'Raiders' rides again

I went with Aaron tonight to see my all time favorite movie at the Palace Theatre in Albany: “Raiders of the Lost Ark.”

You have to understand, seeing this movie—especially on the big screen—is like a religious experience for me. When I hear the familiar John Williams music I get chills. And several times during the movie I became consciously aware that I was staring at the screen with a big smile on my face. For me, “Raiders” is simply everything that’s great about the movies!

“Raiders” will mark its 25th anniversary later this year. The print we watched was scratchy in parts, but all-in-all in pretty good shape.

Yes, I own the Indiana Jones DVDs, but you know what? Give me a scratchy print at a movie theater any day! There is something about the shared experience of watching your favorite film in a theater full of people who ooh and ah, and laugh and cheer in all the right places.

There’s another reason I prefer the old scratchy print to the DVDs. As much as I love this movie, I’ll be the first to admit it’s far from a perfect film. It has its share of flaws, some of which, through the magic of digital technology, were cleaned up for the DVD. Perhaps the most obvious example is the famous reflection of the cobra in the Plexiglas separating Harrison Ford from the deadly snake. I miss the reflection! To me, it’s part of the charm of the movie. When we were kids and we discovered that reflection, we felt like we were in on some big secret.

By my count this was about the 40th time I’ve watched this movie (and the fifth time on the big screen—three times when I was kid and another screening the old Madison theater seven or eight years ago). Even after seeing it all those times, tonight I still noticed some details hadn’t spotted before—giving me reason to watch it a few more times.

It’s one thing to enjoy a movie. But no other film makes me feel happy like “Raiders” does.