Most Unbelievable Indy Scene of all-Time!

What is the most unbelievable Indy scene in the entire trilogy?

  • ROTLA: Indy finds an entrance on a water-sealed German submarine

    Votes: 12 9.8%
  • ROTLA: Indy and Sallah are able to lift a half-ton stone tomb covering the Ark of the Covenant

    Votes: 8 6.5%
  • TOD: Indy, Willie and Short Round safely parachute out of plane in a life raft

    Votes: 37 30.1%
  • TOD: The mining cart makes a massive air jump over uncompleted track and lands perfectly aligned

    Votes: 45 36.6%
  • LC: Indy breaks the 8-inch thick marble floor of the Venice library with a rope-holding post

    Votes: 8 6.5%
  • LC: Indy opens eyes while submerged in the Venice oil catacombs and is able to find an escape route

    Votes: 13 10.6%

  • Total voters
    123

Lao Che Pun

New member
I've been thinking this one for awhile.....

What do you guys think is the most unbelievable Indiana Jones scene of all-time? (Of course - we, as fans, must overlook the obvious scenes that George and Steven meant for us to "suspend our disbeliefs" such as believing in ghosts, magic potions, power-lighted rocks, immortality, face-melting spirits, the ability to pull hearts out of living chests, and perfectly smoothed and rounded boulders with the diameter of 12 feet.)

What I'm asking for is - what scene do you think is rooted in reality - and is obviously the most unbelievable?

...and if you are going to post your own suggestions....please do not post anything that George or Steven meant to be semi-unbelievable. For example: The fact that Indy turns into "Evil Indy" once he is forced to drink the Thugee milkshake is obviously unbelievable...I'm talking about reality-based scenes.....

I'm arguing for the Venice library marble floor sequence..... :rolleyes:
 
Last edited:

Skipper

New member
Re:

How about, Indy experiences first-hand the supernatural powers of the Sankara stones, and then a year later tells Marcus "I don't believe in magic, a bunch of superstitious hocus-pocus."
 

Stoo

Well-known member
If you are still able to edit the poll, you should reword the 1st choice since Indy
fastens himself to the periscope with his whip and never actually gets inside.;)
 

Crack that whip

New member
I was going to mention that. Someone's been playing hooky from Deleted Scenes School.

Are we going to have to hold Lao Che Pun back a year?

:p ;)
 

Lao_Che

Active member
Those ladies tap dancing for their own amusement through that little door at the start of Temple of Doom that Willie Scott steps out of.

They don't even leave at the end of the song. They're probably still down there giving red sheets to singers in 1993. ;)
 

Way of the dodo

New member
I know Indy held onto the periscope in the cut scene, but I read somewhere that it actually would have been more likely for the U-boat to not submerge at all if they don't have to since it's more inherently dangerous and they aren't in combat.
 

Lao Che Pun

New member
Crack that whip said:
I was going to mention that. Someone's been playing hooky from Deleted Scenes School.

Are we going to have to hold Lao Che Pun back a year?

:p ;)

Dahhh! :sick: :confused: :hat:

Serves me right.

So, did the sub never submerge?
 

Stoo

Well-known member
Lao Che Pun said:
So, did the sub never submerge?
Yes, which is why Indy ties himself to the periscope.
Check out the Marvel Comics adaptation of "Raiders"!

Way of the dodo said:
but I read somewhere that it actually would have been more likely for the U-boat to not submerge
at all if they don't have to since it's more inherently dangerous and they aren't in combat.
This is entirely true but, for some reason we don't know about, they do submerge.

One thing I find difficult to believe it that Marcus takes the apple from Indy's desk
without asking. Maybe he knows that Indy doesn't like apples?
 
I said parachuting out of the plane on a rubber raft. Does anybody doubt the survivability of this one? Sorry but not even my suspension of disbelief can forgive this one. As for the mine car jumping across the tracks and landing there is a 1 in 1000 chance that it could actually make it which is why I had to go with the rubber raft. Let's just call that one an amazing stroke of good luck.

Also, it's entirely possible the U-Boat would not have submerged on the voyage to the island. Completely plausible.
 
Stoo said:
Yes, which is why Indy ties himself to the periscope.
Check out the Marvel Comics adaptation of "Raiders"!

This is entirely true but, for some reason we don't know about, they do submerge.

I call that creative license by the artists at Marvel providing THEIR explanation of how Indy survived the journey to the island but as Occam's Razor would suggest, the simpler and more likely better explanation is that the U-Boat did not submerge because it was not in hostile waters.
 

I Hate Snakes!

New member
Falling out of the sky on a life raft and landing on the bottom is pretty unbelievable (knowing that the raft was top heavy). But I'm glad it happend because I want Indy and Short Round to live.

When I picked this I had no clue it would be the most popular.
 
I find it amusing to watch this shot because they obviously dropped it with dummies inside and it spins in the air and at one point it actually folds up like a taco while it is spinning and when it lands you can see how phoney the mannequins look just before they match cut to the landing shot with the real actors. And yes... Indy's hat is STILL on! :eek:
 

Stoo

Well-known member
Agent Spalko said:
I call that creative license by the artists at Marvel providing THEIR explanation of how Indy survived the journey to the island but as Occam's Razor would suggest, the simpler and more likely better explanation is that the U-Boat did not submerge because it was not in hostile waters.
Well, Occam's Razor won't do you any justice in this case. Noobs!:whip:
The scene was actually filmed with Harrison Ford (and with miniatures).

"The forward movement of the sub continues, but, to Indy's slowly dawning delight, the dive stops.
No more of the periscope goes under. Indy smiles; it's a pretty good smile, too, given the circumstances.
Indy pulls out his bullwhip and begins tying himself to the periscope."
 
Stoo said:
Well, Occam's Razor won't do you any justice in this case. Noobs!:whip:
The scene was actually filmed with Harrison Ford (and with miniatures).

"The forward movement of the sub continues, but, to Indy's slowly dawning delight, the dive stops.
No more of the periscope goes under. Indy smiles; it's a pretty good smile, too, given the circumstances.
Indy pulls out his bullwhip and begins tying himself to the periscope."

If it was filmed then obviously it wasn't used for a very good reason. It wasn't necessary. Occam's Razor still prevails. :p
 

Crack that whip

New member
Mythbusters did a segment on the falling raft scenario, and much to everyone's astonishment, they found it surprisingly relatively plausible. (y)

As noted, there's nothing to indicate the sub submerged at all (and plenty of apocrypha to indicate it didn't, or at least not completely, periscope and all) - note even the track on the expanded DCC soundtrack album includes a triumphant snippet of Indy's "Raiders March" theme that, judging from its placement, sounds like it was intended to accompany shots of Indy tied to the periscope as the sub goes on its way, intercut into the red line / map montage).

I don't know where the figure of half a ton for the stone lid comes from, but I don't think we have to limit ourselves to that, and even if we did that's 500 lbs apiece for each man, which I think is possible with extreme effort (which they clearly give).

The most unbelievable thing to me about smashing the floor in the library ought to be that Indy would be willing to do such a thing. That scene bothers me, even if the librarian's befuddlement over the sound "from" the book stamp is amusing. That said, I don't think it's a huge issue as far as plausibility goes. The water under Venice should be just that; I don't see any reason oil would actually be filling all that space, and rather I think it's just a thin layer of oil, floating on the water, as we all know oil does. The water should be pretty icky, no doubt, but I think it's still possible.

I'm therefore forced to reluctantly select my beloved mine car jump, as it's pretty profoundly damn unlikely the car's velocity, rotation and trajectory and the track ends' positioning would all be perfectly balanced, as it were, to make the jump possible. That said, however, I buy it anyway on the grounds that aside from there being at least an atomically minute possibility it could be done, it's just really, really cool, so there. :p :D
 

MaverickKing

New member
I think the most unbelievable part of "Temple of Doom" is how the large tank of water holds enough liquid inside to make its way through the mines to Indy in record time, despite the mines being filled with lava.
 
Top