May 21, 2008

Indiana Jones ripoff

Movies have always employed the Indiana Jones trope of adventurers discovering lost kingdoms, but here's one that involves Indians.

'Indiana Jones' and the Rip-offs of Doom'Firewalker' (1986)

Indy replacement:  Max Donigan (Chuck Norris)

The rip-off:  Consider director J. Lee Thompson and producers Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus the Spielberg and Lucas of cheapo knockoffs. After their collaboration on "King Solomon's Mines," they re-teamed to take the Indy rip-off into the present day. And with the casting of Chuck Norris they did Harrison Ford one better--they added lots of kicking. But aside from the modern trappings and feet of fury, this hunt for lost treasure features lots of of Indy-like touches. More bickering in the face of danger, angry natives and ancient Mayan temples with lots of booby traps. Plus, Sallah himself, John Rhys-Davies makes an appearance as well.
Comment:  There are lots of restless natives of various ethnicities in this film. Check out the spearchucking Indian savage at the 00:25 mark of the trailer.

The other films in the "Rip-offs of Doom" gallery also feature primitive tribes and lost temples. But since none of them are explicitly about Indians, I didn't mention them.

For more on the subject, see The Best Indian Movies.

Firewalker trailer (Cannon Films)

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