Trivia: In the original script, instead of all dying together in the infamous scene during the opening of the Ark, Belloq, Toht and Dietrich were to die at different points in the film: Toht was to die together with Gobler during the truck chase, Belloq would die during the opening of the Ark (which was shorter), and Dietrich was to die in the mine cart chase through Geheimhaven that took place after the closing of the Ark and was cut from the film.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
1 trivia entry since 24 Nov '24, 21:26
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Harrison Ford, Alfred Molina, John Rhys-Davies, Denholm Elliott, Paul Freeman, Karen Allen
Continuity mistake: When Indy goes to save Marion in the tent he removes the handkerchief gag. But when he decides to leave her there, he puts the gag back on and some of her hair gets caught underneath the gag on one close up shot from the left. But when the camera goes to the back of Indy, her hair is no longer caught underneath the gag. (00:56:00)
Question: Considering how powerful and dangerous the Ark is, why would Indy hand it over to the United States government, instead of putting it back where it was found and to ensure it's never located, lie to them and say him or the Nazis never found it?
Answer: To add to the previous answer, there is no way that the ark could have been secretly returned to where it was found and then conveniently forgotten. Too many people already knew of its existence and location. It would only be a matter of time before someone more sinister would retrieve it.
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Answer: Indy and Marcus Brody believed that the Ark needed to be studied. They certainly didn't want to put it back where it was found. They believed that the U.S. government would find the best archaeologists, researchers, and scientists in the world to study the Ark. They are both upset that instead, the government has decided to simply lock the Ark away. This is why Indy says, "Fools. They don't know what they've got there," as he is leaving the building.
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