supernatural healing of your own estranged father. He witnessed the healing of his father, and then the healing of their relationship ("Indiana...Indiana, let it go."). If it had been the healing of Elsa or anyone else, or just the disintegration of Donovan and meeting a 700-year-old knight, then the saucer men would win out. But add in the Dad factor and that trumps everything else.

Now, as Montana mentioned, he did see aliens in 1947, but he says no one really knew what they were working on, what had crashed, etc. So 'aliens' would have been speculation. Presumably, the archaeologist on the team wouldn't have come face to face with alien remains, just artifacts.

Also by comparison, at the end of KOTCS, Indy is presented with the knowledge that there is extraterrestrial life in the universe. In Raiders and Last Crusade, he's essentially presented with the knowledge that there is a God (and a Jesus Christ whose blood imbued the Grail with special powers, etc.) God and JC vs. alien life. That is assuming he doesn't drum up another explanation for how the Ark and the Grail got their power.

And briefly:

Dr.Jonesy said:
If he had had his eyes open in 'Raiders of the Lost Ark', then that would've been it for me.

Well, Jonesy, that would have been it for Indy, too, because with his eyes open he would have been fried like all the rest. That actually would have made a big impression.
"Whoa, is my face melting?" :confused: :dead:

Montana Smith said:
I think I'd have to say the Sankara Stones, as that event took place first, in 1935. After that he'd be more prepared for the unexpected.

Sankara stones would have been my dead last pick, but Montana makes an interesting observation. It was the first supernatural event of his adult life, and could have made the biggest impact.

Still, I go for Grail, followed by the saucer.
 

mister64

New member
Last Crusade. Elsa, the Knight, the Grail, saving his father and his father finally calling him "Indiana" made a big impression on Indy.
 

Matt deMille

New member
Interesting responses. I want to add a few things, though.

I say Kingdom was the most "impressive", not the most important or monumental. Remember, in the 1930s, everyone was still pretty much of a Christian mind-set in the Western World. Plus there were centuries of archeological grounding for the revelations of the first three films. The whole UFO concept was still so new in the 1950s that it would have been the most "impressive" thing for Indy. Breaking it down a bit more:

Temple: Indy had already experienced some degree of "supernatural" prior to the Shankra Stones (such as getting his mind warped by the blood-drink). Plus, given his "I don't believe in magic" line a year later, perhaps he went into denial about it.

Raiders: Indy kept his eyes closed. He knew "something happened", but exactly sure what.

Crusade: Indy had already seen the power of God two years earlier.

So, in keeping with most "impressive", Kingdom still gets my vote as being the most powerful to Indy as far as "making an impression", indeed placing what he knows and believes against what he right before him. But I know I'm splitting hairs, here. Just had to.
 

AnythingGoes

New member
I voted LC for the same reasons that most of you have been saying.
Indy nearly gets decapitated, swallowed by the earth, reduced to dust and trapped in a bottomless pit.
And after seeing a 700+ year old man, the Holy Grail and his father's gunshot wound sealing, I think Indy would have been dumbstruck!
:whip:
 

kongisking

Active member
I think it would be Akator, because at least in the other movies, he was somewhat prepared for what was coming, seeing as his job involves the supernatural. Even though every movie starts with him as a skeptic (a continuity problem that has always bugged me), in the first three he is familiar with the background of the object/location in question. But in KOTCS, he is not an expert on aliens, so he was not prepared for the awe-inspiring sight that he bore witness to. And since Indy's whole life has been spent studying religious artifacts, seeing proof of intelligent alien life probably SERIOUSLY messed with his view of the world. Because, face it, if you saw an alien, all of your religious beliefs would be cast into serious doubt.

In short, the exact same argument as Matt above. Thus, making my post completely pointless!
 

Attila the Professor

Moderator
Staff member
Matt deMille said:
So, in keeping with most "impressive", Kingdom still gets my vote as being the most powerful to Indy as far as "making an impression", indeed placing what he knows and believes against what he right before him. But I know I'm splitting hairs, here. Just had to.

Thing is, I don't know that Indy appeared all that impressed at the end of the film. Maybe the escape didn't allow much time for it, but Indy was pretty action-oriented throughout that climax, and then was pretty content to sit down on that rock with Marion once it all disappeared, cracking-wise at his son. He didn't appear all that awed, which is (perhaps) a valid enough decision from a storytelling perspective, considering what he's seen before, but however impressed <I>we</I> might be, and whatever the import of what occurred in some sort of world historical sense might be...Indy didn't seem all that phased.

I'm with michael's well-stated post. There were other emotions involved in many of the other films' conclusions, each of them appropriate in their own way, but we've never seen Indy quite as impressed in the final reel as we did in Last Crusade.

(Note the italicized bit...the discovery of the Sankara Stones, of all things, gets my vote for the most awed piece of acting we get from Harrison Ford in the series. And the discovery of the Ark and skull also happen midway through the film, unlike the grail.)
 

lao che & sons

New member
I've got to say crystal skull.

Raiders had the most impressive in general, but that's to the audience. Indy couldn't be impressed because he had his eyes shut.

In temple, he seemed very knowledgeable of what would happen, in fact what did happen was in his control. He had already witnessed the power of the stones so it couldn't have been impressive the second time, nor surprising.

The last crusade is my choice's main competetor. BUt he didn't really act surprised or impressed. He was more worried about his father and saving him. '

But in crystal skull he really doesn't believe in all that alien ufo mumbo jumbo. So I'm sure he was not only impressed but very surprised at the sight of a real UFO and the crytal skull aliens.:whip:
 

Willie

New member
At first I chose the end of ToD. I changed my mind after watching KoTCS again. Seeing aliens and a spaceship, etc. would be the most impressive to Indy.

He was very familiar with Holy Grail legend in The Last Crusade and The Lost Ark in Raiders. In ToD he was very calm and not surprised when the stones began to shine and burn at the end of the film.
 

Indy's brother

New member
I voted for KOTCS. I mean hell, he actually had tears in his eyes when he said "Where did they go?" It was a grand spectacle, and the exodus of the interdimensionals severed the E.T.-esque mind-meld the crystal skull had with him!
 

michael

Well-known member
Indy's brother said:
I voted for KOTCS. I mean hell, he actually had tears in his eyes when he said "Where did they go?"

Does he really? I'm gonna have to pop it in when I get home, I didn't notice that.
 

Matt deMille

New member
I believe he was on the verge of tears, maybe in tears indeed. If so, I think that's a great touch by Ford. To Indy, this wasn't just "one more adventure", it was being set up as "one LAST adventure". I felt there was a nice, good undercurrent of emotion in Crystal Skull displayed by Ford, that of the world passing him by. You can see it most clearly when he's boarding the train. Forget Mutt and Marion for a moment and their surface story implications for a moment -- This was when Indy was at a crossroads of "Am I done?" or "Do I start anew?" The reality of the UFO had to make him re-examine everything he believed in, whether archeologically or even philosophically. That'd sure bring tears to *my* eyes . . .
 

Col. Detritch

New member
Like most of us here I was torn between the finales with the emotional and religious impact of Last Crusade and the truly unexpected and awe inspiring Crystal Skull. That was before I re-watched the RotLA finale. Sure he didn't see anything kill the Nazis but he did see something come out of the ark at first and all the lights and camera explode suddenly. Then he heard every shriek and scream as the Nazis were struck by Belloq?s eyes before hearing Belloq's head explode and feeling the flames engulf the area around him (since they did burn the ropes) and then opening his eyes to the dark empty altar where Belloq and the Nazis stood moments before in the middle of the Nazi sub base! Just the not knowing what really happened would leave me impressed and very curious! My vote's for Raiders! Such intrigue...
:hat:
 

Yure

Well-known member
Voted for Crusade, not just for the climax that's built with the three challenges and that results in a really incredible sight, but also for the emotional implications of what he witnessed when the Grail healed his father.
 

Major Eaton

New member
Yure said:
Voted for Crusade, not just for the climax that's built with the three challenges and that results in a really incredible sight, but also for the emotional implications of what he witnessed when the Grail healed his father.

Agreed. I voted Last Crusade as far as Indy's impression was concerned.:hat:
 
goodeknight said:
First reaction was it's a toss up between Grail and the saucer... But after thinking about it, I have to go with the Grail, reason being that you can't beat the supernatural healing of your own estranged father.

That's sums it up nicely.:hat:

While the Ark and Skull/Alien/Creature no doubt "help" Indy, the "Magic of the Stones" came off like a side effect. Indy actually needed and used the Grail.
 
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