Raiders Of The Lost Ark: A Narrative Analysis

The 1970s were full of auteurs with celebrity movie directors showing their artistic signatures. However, the 1980s and ‘90s saw a shift back to the old Hollywood preference for genre cinema with big films that targeted a vast audience. This biggest trend during this time period was the blockbuster, or event film, that gives the audience a dramatic experience aside from plot and performance. Once this shift took place, the small-scale alternative to Hollywood’s blockbuster brigade was the independent film. While these two styles of cinema are both powerful, they have many differences as well as similarities.

The sensational films Star Wars and Raiders of the Lost Ark led the way for this blockbuster era with clever mixtures of genre entertainment

In essence, independent films emerged to fill the gap left by the abandonment of the auteur picture. While the ever-popular action-adventure blockbusters were geared towards adolescent and post adolescent boys, independent films “introduced a new generation of indie auteurs and offered women and people of color a chance to tell their stories” (Lewis 352). These films generally have smaller crews, shorter schedules, and are usually funded by private investors, although some are produced or backed by big studios. What most of the independent films have in common is that they make about one one-hundredth as much as the average blockbuster (Lewis 389). While these blockbuster films were made according to market research and loaded up with stars, music, and high-concept ideas well in advance of principal photography, independent films decided it was time to break away from the systematized and standardized ways of current Hollywood. Instead of being overly concerned with giving the audience exactly what they want according to research, they worked outside the Hollywood mainstream and often cater towards a niche market. While independent action films still typically involve heroes and villains with some action, the focus is more placed on conversation over action. They are not mass-produced and

With any genre, blockbuster films strive to please the masses with massive budgets, over the top special effects, A-list stars, and exotic shooting locations. On the other hand, the goal of an independent film is to produce art. The independent film industry uses far smaller budgets, little to no special effects, a different and often quirky nonlinear narrative, and complex characters that are often played by less known actors and actresses. Both types of films work together in one industry to please different kinds of followers. Both types of films are powerful in their own way and have huge bases of loyal followers as well as