Timeless Heroes: Indiana Jones and Harrison Ford

The documentary covers Harrison Ford's career and the emergence of the Indiana Jones character. Auditioning while working as a carpenter, the first small parts, the recognition that came with a large science fiction series, and then this character. The narrative runs from the four films of the series to the fifth. Laurent Bouzereau directs. It was released in 2023, at the same time as the last film of the series. Bouzereau makes production documentaries for studios and the form here is his known shape: archive, set footage and interview. Its most concrete section is the making of the first film: how the character was designed, the costume decisions, the whip training and the illness during the shooting in Tunisia. Ford's own manner is what is interesting; he describes his work without inflating it and keeps a distance from identifying with the character. The narrative also treats ageing: what playing the same part forty years later means physically and how it was solved technically. There is no critical content; the narrative is built as a celebration and the weaker films of the series are passed over quickly. Who it is for: followers of the series and anyone curious about how films are made. Who it is not for: the promotional tone is plain, no difficult questions are asked, and the structure is linear.