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Indiana Jones is undoubtedly among the most legendary heroes to have graced the big screen. Originally created in 1981 by George Lucas, the swashbuckling archeologist was a way of paying tribute to the bygone era of serial film action heroes.
Dr. Henry Walton Jones Jr., better known as Indiana Jones, is an archeologist by profession. However, with his penchant to get into trouble, his field trips end up being full of action, adventure, and a lot of peril.
Indiana Jones has become well-associated with the usage of more classic accessories such as a whip, a leather jacket, and his inimitable fedora. To top it off, his fighting is more street-style than any properly trained technique. This has made the character a classic American hero, loved by multiple generations.
Another major factor that led to the success of the franchise was Harrison Ford's indomitable performance of the character. His unique blend of charm, wit, and charisma blended perfectly with that of the character. He was also already an established action hero, with his work in the Star Wars franchise, which made things much smoother.
Although just an archeologist by profession, Indiana Jones' relationship with trouble is very intimate. While working on historically relevant sites, he often runs into traps, hostile adversaries, mythical threats, and sometimes even natural hazards.
With so much high-octane action and adventure, the Indiana Jones franchise has some of the most thrilling fight sequences that cinema has to offer.
Chasing a truck, and 4 other times Indiana Jones delivered the most iconic action sequences
1) A face-off on the rope bridge
One of the greatest and most memorable fight sequences of the entire Indiana Jones franchise was in Temple of Doom. The 1984 release pit Dr. Jones against the mysterious high priest Mola Ram and his army of followers, the Thuggee cult.
When he is requested by the people of an Indian village to help them retrieve their children and a mystical sacred stone, Indy stumbles over something way bigger than he had imagined.
An evil cult was kidnapping children, practicing human sacrifice and using brainwashing techniques to propagate their agenda. They had also stolen the sacred stone, hoping to utilize its powers to rule over the world.
When Indy tries to stop their plan, he is faced against Mola Ram and his army of fanatics. This leads to a confrontation on a rope bridge where Indy faces off against the Thuggees, who are slowly closing in from both sides.
The sequence has some of the best sword-swinging action in the franchise, complimented by a thrilling ending.
2) Chasing the truck
One of the many iconic sequences in the franchise was in Raiders of the Lost Ark. When the Nazis seize the Ark of the Covenant and leave with the artifact, Indy chases them on horseback, and fights desperately to retrieve the Ark.
With the now-classic Indiana Jones score blaring in the background, our hero puts up one of the most thrilling and iconic fights of the franchise. Jumping from his horse onto the truck, he takes control of the vehicle after a scuffle, but is again attacked by the Nazis tailing him.
The sequence keeps your blood pumping until Indy finally gets away with the Ark. This action chase sequence played a huge role in making the franchise what it is today, and is hailed to be a cinematic masterpiece.
3) Young Indy's first adventure
The Last Crusade was the third film in the Indiana Jones franchise and released in 1989. The film gave us a peek into the origin story of the great Indiana Jones, and also showed us Indy's very first action-packed adventure.
When he catches some grave robbers getting their hands dirty, a young Indiana Jones steals the artifact and tries to escape, but is quickly pursued by the robbers, even onto a train. While the young Indy was not very experienced in a fight, he did his very best at evading the robbers, coming up with the most creative ideas.
At the end, however, Indy has to give up the historical artifact back to the grave robbers. But, he is left with the fedora and a burning passion to return historically significant artifacts to where they belong - in museums. As a bonus, we also get a great action sequence which also plays a significant role in adding depth to his character.
4) Bring a gun to a sword fight
Although Raiders of the Lost Ark was just the first film in the series, it had already found its mojo and decided on the idiosyncrasies of Indiana Jones' character. When Indy and Marion travel to Egypt for the Ark, Rene Belloq's men chase after them in the market.
After a cat-and-mouse chase through the narrow street of Egypt, Marion gets captured while Jones is still left facing another foe. A sword-swinging man clad in black emerges on the street and shows off his mastery with a blade, challenging him to a duel.
However, Indy, in his classic fashion, just shoots the guy dead. While this particular scene may not have a lot of action, it has become one of the most memorable scenes in the series, being a classic reference to Jones' character.
5) A fight to death with the Nazi mechanic
Although it has been followed by multiple sequels to date, Raiders of the Lost Ark packed some of the best and most iconic fight sequences in the series. When Indy finally finds out the Well of Souls and the Ark of the Covenant, he is discovered by the Nazi forces and left to die along with Marion in the pit.
However, the quick-witted archeologist finds a way out for them and somehow crawls out with Marion, only to realize that the Ark will be flown out. This is when Indy steps up again and decides to take over the plane, but is faced by a towering Nazi plane mechanic.
Unable to compete with him in terms of physical strength, Jones finally manages a victory when the Nazi just walked into the running propeller of the plane. This is one of the fights where Indy really was losing, but luck chose to be on his side.
These were some of our top picks of action sequences from the franchise. Indiana Jones has given us some great adventures over the years, inspiring generations of audiences to get out and explore the world more.
If you are a fan of the swashbuckling archeologist as well, be sure to check out his latest upcoming film. Dial of Destiny is set to premiere in theatres on June 30, 2023, and will see the return of our favorite archeologist, over 15 years since his last appearance on Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
