Raiders redone

[rfunk]

This one's for chronarchy....

This morning on the radio I heard about a film that will be shown tonight and tomorrow night at the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque:
Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation

After seeing Raiders of the Lost Ark in 1981, three 12 year old friends, Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala and Jayson Lamb, began filming their own shot-by-shot adaptation in the backyards of their Mississippi homes.

Seven years later their film was in the can.

Fourteen years later, in 2003, the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in Austin Texas was proud to announce the theatrical world premiere of Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation.

Apparently copyright and trademark restrictions require that all showings are for non-profits, so you won't find this at your local commercial theater or on DVD. Catch it when and where you can.

See also information at TheIndyExperience.com.

(And why did the WKSU reporter keep skipping the word "Institute" in the venue name this morning?)

Comments

[gothpanda.livejournal.com]

I don't understand why I would want to watch a bunch of 12 year olds recreate a movie that was good. I mean, I guess it could end up being pretty funny, and I certainly admire their tenacity (I cannot imagine spending years doing something so life-consuming now, much less when I was a teenager) but I guess I would be more impressed if they had made something original rather than copying. Unless I'm missing something here?

[rfunk.livejournal.com]

First, it's not "a bunch of 12 year olds." Keep in mind that this was made over the course of 7 years. So it's more teenagers than 12 year olds. I've often been impressed with the abilities of teenagers.

I think the reviews and reactions posted on both sites address the "why watch it" question. I notice a lot of them mentioning the creativity and originality put into the film. Any remake of something when vastly different resources are available will be a new experience showing originality.

As for originality, I see it as somewhat similar to someone re-staging a classic play. Is there a lack of originality there? Or how about any other film remake? There are different skills involved in various stages of creating something as complex as a film (or even a song), and while they didn't use an original screenplay, they certainly did a lot of original work.

But hey, I like cover songs too.

[gothpanda.livejournal.com]

Okay. I guess I get that.