Product Details

• Actors: Dan Aykroyd, Kate Capshaw, Roy Chiao, Ruby De Miel, Stany De Silva
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Paramount
• VHS Release Date: October 26, 1999
• Run Time: 118 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (159 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6300214435
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #11,344 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

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  #12 in	Video > Action & Adventure > Action Directors > Steven Spielberg
  #20 in	Video > Action & Adventure > Action Stars > Harrison Ford

• This is item 2 in The Indiana Jones Series.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) adventure after Raiders of the Lost Ark is more violent than its predecessor, but also looser, more imaginative, and finally more satisfying. Still organized like a series of connected cliffhangers, the story (set 10 years before Raiders) involves Indy's attempted rescue of stolen children from a pagan cult. Director Steven Spielberg draws upon sundry cinematic influences, particularly Gunga Din, for an air of classic adventure, though one can also find traces of John Wayne movies in Jones's relationship with a woman (Kate Capshaw) who's come along for the bumpy ride. The film's opening bit, in which the antidote to a poison Jones has swallowed keeps bouncing around a nightclub just out of his reach, is a blast. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, October 24, 2000

By	Sandy Rigas (Wellsville, New York) - See all my reviews

The second installment in the Indiana Jones, set 2 years before Raiders, finds Indy going after the Shonkara stones and trying to rescue children enslaved by the Thagee Cult. He is joined by young Short Round (Key He Quan) and nighclub vocalist Willie Scott, played very well by Kate Capshaw, the current Mrs.Spielberg. While Karen Allen's Marion Ravenwood was a two-fisted hellraiser, Scott is a pampered indoor brat, and in turn is brilliant, plus her character is quite funny also, as is Short Round. Amrish Puri is a chilling as the villainous cult leader.

Though Temple of Doom lacks Sallah, Marcus Brody, and the Nazis, it is an improvement over Raiders in more than a few ways. To start, Ford is even better as Indy for his character is tested more. Douglas Slocombe's photography is more effective, and John Williams' music score is even more diverse and genius. Temple of Doom is also more creative, emotionally effective, and imaginative. However, it lacks the spectacle of the first film and is far more controversial and violent.This is the movie that created the PG-13 rating.

Dennis Muren's stunning Oscar-winning visual effects match Richard Edlund's effects in Raiders, yet they are not as awe-inspiring or important to the story. Elliot Scott's production design is terrific, and the cult sequences are very intense. The stunts top the ones in Raiders and are really good. The most memorable sequences have to be the mine car chase, the creature feature dinner, the Shanghai nightclub opening, the duel at the cult platform, and the rope bridge finale, incredible. Though Temple of Doom isn't as good as Raiders or Last Crusade it is highly recommended and is one of the best adventure films ever made.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Indiana's Darkest Adventure, March 7, 2002

By	Barry "Barrybgb" - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This 1984 sequel to the 1981 classic "Raiders Of The Lost Ark", is a real important film to me. I saw it 11 times in the theaters and I was mesmerized. I hadn't seen anything like it before. It's one of those films that brings back great memories from your youth. Spielberg, Lucas, and Ford all return for this chapter. It takes place 10 years later, and Indy is joined by a nightclub singer, Willie Scott(Kate Capshaw), and a young sidekick named Short Round(Ke Huy - Quan from "The Goonies"), on a mission to find and rescue young children who have been kidnapped from a small village by some sort of cult. Indy and his gang infiltrate this incredible palace, only to discover the horror that lurks below the place. This film definitley has the Saturday morning serial cliffhanger thing going here. More so than the first and third installments. This movie is a little darker and more violent than "Raiders". Some fans didn't think that was such a good thing. Their loss. This movie is a rollercoaster ride from beginning to end. It's a movie that never stops being entertaining. There are a number of classic scenes in here, like - The mine cart chase, the airplane scene, the water out the side of the mountain, the rope bridge. You know it's a good movie when you can think of a number of good scenes like that. Once again, Spielberg has a nice eye for details. Ford is the most charismatic hero of the century. No one comes close. Capshaw and Quan are on hand mostly for comedic support. Just lay back, get some popcorn, and get ready to have your spines tingled when Indy's theme song starts....

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A more darker, complex Indy Jones tale!, September 10, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (Widescreen Edition) [VHS] (VHS Tape)

"Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" is a great departure from the first Indy movie. While still being filled with over-the-top acting, effects, and stunts, the violence is much more intense. This was the movie that caused the MPAA to create the "PG-13" rating.

That's not to say that the story shouldn't be viewed by most kids. Like anything else, it should be viewed first by the parents who should make the final decision. The strong violence, most of which is still in the comic-book style of "Raiders," goes down a darker road with much of it being directed at the children who are victims of the evil in this story. The most intense scene though (when a human heart is literally dug by hand out of a man's chest who sacrifices himself to the Hindu god Kali) is completely impossible but one that must be explained to the innocent mind of children.

Despite the extreme script, it's still a Spielberg, Lucas creation that's filled with imaginative images and a more fulfilling end to this chapter of the globe-trotting, two-fisted archaeologist Indiana Jones, played again wonderfully by Harrison Ford.

This is a must see for anyone who loves action/adventure stories and yes, it even has a little romance thrown in too (thanks to Kate Capshaw, the current Mrs. Spielberg).