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Raiders!: The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made
In 1982, three 11 year-olds in Mississippi set out to remake their favorite film: Raiders of the Lost Ark. It took seven turbulent years that tested the limits of their friendship and nearly burned down their mother's house. By the end, they had completed every scene except one... the explosive airplane scene. 30 years later, they attempt to finally realize their childhood dream by building a replica of the 75 foot "Flying Wing" plane from Raiders in a mud pit in the backwoods of Mississippi... and then blow it up! This is the story behind the making of what is known as "the greatest fan film ever made."
Release : | 2015 |
Rating : | 6.9 |
Studio : | Jeremy Coon Productions, |
Crew : | Director of Photography, Director of Photography, |
Cast : | John Rhys-Davies Eli Roth Eric Zala Chris Strompolos Jayson Lamb |
Genre : | Documentary |
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Related Movies
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Rating: 6
Reviews
Did you people see the same film I saw?
This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.
Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.
The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
Around the 2000s, I've always been interest in watching the "Indiana Jones" because I've never watch them or own them on tape during the 90s. Now I am a fan of the series, that includes the fourth one (in my humble opinion); there was another version of "Raiders of the Lost Ark," that I have came across on the internet and started to learn on how another version was made as it wasn't made in Hollywood. Instead, it was made by the three guys from Mississippi as they remade this movie for the course of seven years, and has now become a cult classic. I've never seen the fan film, but I have been desperate in wanting to see it; the fan film is now available on DVD, and hoping to get a copy of it one day; just had to get it on their website: www.raidersguys.com or their Facebook page. Also, I have a copy of the book which it features the same title as the documentary, and I really loved it as it reminds me of a Richard Linklater movie that I loved "Boyhood." I imagine if Linklater makes a movie out these guys that made the fan film. With that said, I was really amazed by to hear their story as the filmmakers had to go in depth with by interviewing the three guys that worked on the fan film Eric Zala, Chris Strompolos, and Jayson Lamb. They also interview their family and friends as well as Harry Knowles from Ain't it Cool News, and filmmaker Eli Roth who was well known for "Cabin Fever" and the first two "Hostel" movies. The documentary does not only gives us about their experience on making the fan film, but sharing about what their childhood is like where they share about their parents getting a divorce, and the downfall of their friendship. Of course, they get reunited as they become themselves again as everyone was extremely positive on the fan film they made, and meeting Steven Spielberg for the first time as he also loves their fan film and how it inspire Spielberg too. The documentary also features Zala and Strompolos with the help of Lamb as they are working the airplane scene that they couldn't do, since they were kids during that time. When you watch the end credits of the documentary, you do see the airplane scene where on top is the fan film, and on bottom is the actual movie with Harrison Ford and Karen Allen in it. "Raiders!: The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made" is an insightful and fascinating documentary of the greatest fan film ever made; I've watched this four times on Netflix, and it does get better as I watch it. I still want to see their fan film, if I ever get a copy it and I would love to own this documentary on Blu Ray (which is now available). If you haven't see it, check it out, I strongly recommend this documentary. If you don't have a copy of the documentary, then feel free to watch on Netflix. I am giving this documentary a powerhouse 10 out of 10.
Typically this is the sort of documentary I would avoid. I love documentaries and I love film, but a group of kids who recreate "Raiders"? Sounds stupid.Luckily, others were less dismissive and numerous sources have praised both the kids' film and this documentary. It made me curious, and as it turns out, there is a great story here. There is the plot that these folks are filming the final shots of their remake, but there are so many other parts of this. I don't know why we should care about these kids and their families, but the film convinces us that we should. Romance, drug problems, abusive stepparents... all of that is here.
Inspiring, often times funny documentary about a trio of eleven years- olds who set out to do Raiders Of The Lost Ark- they didn't remake it, they *made* Raiders Of The Lost Ark- in its entirety, in the homes and cellars, with next to no money, and over the course of several summers in the 1980s. Four documentary film crews then followed them in 2014, as they filmed the sole scene they could not film originally. This doc includes new interviews with them, along with clips from the film itself, and a few blooper reel scenes and outtakes, and original, hand-drawn storyboards (of which there were 602, as explained in a film festival Q&A session after the screening, and before showing Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation) and people like John Ryhs-Davies, who have publicly commended the film.Required viewing for fans of Raiders Of The Lost Ark, film buffs, and anyone who ever dreamed and fantasised about making a film.
Greetings again from the darkness - from the Dallas International Film Festival 2-15. Most documentaries are pretty simple to recap: A filmmaker makes a movie about a topic or person. However, simplicity just doesn't fit here. Filmmakers Jeremy Coon and Tim Skousen made a movie about the making of a movie that is a movie re-made in honor of a movie that was already made. This isn't Coppola's Hearts of Darkness which portrays his difficulty in making Apocalypse Now. Far from it. This is a modern day look back at two/three geeky eleven year old boys making a shot-for-shot remake of Steven Spielberg's classic Raiders of the Lost Ark.Coon and Skousen catch up with forty-somethings Eric Zala, Chris Strompolos and Jayson Lamb as they are trying to put together the financing and logistics to film the final scene of their unfinished movie Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation. These are the same boy that started the process in 1982 and filmed each of the next seven summers until they graduated from high school.If you are a total film geek, you have probably heard of their film and know that it has been an underground film favorite for years. But you may not know the real life details behind it and certainly not the modern day drama of Eric and Chris as they try to complete it. How about some interviews with their mothers? How about the real world possibility that Eric risks losing his job to complete this thirty plus year old kid's summer project? How about the personal struggles of Chris over the years, or the fallout with Jayson as he is left out of this final chapter? Director Eli Roth was instrumental in spreading the word of this film project throughout Hollywood, and the boys even got invited to meet with Spielberg. Mostly we are left with the fascination that young boys can have such passion and persistence over so many years. When asked about whether they missed out on their childhood, Chris responds "We filmed childhood". A true and fitting response, that doesn't tell the whole story. Fortunately, Coon and Skousen do.