Can I find love, while also retrieving precious artifacts from ancient cultures?
Point of Attack/Catalyst:
Two Army intelligence agents recruit Indiana to track down the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis do.
Collision/End Act One:
Indiana meets Marion and rescues her from Nazi thugs searching for the Ark; Marion decides to go with him
Main Tension of the Movie in Question Form (Occupies Act Two):
Can Indiana and Marion find the Ark before the Nazis?
Example of Rising Action:
Indiana infiltrates the Nazi dig and finds the real location of the Well of Souls with the Staff of Ra
Midpoint:
Belloq and the Nazis trap Indiana and Marion in the Well of Souls with snakes.
Culmination/End Act Two/Answer to Main Tension:
Indiana and Marion are captured, and watch as the Nazis open the Ark of the Covenant only to be disintegrated.
Example of Falling Action:
Army intelligence agents inform Indiana and Brody that the Ark is safe.
Resolution/Answer to Life Dream:
Indiana retrieves the Ark from the Nazis, and presumably rekindles his relationship with Marion.
Writing Tools Used in Raiders:
TWIST: The Ark of the Covenant does not grant the Nazis victory, but destroys them.
PLANTING/PAYOFF: The establishment of the monkey, then its role in the chase sequence in Cairo
ELEMENTS OF THE FUTURE: Belloq showing up in the first scene to take away Indy's treasure, foreshadowing him racing to beat Indiana to the Ark
SUBPLOT: Marion's and Indiana's romantic relationship, being rekindled after a failed fling
SCENE OF AFTERMATH: Marion's bar in shambles, showing that she has nowhere now to go except with Indy
Works Cited
Spielberg, S. (dir.) (1981). Raiders of the Lost Ark. Perf. Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul
Freeman. United States: Paramount Pictures.
