Celebrating the Score: Raiders of the Lost Ark
The first in a three-part appreciation of John Williams’s scores for the Indiana Jones series.
I intend to write about the greatest film composer of all time on a regular basis in this publication. John Williams essentially scored my childhood, as well as a significant part of my adult life. I return to his music again and again, and to my mind, his genius remains unsurpassed.
So far, I’ve contributed one piece on Williams, concerning his more underrated work. Now it’s time to tackle one of the biggies: His music for the Indiana Jones films, which I will cover in a three-part series. First up: Raiders of the Lost Ark. I consider Raiders of the Lost Ark the single greatest adventure film of all time, so it is fitting it should feature one of the greatest musical scores of all time.
Without further ado, here are seven tracks that convey the through-the-roof levels of thrills and excitement generated by this truly remarkable film.
The Raiders March
Starting with the most obvious, here is the Indiana Jones theme itself. Steven Spielberg told Williams that he wanted a heroic march that audiences would leave the cinema humming. I’d say he more than got his wish. The Indiana Jones theme, or Raiders March as it is sometimes called, constitutes one of the most iconic pieces of film scoring in the history of cinema. However, as is often the case with Williams, it is worth noting how many astonishing variations he includes on this main theme. It crops up several times throughout the film — in full-on heroic mode, in conjunction with the Marion theme (during one of the signature map montages, once she’s joined him after the fiery action scene in Nepal), and in a minor key during sinister moments. Further variations crop up in later films, but I’ll unpack that in subsequent articles.
In the Jungle
Here’s the piece that opens the film; an eerie, ominous, scene-setter, set to images of Indy and his companions trudging through a South American jungle in search of a dangerous, booby-trap-infested temple harbouring hidden treasure. It’s a magnificently atmospheric start that also includes the thrilling moment where Indy is almost murdered by a double-crossing character, but saved through nifty use of his bullwhip. A great crescendo accompanies the introduction to one of cinema’s most iconic protagonists (at around 2:59).
Marion’s Theme
For the Marion theme, Williams opted for something that brought back memories of old Hollywood romances scored by the likes of Max Steiner. Taken in isolation, is possible to imagine this theme playing out alongside Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman. However, once heard attached to the visuals of Raiders of the Lost Ark, music and image are intrinsically linked, with the magical fusion only Williams can conjure.
The Basket Game
Here’s a light, fun piece that accompanies the Cairo fight/chase, where Marion gets kidnapped and placed in a basket, with Indy in pursuit. The comedic elements are perfectly accompanied by Williams, bringing to mind the traditions of silent cinema musical accompaniment.
Desert Chase
I’m including the music that accompanies the truck chase because this sequence — one of the greatest action set-pieces in cinema history — is scored so sublimely. Listen to the seven and a half minutes of perfection below, as Williams gives the London Symphony Orchestra a vigorous work-out par excellence, and tell me your blood isn’t pumping by the end of it with a straight face.
The Map Room: Dawn
The Ark theme is dotted throughout the film in a number of variations. For me, this represents the single greatest achievement in Williams’s Indiana Jones scores. This theme is simultaneously mysterious, thrilling, frightening, otherworldly, and enigmatic. In that extra-dimensional, download-from-heaven fashion that Williams seems to channel, the piece also conveys the awe and fear of the God of the Old Testament, particularly in the full-on version used in the terrifying finale, where significant horror elements are added. The version I’ve included below appears during the less terrifying but wonder-filled discovery of the map room.
Washington Ending/Raiders March
And just because… Here’s the music that accompanies the last couple of brief scenes in the film; a romantic coda with Indy and Marion, and the Ark being spirited away to Area 51. It then segues into the end credits score, which is the point I emerge from the cinema, beaming from ear to ear, and whistling the Indiana Jones theme, just as Spielberg intended.
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