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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Indiana Jones and the Temple Of Doom Fans

Discussion in 'Lucasfilm Ltd. In-Depth Discussion' started by Doom Trooper, Jan 22, 2018.

  1. darkspine10

    darkspine10 Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Dec 7, 2014
    The credits variation of that track is even better, with a rising crescendo of the Villagers theme to cap it all off in an epic way.
     
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  2. Doom Trooper

    Doom Trooper Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Jan 1, 2014
    And of course there's the extremely eerie Kali Ma theme. Or is it Mola Ram's? Great piece of music, either way.
     
  3. AndyLGR

    AndyLGR Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 1, 2014
    My favourite piece, that is criminally omitted from the recent Indy soundtrack boxset is the music thats played on the rope bridge scene.
     
  4. darkspine10

    darkspine10 Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Dec 7, 2014
    Here's a decent version of it, partially taken from the Lego game, with voice removal in parts as well:


    Still a massive shame it wasn't on the release. There's loads missing from Last Crusade as well, not to mention the single disc KOTCS (luckily supported by the leaked Recording Sessions).
     
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  5. Doom Trooper

    Doom Trooper Jedi Master star 3

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    Jan 1, 2014
    Williams was firing on all cylinders with the TOD score, then again you can also say the same about the crew with the film. Regardless of Spielberg's own feelings towards it, he clearly had a unique energy he brought to this entry.
     
  6. Ackbar's Fishsticks

    Ackbar's Fishsticks Jedi Grand Master star 4

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    Aug 25, 2013
    I like TOD best for being the one to go completely all-out on the fantasy/escapism. Indy, on the run from another bump in the road in his everyday life, drops off the map and ends up stranded in an out-of-this-world experience. Like a knight errant in an old myth, he wanders into a village that's suffering from a supernatural evil, and takes it on himself to save it. The morality is probably the most black-and-white that it ever is; the people he's fighting for are a village's worth of children, the ultimate innocent victims, who unlike Marion or Henry aren't even people he knows or who matter to him personally but that he's helping simply because it's right. The Thuggee, on the other hand, are by far the most over-the-top evil we ever see in the series, both in a pulpy and in a real sense - ritual sacrifices and supernatural powers are one thing, but child slavery and drug-brainwashing are just as real and horrifying now. Speaking of the Thuggee, they're also not the minions of a far-off emperor that Indy will never defeat, like the Nazis in other movies; in this case, Indy gets to not only defeat the entire cult but burn it to the ground, providing a satisfying victory on a level that the other movies obviously couldn't. The action is non-stop - this is the only movie I can think of where the climax is actually an action sequence (the rope bridge), as opposed to the other movies where it's "Indy's in trouble, the magical artifact saves him by blowing away the bad guys." There's still the "quest for a magical artifact" plotline, but it feels almost like an afterthought. For one thing, that quest is basically over halfway through the movie - he could've left with the stones right after the ceremony, but he chooses to stay and save the children instead. For another, he doesn't need them to save him - he seems to be the one who activates the stones with "you betrayed Shiva," and in any case he was holding his own just fine with Mola Ram at the time. All in all, this movie is Indy at the most proactive, most ass-kicking, most heroic top of his game.
     
  7. Doom Trooper

    Doom Trooper Jedi Master star 3

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    Jan 1, 2014

    What a great, spot-on and just about perfect summary of TOD =D= Hit the nail on the head as to why it's so good.
     
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  8. HanSolo29

    HanSolo29 RPF/SWC/Fan Art Manager & Bill Pullman Connoisseur star 7 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Apr 13, 2001
    Nicely said, @Ackbar's Fishsticks! =D=

    TOD will always remain my favorite. When I need my Indy fix, this is my 'go-to.'
     
  9. Bob Effette

    Bob Effette Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 20, 2015
    I always consider Raiders and Temple of Doom as "Joint 1st" in my order of preference, I love them both so much. Temple of Doom was the first I saw at the cinema, and the memory stays with me to this day. I think it is the one which has the most pulp / comic-book feel. It is steeped in fantasy and just incredible from start to finish. Ford looked really good in this one, very tanned and physically fit, a true action hero. From the moment Willie says "Now let's get out of here" and Indy replies "Right, all of us!" it is a literal roller-coaster ride all the way to the end. It leaves you breathless. And if there is one movie still / screencap which absolutely screams Good Old-Fashioned Hollywood Action Movie to me, it is this one:

    [​IMG]

    One thing I have always been curious about is a "missing" scene which I am sure I have seen, but doesn't appear in any of the releases I have watched or owned.

    During the Club Obi-Wan nightclub prologue, I am sure that I saw a scene where Lao Che's youngest son (with the bandaged hand) quietly pours some white powdered poison from a folded up piece of paper into Indy's glass, then glances around the room furtively to make sure nobody saw him do it. Does anybody else remember this or did I imagine it?
     
  10. gioA

    gioA Jedi Knight

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    Nov 13, 2014
    Any way of finding the leaked recording sessions or are they unavailable?
     
  11. darkspine10

    darkspine10 Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Dec 7, 2014
    I have them if you want, at least a copy I've edited a bit. PM me if you want them. :)
     
    Last edited: Feb 18, 2018
  12. christophero30

    christophero30 Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    May 18, 2017
    Hello! Changed my avatar to Lego Short Round the other day. Temple of Doom is tied with Raiders as my favorite in the series. Best score of the films as well! I particularly like Short Round's theme, when they are riding the elephants.
     
    Last edited: Feb 18, 2018
  13. gioA

    gioA Jedi Knight

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    Nov 13, 2014
    This is embarrassing- how do you PM?
     
  14. darkspine10

    darkspine10 Chosen One star 8

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    Dec 7, 2014
    I'll PM you, should show up next to your normal alerts.
     
  15. gioA

    gioA Jedi Knight

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    Nov 13, 2014
    Nothing showing up. I just have the alerts icon and the envelope icon for conversations.
     
  16. darkspine10

    darkspine10 Chosen One star 8

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    Dec 7, 2014
    Conversations, that's a PM. I just finished posting it, should be there at the envelope now.
     
  17. Doom Trooper

    Doom Trooper Jedi Master star 3

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    Jan 1, 2014

    Great description and very much agreed. I really enjoy how TOD embraces the pulp roots of the character and has such an EC Comics, Tales From The Crypt-esque vibe to it with both the storyline and visuals. Regardless of Spielberg's own feelings on the film, he was clearly firing on all cylinders and giving it his all.
     
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  18. Bob Effette

    Bob Effette Jedi Grand Master star 4

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    Dec 20, 2015
    The other clever thing of course is that they managed to work in the scene where Indy gets his shirt sleeve ripped off in order to get close to that pulp feel of a sleeveless-shirt-wearing, muscled guy.
     
    Last edited: Feb 18, 2018
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  19. themoth

    themoth Force Ghost star 5

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    Dec 5, 2015
    So true. It's an awesome finale to the movie, and satisfying too. I remember seeing the first sacrifice scene as a kid, and wow, it was a lot to take in. Pure evil. Temple of Doom is awesome like that because it really amps everything up. Hate bugs? Well, here's a whole room full of them. Hate gross food? Well, here's a whole scene full of it. We have child abuse, mind control and fanaticism. It's puts Indy into one location that's a literal hell on Earth (the open pit). It's so good.
     
  20. Bob Effette

    Bob Effette Jedi Grand Master star 4

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    Dec 20, 2015
    One thing that used to really niggle me was, just how far did they travel in those mine carts? You don't get the impression that they are going around in circles but rather in a continuous direction, past lava pits and vast open chasms. So how did that water make it to the tunnel leading out to the cliff lol?
     
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  21. Doom Trooper

    Doom Trooper Jedi Master star 3

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    Jan 1, 2014

    Indeed and I think that's a strength of TOD. A lot of people may not like the darkness and disturbing aspects such as child slavery/abuse, but I think it was essential to make the audience realize the kind of evil Indy was up against and it make us side that much more with him against such a horrific set of villains such as the Thuggees. It makes the threat and danger seem that much more real and thus makes us want to see Indy succeed against them that much more. And how satisfying and fulfilling it is when he does.
     
  22. Bob Effette

    Bob Effette Jedi Grand Master star 4

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    Dec 20, 2015
    Not to mention that the set design and lighting for the actual Temple of Doom is nothing short of incredible. Would they even make a physical set like that nowadays?
     
  23. Doom Trooper

    Doom Trooper Jedi Master star 3

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    Jan 1, 2014
    Which brings me to another aspect of TOD I love, the set designs and visuals. Just incredible and the sets all feel "alive" for lack of a better term. The color palette is very evocative of 50s-era EC Horror comics such as Tales From The Crypt, of which TOD definitely manages to capture the feel of. Have Spielberg and Lucas ever said if they were EC Comics fans? I know the vintage adventure serials and pulp magazines of that era were a major influence on the character and series, and I wouldn't rule out EC Comics being the same.
     
  24. Encuentro

    Encuentro Jedi Master star 2

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    Aug 8, 2013
    Another scene that didn’t make it into the film is Short Round’s discovery that extreme heat wakes those under the influence of the blood of Kali. The scene was filmed. I’ve never seen it, but I did see a still from the scene. Short Round is being forced to dig. A slave boy nearby is being whipped. The whip misses and hits the rock wall, sending lava spewing onto the guard and waking him from the Black Sleep of Kali. So Short Round didn’t blindly thrust the torch at Indy to wake him. He knew exactly what he was doing.
     
  25. Doom Trooper

    Doom Trooper Jedi Master star 3

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    Jan 1, 2014
    Has the scene ever been released as a deleted scene on any DVD or Blu-ray release? Can't remember if it may have beeb.