williams@ecadjr.DEC (Lather, rinse, repeat...) (02/25/86)
An earlier discussion on a stunt in "Raiders" went as follows:- >>There are a few technical slip-ups. One of them is really only noticable when >>viewing Raiders frame-by-frame on a VCR. It is in the scene where the truck >>filled with explosives moves forward, tips over and explodes. You can notice >>that the truck did not tip over on it's own accord. There is a hydraulic leg >>attached to the left side of the truck just before the rear wheels. This >>pushes down on the small hill to help the truck turn over (somewhat similar >>to the hydraulic jacks on the bottom of the Mach 5 on "Speed Racer") > >I read about this at the time the movie was made: it was not >a "hydraulic leg" -- it was a piece of telephone pole fired out >of a special "cannon" sitting in the truck, pointed at the ground. >It was one of the few scenes in the movie that Speeelburg only took >one "take" on -- he basically said "what the fu*k, it's close enough", >although the script called for the truck to "flip" over on its top... I wouldn't really call this a technical slip-up. I, for one, have never seen the telephone pole come out of the truck (although I did see a tv special on how the stunt was prepared) and I've seen the film at least half a dozen times in a theatre (God knows how many times on my VCR). It may be true that you can see it (I'll be sure to look for it next time) but something that goes by so quickly in a film that you need to view it frame-by-frame can hardly be called a mistake. And I kinda doubt that Spielberg simply said, "What the f**k, it's close enough" when filming this stunt. Spielberg has had enough experience with stunts that I think he would know that they don't always follow what the script says and that it was a dangerous stunt to begin with so why take the added risk?? >BTW, in the same article, Lucas was praising Speely for coming in >under budget (something he was _not_ good at), and for only taking >an average of 10 (yes, ten) "takes" per scene. Seems that Speel's >usual "take" is close to _50_! > > ><Better luck next time> >blues, II I am curious as to what magazine/newspaper/periodical you're quoting when you says that Spielberg usually would take up to 50 takes. To me, that seems a little extreme for any director. Also, I think the praise that he received for coming in under budget and under schedule was due more to his track record with films that had a lot of production problems. First, there was 'Jaws' with a tempermental mechanical shark and numerous weather problems around Martha's Vineyard. Then came 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind', a film that had a great deal of revolutionary special effects (remember that 1977 was a time that special effects were indeed special). Spielberg's third film was '1941' which not only ran over budget and over its schedule, but was also a commercial and critical bomb. So when it came time to do 'Raiders', I think looked back to his previous problems and decided to control it. Instead of mind-boggling special effects, we got more stunts and some effects that were spectacular but not terribly complex. And much of 'Raiders' was filmed in soundstages where the elements are easier to control. In any case, regardless of the problems that show up within the film, I still believe that 'Raiders' is a fine piece of cinematic craftsmanship. In fact, I think I'll go home now and watch it on my VCR... "Why, Dr. Jones, whatever are you doing in such a nasty place?" Skip Williams Digital Equipment Corp. Maynard, MA
travis@cucca.UUCP (Travis Lee Winfrey) (03/02/86)
<>
Another minor error can be seen when Indy first goes down into the
snake pit and is a few feet from the cobra. The shot is first done from
behind the cobra, then from behind indy. I can't remember which shot
shows it, but for a brief second, the glass separating the actor and
the animal is clearly visible.
apologies if I'm the last one in the world to notice this.
travis
Smile.
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