In 1981 Steven Spielberg presented to the world a new hero: the archaeologist Indiana Jones. His introducing in ‘In Search of the Lost Ark’ left almost 390 million at the box office. A new and profitable saga and a popular icon had just been born. Thus, in 1984 his “sequel / prequel” was released with the name of the hero, presenting his new adventure: ‘Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom’. Again, Steven Spielberg stood behind the cameras to offer us a great “continuation.”

In ‘The Temple of Doom’ the writers continued to develop the new story created by George Lucas. A story that again focuses on the search for mythical treasures. In this case, the Sacred Stones of Shankara and Hindu beliefs regarding the deities of Kali and Shiva. In this sense, but for the fun presence of Willie’s character, this adventure would be totally gloomy. We cannot forget that here we have macabre cults, human sacrifices, enslaved children, sponsored children … even the high priest of the cult, Mola Ram, tears out the heart of a poor wretch with his hand. So, despite its fun and adventure, the script is quite adult and macabre; and when we say that we are going to see the dark side of the archaeologist, we are not referring only to the final moment in which Indiana is transformed by drinking demonic blood, but that this is a more violent and amoral Indiana than the previous one. Not only does he threaten to kill Willie with a knife if they don’t give him the promised diamond, but once poisoned, he skewers an enemy with a burning iron, and to clear himself he hits without a blush a waitress who was passing by. This later resulted on the movie being classified as R-13. The luck is that for many tremendous acts that he can do, Harrison Ford is able to give credibility and charisma to a character that could have been abject, or directly absurd.

The setting is excellent, both outdoors and indoors. Outside, the open stages of the filming locations stand out. In this case: Sri Lanka, Macao and California. For its part, the interior highlights the phenomenal recreation of the so-called “Cursed Temple” in honor of Kali, a terrifying structure recreated in a colossal decorated.

Regarding the action of the film, to say that it is outstanding may be too short. The film offers an unparalleled collection of set-pieces to each one more incredible and unforgettable. It all starts with the great and fun sequence in the club “Obi-Wan” (very clear nod to ‘Star Wars’) and from there the wick of the show is lit. How to forget the “parachute boat”, the scenes of the mine or the climax of the bridge! All these sequences could be carried out thanks to the team of specialists of Vic Armstrong.

As a curiosity, note that the set-pieces of the boat and the persecution in the mines, originally were going to be in ‘In search of the lost Ark’ (1981). However, Spielberg finally failed to realize them and kept these ideas for the best occasion. For its part, the effects and great miniatures were borne by MPAA. The entire effects team, led by Dennis Muren, was awarded the Oscar at the 1985 gala.

The inimitable soundtrack is from the master John Williams who signs a great job. From the catchy and mythical main composition, the composer raises the entire film with his scores. Watching this film with Williams’ music is priceless since each scene is also enormously worked from a musical point of view. So much so that John Williams was nominated for an Oscar at the 1985 gala.

The great star of the cast is Harrison Ford who, since he starred in the previous film, felt very comfortable with his hat and whip. “The Temple of Doom” is the confirmation of how the actor had transmuted into the character. Ford delivers an intelligent, fun, charismatic, strong and adventurous Indiana. A guy who doesn’t mind getting his hands dirty and who represents the hero that almost everyone would want to be. Actress Kate Capshaw shines with her own light giving life to dancer/singer Willie. His is a totally comic role in which he emphasizes the naivety and spontaneity of his character.Thanks to this movie, Kate and Spielberg met and finished getting married in 1991. The third in importance is Jonathan Ke Quan, at that time little less than a teenager. In the film gives life to Tapon, the young man who accompanies Doctor Jones in this adventure. Together they form a peculiar couple that becomes an unforgettable trio with Willie. A leading trio of ten. As a curiosity, Ke Quan got the role by accompanying his brother to an audition of the tape.

The movie itself was expected to blow. With a budget of only 28 million dollars, the movie made more than 330 millions total worldwide gross. Which I find it very interesting.; since such a big amount is hard to be achieve nowadays.

Similar movies to this one are “Raiders of the Lost Ark”, “The Jewel of the Nile”, “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”, and “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade”. All the Indiana movies share the same main actor, Ford. These movies are all similar because pretty much they have the same genre and the same storyline. The future sequels of the movie had some slight changes and this led to actors and staff not enjoying their movie make work as much. I think that Steven Spilberg filmed the rest of sequels without being at all convinced to make them, but seeing that those would be filmed with or without him, he preferred to do them and launch what has been the “Spilberg style”, that is, make a film not so of his taste but if from the general public, earn money and then do what he wants with the dividends previously obtained. In this case Indiana Jones allowed him to make “The color purple”, and so on.

Spectacular, emotional and funny, the movie is today better than it was in its day, a whole film lesson at any level that is as alive and enjoyable as ever. The new generations that discover it surrender to their feet, and in the future will continue to cause the same sensation. There are no more adventures like this. There are no longer heroes like that. Come and see, tremble, laugh, and let yourself be dragged along the most spectacular and exciting roller coaster that modern cinema has given: ‘Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom’, dark and vibrant. A masterpiece.