Raiders of the Lost Ark

Film puritans point to Raiders as a perfect example of the post–Star Wars juvenilization of Hollywood that, they moan, replaced the mature, complex American cinema of the early ’70s. We’re not disputing that charge, but compared to most summer blockbusters of the last few years, Spielberg’s action-packed adventure yarn looks like frickin’ Shakespeare. The story is tightly constructed, the action sequences are thrilling without turning into bloated set pieces, and the screenplay has some memorable lines that don’t feel calculated to be catchphrases (“Asps. Very dangerous. You go first.”). Ford is at his charming best as the globe-trotting archaeologist trying to stop the Nazis from getting the Ark of the Covenant. Spielberg’s goal was to re-create the excitement of movie serials from Hollywood’s golden age, and he succeeded admirably. —Hank Sartin