In March 2020 my job at that time began sending staff home to work remotely. The thought being for only two weeks. Two weeks to flatten the curve. Now fast forward nearly two years and I have no idea what happened to that curve. All I do know is that I have since changed day jobs, have gained some weight and have become a huge fan of a certain podcast. The podcast in question is The Indiana Jones Minute. The premise is easy (or hard depending on which film they are up to), to breakdown each of the Indiana Jones films literally one minute at a time. Yeah, that’s not a typo, it’s what they do.
The Holy Grail of Podcast
Admittedly it took a long time (about 5 years) and a pandemic to discover the podcast which began in April of 2016. Much like the fertility Idol in Raiders or the Cross of Coronado in Last Crusade, the journey to discovery was well worth it. I am a huge Indiana Jones fan. When they say they don’t make movies like that anymore, it’s about as accurate as Luke Skywalker’s strike on the Death Star. Being home for now an undetermined amount of time, I would “watch” my favorite films like Indy, Star Wars and JAWS. These films have a special place in my heart. It’s the best background noise I could think of.
It was fun rediscovering the joys of my youth through these films. So, I went on Google to see if there were any YouTube or podcast groups that talk Indy the same way Disney gets talked about on those platforms. My search yielded the Indiana Jones Minute. I listened to that first minute and was immediately hooked. The three men behind the mikes spoke my language. But who are these guys? Yes, I know that’s more of a Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid reference by I digress.
Top Men
The voices and the masters behind this unique discussion belong to Tom Taylor, Pete Mummert and Gerry Porter. Many episodes feature special guests from the world of comics and academia to hosts from other similar podcast. There is also a family connection here with Gerry’s sister, the Professor Christy Porter. She is a delight as are the others. They love Indiana Jones and they love Star Wars. The things I love and appreciate, they do as well. This podcast is nerdvana for Steven Spielberg and George Lucas fanboys and fangirls alike.
Breaking down films in such a way could change your initial feelings and opinions. One minute at a time exposes potential flaws. Yet at the same time, it makes you see a scene in a different light that may actually help the film. An example of this for me is Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Ninety plus minutes into it and it’s better than I remember. It’s still not a great film but the positives are starting to outweigh the negatives. This is something I never thought possible until this podcast.
The discussions are fun and lively. You’ll even learn some interesting nuggets. Did you know that actor Pat Roach played several characters in the first two films? Or that actor Vic Tabilan played both Barranca and the Monkey Man in Raiders? Aside from Indy himself, who is the best character in the franchise? For my money, I lean towards Belloq. This is just a snippet of what goes on during these episodes. It’s awesome and I dare anyone to not sing along with their catchy tune.
For the Record
My favorite Indy film without question remains Raiders of the Lost Ark. It’s about as perfect as it gets in my opinion. Temple of Doom, Last Crusade and Crystal Skull round out the rest of the order. Having listen to hundreds of episodes as of this writing, I have to say that Raiders may be the outlier of the series. An argument could be made that Doom, Crusade and Skull have more in common in terms of tone and setting with each other than they do with Raiders. Raiders is a serious adventure film with perfectly placed humor. The films that followed are less serious at times with forced ill placed humor. This doesn’t mean I don’t love them in my own way however. It just means that there’s Raiders and then there’s the rest.
Anything Goes
If you’re a fan of these films and you enjoy listening to podcast, do yourself a favor and choose wisely. Seek this one out because it is that good. My biggest regret is not finding them sooner. I am however quite grateful to not only be fully caught up on their podcast, I am now a proud member of their Facebook community, Indiana Jones and the Listeners Crusade. We don’t have to go or look far to see what’s wrong with our world. So much that we have taken for granted has either become too hard to do or no longer an option to experience.
Every Monday listening to Tom, Pete and Gerry make things a tad better though. They are everyday guys with families and a passion for all things nerdy. They are my contemporaries. Which adds to the appeal. They remind of friends that I grew up with and had endless discussions about who was better between Batman and Superman. You know, the important things in the life of 12-13-year-old boy.
I can’t thank them enough for making this all too often cold and vastly big world a bit smaller and welcoming. In a lot of ways that’s the beauty of movies. The three of them don’t always agree with each other. I don’t always agree with them but man is it fun to just listen. Isn’t that the point of it all?
Thank you again Tom, Pete and Gerry for giving us nerds a forum to be ourselves. As I sign off, let me coin a phrase from Gerry… JONES!
Until next time…
May the Dork be with you,
JPB
The Dork Knight
