Indiana Jones coming to DVD!

E! Online ^ | 5/6/03 | Josh Grossberg

[BaghdadBarney]

The man in the hat is back - and on DVD for the first time.

Looking to tide folks over until the eventual release of the fourth Indiana Jones feature, Paramount Home Entertainment announced Tuesday that it finally plans on releasing the first three Indy films on November 4, 2003 as part of a four-disc DVD set.

Dubbed The Adventures of Indiana Jones: The Complete DVD Movie Collection, the set will not only feature all three Indy flicks -1981's Raiders of the Lost Ark, 1984's Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and 1989's Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade - but will also include a disc devoted to bonus material, including brand new interviews with director Steven Spielberg, producer-writer George Lucas and star Harrison Ford.

"When we began, we kind of went on our own Indiana Jones archaeological dig in the Lucasfilm archives to see what we had and kind of hit a treasure trove of materials," says Jim Ward, vice president of marketing for Lucasfilm (which is producing the set with Paramount) and an executive producer of the DVD. "What we're trying to do right now is figure out what will go on that final disc...we have a lot of great never-before-seen things."

In the name of fortune and glory, the filmmakers didn't hesitate to raid the vaults. Among the goodies unearthed for the bonus disc: interviews with cast and crew members, new behind-the-scenes documentaries, featurettes on visual effects and music and hithtero unreleased footage cut from the original films.

One highlight is a deleted fight between Indy and a Cairo swordsman that Spielberg spent days choreographing only to have Ford--under the weather because of a stomach virus--improvise and just shoot the baddie, which wound up in the finished Raiders and was one of the best-remembered moments. The full scene has been resurrected for the DVD.

The Indy DVD set is expected to retail for approximately $50.

[ffusco]

Good point. In Star Wars the FX helped tell the story. All other movies have been just showcases for FX. The last Star Wars flick was so good I fell asleep........

[GraniteStateConservative]

And Stripes came out in 1981, too!

[ffusco]

Laser disk! Man I almost forgot about the DVD's gigantic cousin.

[goldstategop]

hehehe.... George Lucas and Steven Spielberg have gotten on in their dotage. People used to look forward to their movies but now its yawns.

[ewing]

LOL! Is there Moose or Cheese in the vey hugh directors cut? I need to take a shower..

[goldstategop]

I still have them. I know its the home entertainment equivalent of a coaster now. Pioneer stopped supporting the format in 2000.

[smith288]

As interesting as Indiana Jones is (and it is), Even Fox News didnt [Bong] (News alert) over it. And they are pretty liberal in what they consider "breaking".

[ffusco]

Still, Jaws, Staw Wars, Raiders and Close Encounters were the Illiad and Odyssey of late 20th century American Storytelling.

[ffusco]

Indiana Jones and the Enlarged Prostate?

[wardaddy]

No, and my wife dislikes Science Fiction so I have yet to see the new stuff either.

[ohioman]

After wasting my time skimming this story, all I can think of saying is BIG F'in Deal(BFD).

[goldstategop]

They were innovative for their time and are regarded as classics.

[GunRunner]

Bout damn time! Raiders is my movie flick ever and I've only once seen it in widescreen. When I was in college I took a course called the films of Steven Spielberg, and my professor managed to get a bootleg copy of a 2.35:1 Raiders. Since then, its been nothing but my VHS that I bought in 1989 with money from my piggy bank.

[goldstategop]

Now THAT would be a title sleeper! LMAO

[AppyPappy]

If you're not interested don't read it...<P.Don't blame him. He didn't place it in Breaking News.

[rintense]

Agreed. I thought they were already on DVD. Shows what I know. Will make a great 30th b-day present for my best friend.

[goldstategop]

I love sci-fi. Maybe I'll get my next GF hooked on it. :)

[wardaddy]

Just get that next GF hooked period first.:>)

[Hodar]

While I welcome the Indy movies (long overdue, IMHO) there are DVD's that haven't been released that are available on VHS, and LaserDisk that I have been patiently waiting for. Un-edited Bugs Bunny (Elmer Fudd, Road Runner, Foghorn Leghorn ect, al). Some of the funniest cartoons were done in the late 40's and into the late 50's. Yet, these are available only in VHS format. I want a library of these classics on DVD!

[Psycho_Bunny]

I enjoy swashbuckling adventures....the Indiana Jones series felt like a parody of swashbuckling adventures to me.

It's pretty much the same reason I dislike Mozart:  nothing happens that you couldn't see coming, and when it does come, it's uninteresting.