The twenty-four page booklet that comes with the CD is so fat that it doesn't fit into the case very well. It's FULL of extras that include behind the scene clips, story-board sketches and comments from Williams and Spielberg. But the real gem is the music critiques by Lukas Kendall. He goes through each track explaining the music piece and the movie scene it accompanies. This is quite amusing and any one who is a fan of the movie or of John Williams will take pleasure in reading it. All in all it has a seamless way of giving the score its due credit. I couldn't say it any better myself and suggest that you get it and read it on your own.

This soundtrack is great and I highly recommend it for those who throughly enjoy the work of Williams and/or the Indiana Jones films. The booklet's insight reflect the passion that made the film the classic that it is. Making the soundtrack that much more priceless.


74 minutes of pure entertainment!   May 25, 2000
 9 out of 9 found this review helpful

Contrary to the popular belief that "if it's not in the final cut, it was left out for good reason," this 74 minute CD demonstrates just how high of quality music can acheive.

John Williams is widely known for his successful film scores, and this is one of his best. From the memorable tunes of the Raiders March and the mystery evoked in the Ark Theme, to the fast-paced Desert Chase and the tranquility of Marion's Theme, this CD has it all. Re-released (by demand?), 30 minutes were added to what was already a success, and the addition was *not* a waste.

While track 2 (South America, 1936) was relatively mediocre compared to the others (and it was an unreleased track), the remainder of the unreleased material fully compensated for this. I especially enjoyed the Basket Game, with an unforgettable little tune, and the additional length of The Desert Chase, which I would say is my favorite of the entire soundtrack. I prefer fast-paced music, and this is filled accordingly. However, it's not without variation, as you'll find in Marion's Theme, The German Sub/Nazi Hideout (unreleased), and several others. The bottom line is : this score unquestionably contributed to John Williams' success, as it is an incredibly addictive soundtrack.

I highly recommend this to any fan of instrumental music, John Williams' soundtracks, or just the Indiana Jones series (depending on your taste in music). If you're wondering if it's worth the price, consider this : 74 minutes is nearly twice the length of the average soundtrack, and nearly twice the quality, which thereby warrants at least a doubled price. It also comes with a 20 page booklet with a fair amount of information.


One Of John Williams's Most Sadly Underrated Scores   December 28, 2000
 8 out of 8 found this review helpful

Even though many people have never included Raiders Of The Lost Ark as one of John Williams's best scores, it is in fact a great classic that is in the same league as Star Wars, Superman, and Jurassic Park. The Raiders theme has been heard everywhere and sounds like a mockery of the campy-sounding action movies of the past, and the secondary theme for Indy sounds mysterious and truly suspensful. What makes this score so great, though, is because it sounds like a mix between Star Wars A New Hope, and Return Of The Jedi. It sounds heroic and bright like New Hope but dark like Return Of The Jedi. Marion's theme sounds like and almost starts off like Princess Leia's. The Ark and Nazi themes are my favorites. The Ark theme sounds mysterious and vague until its powers are released on The Miracle Of The Ark, where it sounds powerful and out of this world. The Nazi's theme sounds truly menacing and rivals even the Imperial theme of Empire Strikes Back. I recommend this to any fan of John Williams or action-lovers. It is a true classic in film scoring.


"Raiders" Defines The Meaning Of The Words Film Score   October 27, 2004
 8 out of 8 found this review helpful

One of John Williams' all time best film scores is, arguably one of the best in film history.

Sadly, Williams didn't win the Oscar for best score at the Oscars in 1982 (it went to "Chariots of Fire". What the *u*k?!) & this is a perfect example of how the Academy screws over noteworthy performers (another fine example is, Spielberg's, "The Color Purple").

This expanded release to "Raiders of The Lost Ark" is a classic example of blending action (the truck chase), & romance (Marion's Theme) with the overall theme of the film itself (the "Raiders" march).

If you've watched the film a million times you will instantly recognize a lot of this music. The score practically encompasses & embraces the screen time of the film itself, running at over roughly 75 to 80 minutes of music, from a movie that runs at 1 hr. & 50 min. With the average film score running at anywhere between 40 - 45 min., for a film screentime of 1 hr. & 40 min., the score to "Raiders" is practically a supporting character to the film.

The CD is set so that the score to "Raiders" starts at the films beginning and goes chronilogically through to the film's end.
This score has been on moratorium for some time, but, it's definitely worth every penny.

John Williams' score to "Raiders Of The Lost Ark" is a treasure that even Dr. Jones couldn't pass up.

Neither should you.


Star Wars not yet beaten but this is not far away   November 4, 1999
 5 out of 7 found this review helpful

This time John Williams has done it again, he made a score almost as good as Star Wars. I have listned to many John Williams scores but this score rocks. Alltough Star Wars and Shindler's List (withc in a way is not the same type of score) is better, it's up there that sure. My five star review of this score has a reason and the reason is track's 1, 3, 5, 8, 10, 13, 15 and 17. All the tracks are good but I think these are the best.