Rejection of Nazism
Nazi paramilitary troops marching in 1932 Spandau, Germany. Raiders can be seen as a form of revenge for the Jewish people, showing the rejection of the Nazis by God.Raiders can be interpreted as a Jewish fantasy about punishing the Nazis for the Holocaust.[1] Spielberg is Jewish, and the Ark is a Jewish artifact described as holding the Ten Commandments passed down to the Jewish people by God.[1][12] In biblical descriptions, the Ark is a gold-plated wooden box that must be carried with poles because it is too holy to be touched.[25] Although the Nazi regime persecuted the Jewish people, in the film, they needed to use a Jewish artifact to subjugate the world; however, the artifact was too pure and holy for them to touch and actively rejected them by destroying their symbol emblazoned on the Ark's transportation crate while leaving the crate itself unharmed. Eventually, it also destroys the Nazi forces that open it.[1][12] The Nazis are stopped by the literal intervention of Godly power that leaves the perceived protagonists unharmed.[151]
In another scene, Jones falls underneath a moving truck when its hood-ornament, a Mercedes logo, snaps, mocking Mercedes' involvement in aiding the Nazis.[1][152] Elizabeth Hirschman identified elements of the metaphysical, believing the standard heroic quest was offset by the religious importance of the Ark, an item of Judeo-Christian belief. The image of God is one that is inherently on the side of the good, and the destruction of the Nazi villains draws parallels to Yahweh visiting plagues on Egypt for enslaving the Israelites.[153]
Cinematic homage
Raiders of the Lost Ark is a pastiche of cinematic history, inspired by and referencing many films. Spielberg stated explicitly the film is about movies and designed as a tribute to filmmaking.[154] Alongside directly referenced inspirations like early 20th-century serials,[12][15][19][20] the film contains references to Citizen Kane (1941), the film noir Kiss Me Deadly (1955), the samurai film Yojimbo (1961), and the epic Lawrence of Arabia (1962), among others.[16][155] Citizen Kane is referenced directly in Raiders's last scene where the Ark is secured in a vast warehouse, a fate similar to that of the beloved childhood sled belonging to Citizen Kane's principal character.[16][156] Raiders also references several of Lucas' own films: the translation of the German U-boat announcement is "1138", a reference to science fiction film THX 1138 (1971); and numerous nods to Star Wars including the characters of R2-D2 and C-3PO appearing as hieroglyphics inside the Well of Souls.[12][15] Richard Crinkley recounted audience members of King David (1985) associated its use of the Ark explicitly with Raiders instead of its biblical origins. He deemed this an example of "cinemate visual literacy", an increasing number of people educated by visual media rather than text.[157]
Sociology
One of the film's themes—shared with Superman II (released the same year in the United States)—has been interpreted as American security being put at risk. These films are emblematic of their time and the contemporary fears of American citizens. The Nazi characters are based on a former threat to America, and like Superman II, Raiders requires the intervention of a superhuman character to prevent destruction at the hands of enemy forces—a character audiences can admire, but never possibly emulate. Janet Maslin argues that the fantasy of these films and the larger-than-life characters are designed to satisfy audiences who do not want to reflect on the world around them.[96] Jones is striving to recover the Ark both to stop the Nazis but also for personal glory, but the film never dwells on the regular people around the world who would be affected by an invincible Nazi army.[96]
Raiders offers a counter to the American national embarrassments of the controversial Vietnam War (1955–1975), the Watergate scandal (1972), a recession, and the growing influence of foreign nations.[26][158] The period setting of the film also presents audiences with a time tinged in romantic nostalgia and filled with the possibility for adventure.[17][26] Robin Wood wrote that Raiders, Superman, and Star Wars provide a familiar, comforting content using the nostalgic memories of the older serial films of which they are derivative, presenting an idealized vision of older traditional values. Wood opined the purpose of this was to subdue contemporary radical social movements eager for change.[159] Jennifer Barker suggested that Raiders offers audiences what they want, and does not challenge their values or beliefs as anything but correct.[160]
The macho male action hero archetype of the era, conveyed by Jones, can also be seen as reinforcing traditional masculinity in the face of growing feminism. Describing the typical interpretation of this archetype, Latham Hunter said films such as Raiders, Lethal Weapon (1987), and Die Hard (1988) evolve the everyman character into someone who can overcome impossible odds and promote American might.[158] Jones is an American hero who steps in reluctantly to save the world by overcoming almost exclusively foreign enemies.[26][33] Barker argues that Jones is an individualist placed in opposition to a fascist or totalitarian regime, making Raiders a "conservative serial fantasy" film.[160] Hunter believed this focus on masculinity was short-sighted, and these films succeeded because they offered escapism from reality, and presented an outclassed hero who reflected the audiences' own feelings of powerlessness.[158]
Jones has been criticized as a poor portrayal of an archaeologist and that his actions amount to theft.[161] Archaeologist Winifred Creamer described Jones as the "worst thing to happen to archaeology" as he "walks a fine line between what's an archaeologist and what's a professional looter."[162] Kevin McGeough wrote that the archetypal film archaeologist in older films was never the hero, but often a subject to be saved or conquered by the actual hero. Jones is imbued with the self-reliance and physical competence of the traditional hero, but with an intelligence that is recognized and celebrated, setting him apart from older heroes.[161] Even so, Jones is hunting the Ark, in part, for personal glory attached to its recovery. When given the opportunity to destroy it to prevent its misuse, Belloq calls his bluff and Jones backs down. Belloq suggests he is a skewed reflection of Jones, and only a small change would turn Jones into Belloq.[151][163]
In her argument that the film is about colonialism, Tatiana Prorokova identified Jones and the Nazis as all-Caucasian males invading foreign lands, belonging to people of color, to steal a local treasure for their own personal benefit.[164] In dismissing the supernatural aspects of the Ark, Jones also dismisses its cultural significance, rendering it a prize to be collected for his sake.[165] As the hero, Jones represents the United States' unfettered right to protect the Ark from others. Although according to Lucas the character of Indiana is named after his childhood dog, Prorokova insists that the hero is named for the U.S. state of Indiana, a state named after wars against Native Americans by colonizers.[166] Raiders is set at a time when much of the world lived under colonial rule, and the film presents the non-white characters either as subjugated by the Nazis and reliant on a white American for aid or as collaborating with the Nazis.[167]
