Raiders!: The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made
Indiana Jones ...., but not as you know it.
Autism and Cinema is a website dedicated to reviewing movies from the Silver Screen, however occasionally, very occasionally when called for, we will review a Documentary, ‘Raiders!: The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made’ is so unique in so many ways that it could not be ignored.
This is not a normal documentary about the making of an Indiana Jones Film, as you might expect, but it is a homage to a very unique and dedicated group of movie enthusiasts who specialise in the bizarre yet fabulously entertaining genre of ‘Fan Films’. When video cameras first began to appear in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s lots of kids and teenagers made short takes of existing films, interwoven with their own scenes, these became stand alone projects which could last for a few weekends or an entire summer holiday. Their driving passion to get behind the camera and create something exciting and different lead them to make amateurish, yet entertaining and often very funny films. However, very few of these small hobbyesque productions lasted more than a few months, at most a couple of summers.
Raiders, is something else, this remarkable project was the creation of three friends, Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala and Jayson Lamb, not only were they determined to make an accurate portrayal of Raiders of the Lost Ark, but they were determined to recreate each scene, chronologically, shot-by-shot. Over the course of six summers, from 1982 these three friends remade the entirety of Raiders of the Lost Ark, apart from the famous last plane scene. Then a staggering 32 years later, these 3 friends reunited to film the last scene and finish their fan film. This remarkable and touching story was picked up on by the world’s media and generated quite a lot of publicity. This a portrayal, not just of their Indiana Jones passion, but of the enduring friendships which enabled them to come back together and to finish the project. It is unprecedented, not just as a fan-film, but for any film project. The surprise is just how well-made their fan film is, when shown alongside scenes from the original 1981 blockbuster. The dedication of the three boys is wonderful to watch as are the reactions of Stephen Spielberg and Harrison Ford when they saw the homage. Chris, Eric and Jayson’s are so much older now and you cannot fail to notice the modernity of the cameras creating the missing closing sequence.
This is a great little documentary, especially if you’re a fan of Raiders of the Lost Ark, or just fan-films in general. Whilst it is obviously a very niche film, it’s still fun to watch even for people who aren’t particular fans of the Indiana Jones quadrilogy.
8/10 – Calum Roberts