Raiders of the Lost Ark

Corrected entry: After Indiana Jones has run the staff car containing Belloq, Toht, et al, off the road to Cairo with the truck, look at the driver of the staff car- he immediately anticipates Paul Freeman (Belloq) striking him two seconds before Freeman actually does by covering his head to protect himself from Freeman's hit.

Correction: The driver knows what kind of man Belloq is. He knows Belloq will blame him for what had just happened. It's entirely reasonable he'd brace himself for what he assumes is coming.

Phixius

Corrected entry: When Indy has the bazooka like weapon pointed at the Arc of the Covenant, Beloq and Indy are talking. At one point when Beloq is talking, a fly enters his mouth and he seems to have absolutely no reaction at all.

Correction: How is this a movie mistake? I wouldn't even call this a character mistake; that sounds exactly like Beloq. Too dignified to spit, sputter, or even momentarily falter in his speech.

Phixius

Corrected entry: Indy's pilot (Jock) has a distinct Australian accent when he states, "That's just mah pet snoek, Reggie." In his next sentence, he's become completely 'Americanized'. The accent has vanished.

Nicki

Correction: The pilot could have just been immitating an Australian accent at first.

XIII

Correction: Listen closer, Indy is yelling "Marion".

Corrected entry: When Indiana and the other guy are removing the stone cover where the Ark is kept, they are struggling, yet they can lift the Ark out with relative ease. The Ark is made of solid gold and the lid itself is said to need two men to lift, plus it should contain the two stone tablets with the ten commandments on. It should have weighed just as much if not more than the stone covering.

Correction: I think the lid was made of solid gold.

Correction: The Ark was not made of solid gold, but of acacia wood covered with gold leaf (See Exodus 37:1-2).

Correction: There is not one clear shot to support this, at no time is it possible to see what Marion was wearing underneath the dress that Belloq gave to her, nor can this be determined when she was hanging on to the statue just after Toth threw her into the well of souls.

Will

Corrected entry: When the seaplane leaves San Francisco it flies west over the complete Golden Gate bridge. The movie is set in 1936, the Golden Gate bridge wasn't completed until 1937.

Correction: The bridge's structure would have most likely been completed by then, with only the roadway still under construction.

Corrected entry: U-boats were more than four times as fast on the surface (running on diesel engines) than when submerged (running on batteries). Since Germany was not at war at this time they would have run the boat on the surface almost exclusively. Since the boats were so hard for other surface vessels to see, the Captain would have maintained a constant look out on deck. There is no way Indy could have stayed hidden for the entire voyage.

Correction: While it is true that the German U-boat was 3x-4x faster on the surface, it is equally true that in the treaty or Versailles, Germany was banned from possessing U-boats. (The U.K. was still upset about costs exacted in WWI). A German U-boat approaching any ally or neutral ship would have to submerge, even before the war had started.

The original mistake is valid and the correction's reasoning is wrong. While the Nazis did build U-boats in violation of the Versailles Treaty right away after they took power and tried to hide it initially, this practice was an open secret pretty soon and eventually legitimized by the Anglo-German Naval Agreement of 1935, well before the movie takes place. They would not have to hide a U-boat from anyone at that time.

Revealing mistake: While Indy and Marion are in the Well of Souls, and they encounter the snakes, Indy falls to the ground only to be confronted by a hissing Cobra rearing its head. Look carefully and you'll see the snake's reflection on the safety glass between it and Indy. Briefly you can also see the torch's reflection while he's waving it around. You can also see Marion's reflection when she falls in later on and is face to face with the cobra. [This has been corrected in the new DVD set. You can only see it if you have the original VHS. I think it's visible in the "making of" on the DVD as well.]

More mistakes in Raiders of the Lost Ark

Marion: You're not the man I knew ten years ago.
Indiana: It's not the years, honey, it's the mileage.

More quotes from Raiders of the Lost Ark

Trivia: When a Nazi falls from the back of the truck carrying the Ark, a "Wilhelm scream" can be heard.

More trivia for Raiders of the Lost Ark

Question: I first saw "Raiders" at the cinema when it was released in Australia and I distinctly remember a scene which has never appeared on video or DVD. After the end credits, there's a cut back to the crate housing the Ark in the warehouse, and the U.S Govt. stamp on the side of the crate is slowly burning off, as if a fire within the crate is scorching it. One other friend (also in Australia) also remembers. Does anyone else remember this, and can anyone shed any light on what happened to this scene?

Answer: I also remember this scene. After the ark is sealed, the camera performs a close up of the side of the crate. The stamp reads "Top Secret Army Intel 9906753 Do Not Open" This stamp is burned off just like the swastika is in the scene on the submarine, because in the eyes of God, no nation is holy or worthy enough to claim ownership of the ark. However, this final scene was cut (the burning of the stamp) from the film for a variety of unclear reasons. While it was in theaters, this scene was not included on the DVD version.

Add me to this. We saw the movie in a "pre release" version in Orlando Florida. No advance warning of the movie. We went to see another flick and at the end were "invited" to see this if we were willing to critique it afterwards. This scene was included. I also always wondered why the change.

I also remember seeing this mysterious 'burning' of the logo, most likely it was on a VHS copy of this movie. Yes, it did exist.

I saw it in former Czechoslovakia in the second half of 80's in cinema (west movies came to the east countries' cinemas years later). And I thought it was a great joke that burning out the swastika wasn't just because the Nazis are bad but because nobody is great enough to own the arc. Then after the Velvet revolution I saw the film again on TV (beginning of 90's) and said everyone around: watch it until the end, wait on the post-credit scene, there will be a surprise.

And there was a surprise. The scene was cut off! I was angry on the TV they didn't show the scene. I cannot be influenced by internet discussion or urban legend. The internet didn't exist yet.

I saw it in Portland, Oregon, and was so impressed with the message it carried, that I told friends and we went several times just to see it. Funny thing was when I mentioned it a few years ago, many people said I was a LIAR that it never happened. I could not convince anyone. It was removed because it wasn't Politically Correct. USA is a force for good, God would not burn off AMERICAN TEXT! BUT WE DID SEE IT. Thanks to our Australian eye witness, we know we did not imagine it.

Answer: I also remember that scene.

Answer: This scene never existed. Plus, the crate never has a US Govt logo stamped on it. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cbr.com/movie-legends-revealed-alternate-ending-for-raiders-of-the-lost-ark/amp/.

Bishop73

Answer: I remember the side of the crate being "charred" when it was in the ship's cargo hold, in the scene when the Nazi's arrived in the submarine. It was the Nazi swastika on the side of the crate that was burned off. It also showed a rat keeling over dead from the energy it emitted. (I just watched this again on the Paramount cable channel.)

raywest

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