About the protests

Jeremiah Jones

Jeremiah Jones

Member
Why do people think the moterbike chase'll be at the end of the movie? I'd say it'll be at the start, right after the warehouse scene, and connected with the usual 'Indy lecturing' scene we got in LC and Raiders.

Tis possible that the Russians leaked some false information to discredit Indiana in the eyes of the US government, or else just the general Fervor of McCarthyism discrediting anyone with anything approaching a more wider, inclusive view of life, values, cultures etc.

I;m just worried that these protests will be seen as a good thing in the context of the movie, what with Communists being the bad guys and all. As in, a way of creating a Cold War Context, them chasing Indy could be a Speilburg Humour monent, it mightn't be in anger.

Its just that Recent Histories of the Cold War reveal that it was kept going to a large extent by the US, which did rather dodgy things in its pursuit. And while The USSR, especially under Stalin was not a place I'd like to have lived, in 1957 with Khruschev basically denouncing Stalin and what he represented, things were fairly different from the typical Hollywood interpretation of the Cold War, as being as 'morally simple' a thing as WWII.

In other words I'm hoping it'll avoid dodgy historiography... Elst I'll be sitting there humming and grimicing my way through the movie.:sick:
 
Attila the Professor

Attila the Professor

Moderator
Staff member
Jeremiah Jones said:
I;m just worried that these protests will be seen as a good thing in the context of the movie, what with Communists being the bad guys and all. As in, a way of creating a Cold War Context, them chasing Indy could be a Speilburg Humour monent, it mightn't be in anger.

Its just that Recent Histories of the Cold War reveal that it was kept going to a large extent by the US, which did rather dodgy things in its pursuit. And while The USSR, especially under Stalin was not a place I'd like to have lived, in 1957 with Khruschev basically denouncing Stalin and what he represented, things were fairly different from the typical Hollywood interpretation of the Cold War, as being as 'morally simple' a thing as WWII.

In other words I'm hoping it'll avoid dodgy historiography... Elst I'll be sitting there humming and grimicing my way through the movie.:sick:
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Seems unlikely that it will endorse the protesters. Apart from Spielberg and Lucas being lefties of a sort, it's also the good judgment to take. It would just be lazy of them to include anti-communist protesters and not have them arguing that Indy is a Communist, however. He's an academic, he has lots of international ties, including perhaps ones with current Soviets. Also, all the run-ins with the Nazis wouldn't help all that much. Of course, let's not pretend that standards of life went up just because Khrushchev renounced Stalin. There was lots of paranoia and escalation to go around.
 
Jeremiah Jones

Jeremiah Jones

Member
Oh yes of course, standards of living didn't suddenly just change, just, I have been sorta worried how Spalko and the other communists would be depicted ever since it was anounced that the USSR would be the antagonists...

But yeah, I'd say they are protesting against Indy, for whatever reason... well at least I hope they are, it would make a change from smitten students anyway.
 
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xVendetta17x

New member
There could be the chance that we're just over analyzing the protests, they may not have that much to do with the film
It could just be something that Mutt and Indy mow through during the chase
Wasn't there supposed to be a point where Indy catches a football in a game and gets the winning touchdown?
My memory could be faulty
 
eroc

eroc

New member
Attila the Professor said:
Absolutely. It would be taking advantage of a defining feature of the 1950s setting and one that were he a real figure, Indiana Jones would have come up against, what with all his international ties (Young Indy particularly bolsters this argument, but is unnecessary for it). It also opens the way for playing with the moral ambiguities at work both in the character and the era.
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very smart. you can't have an "American hero" movie set in the 50's with Russians as the bad guys without throwing in some McCarthyism. It all goes with the territory...as does the progression from 30's serials to 50's sci-fi.

xVendetta17x said:
There could be the chance that we're just over analyzing the protests, they may not have that much to do with the film
It could just be something that Mutt and Indy mow through during the chase
Wasn't there supposed to be a point where Indy catches a football in a game and gets the winning touchdown?
My memory could be faulty
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I also think a statue of George Lucas loses his head in the same scene.
 
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sarah navarro

New member
eroc said:
very smart. you can't have an "American hero" movie set in the 50's with Russians as the bad guys without throwing in some McCarthyism. It all goes with the territory...as does the progression from 30's serials to 50's sci-fi.
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McCarthyism=false accusations,he buried himself in whole of lies.
 
NileQT87

NileQT87

Member
actually, one can argue just how "false" some of those accusations were. not all were false. ;)

and i bet the soviet communists will not be presented in a favorable light... sorry a few of you lefties are getting your hopes up.
 
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sarah navarro

New member
NileQT87 said:
actually, one can argue just how "false" some of those accusations were. not all were false. ;)

and i bet the soviet communists will not be presented in a favorable light... sorry a few of you lefties are getting your hopes up.
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hmmmm...
Well he never encountered a real Russian spy.:)
Well i know that Mccarthy for sure did unleash a unreasonable fear on Americans that wasnt necessary,he used reckless accusations on people which ruined there lives.
 
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Moedred

Moedred

Administrator
Staff member
eroc said:
I also think a statue of George Lucas loses his head
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It's a statue of former Dean Marcus Brody. Its head is missing. The Soviets are looking for crystal skulls. A chase ensues. I'm fairly sure these are the big pieces of the puzzle.

Many lives have been ruined (if you consider working in Hollywood the summation of one's life) since long before the fifties. Thje threat "you'll never work in this town again" is still hurled today, often from casting couches. Joe McCarthy (died May 1957, before the scene in question) makes an easy foil for these hypocrites.

Mitchell Hallock snapped a photo at the shoot last year that suggests the protest might be triggered by the space race, possibly the launch of Sputnik I (October 4, 1957). I don't know if Americans reacted as depicted, but seriously, wouldn't it be fun to protest commies anyway?
l_a26e362215d052582378b75db3821101.jpg
 
joelwatts

joelwatts

New member
eroc said:
very smart. you can't have an "American hero" movie set in the 50's with Russians as the bad guys without throwing in some McCarthyism. It all goes with the territory...as does the progression from 30's serials to 50's sci-fi.
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Can you have a movie set in the latter half of the 1930s without referencing the Great Depression- the most important event of the period? Answer: you can. It's called all three Indiana Jones movies. See my previous post on this:

http://raven.theraider.net/showthread.php?t=12026
 
RaiderMitch

RaiderMitch

TR.N Staff Member
There are a lot of pics from the commie rally --- look at my myspace.com/mitchellhallock in th epics folder called "lost files" or INDAY 5... I have tons of them and more I will put up after May 22nd as not to spoil anything
 
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