The
lowdown: 'The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles' ran for two seasons
on the ABC network in the US between
4 March 1992 and 24 July
1993. A total of 24 one-hour episodes were made, and ABC subsequently sold
the series
to the Family Channel, which
broadcast a further four feature-length telemovies. The entire series has
since been
re-edited by George Lucas
as 22 feature-length episodes using the title 'The Adventures of Young
Indiana Jones'.
It has since been released
on DVD using this title. The series features the exploits of a much younger
Indiana Jones
than appears in the big-budget
films. Two actors play Indy at different stages of his life - Corey Carrier
plays Indy as
a 10-year-old, while Sean
Patrick Flanery stars as the teenage Indy, with many of Flanery's episodes
featuring the
exploits of Indy during
World War One. The series was devised as both a prequel to the films and
an "edutainment"
show providing an insight
into early-20th century history.
The
episode: 'Daredevils of the Desert' was the 15th telemovie in
'The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones' series,
and was originally a two-part
story called 'Palestine, October 1917' which was never broadcast by ABC
due to the
show's cancellation. The
story features the fictional Indy's exploits during the real-life Battle
of Beersheba, which
saw British and Australian
troops capture the town of Beersheba from the occupying Turks. Indy is
sent on an
undercover mission to Beersheba
ahead of the allied troops, who had to trek across the harsh desert for
two days
to reach Beersheba. Securing
the water wells at Beersheba was crucial to the plan, as the troops and
their
horses left Gaza with enough
water for just two days. Indy's mission is to ensure that the Turks do
not mine and
destroy the wells before
the troops arrive. He is accompanied by a woman named Maya (Catherine Zeta-Jones),
who has an agenda of her
own. Colin Baker plays Major General Henry Chauvel, who came up with the
plan to use
the Australian 4th Light
Horse Brigade to attack the Turkish trenches. The Turks expected the lighthorsemen
to
dismount and attack before
reaching the trenches, and did not intend to open fire until they dismounted.
However,
in a masterstroke, Chauvel
proposed that the lighthorsemen charge the trenches on their horses; the
Turks were
not prepared for this and
the result was an emphatic victory for the allies.
The
verdict: 'The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles' nicely complements
the Harrison Ford films. The adventures
that take place during the
war tend to be the best, and 'Daredevils of the Desert' is a reasonably
good attempt at
depicting the real-life
events at Beersheba. For example, in one scene, Indy accompanies a British
intelligence
officer on a reconnaissance
mission near the Turkish lines. The officer "accidently" loses a haversack
containing
confidential documents on
the allies plans. The documents were false, and designed to mislead the
Turks into
thinking that Gaza remains
the main target. This bit of subterfuge really happened, although of course
Indiana
Jones was not present! Overall,
'Daredevils of the Desert' is a well-written and entertaining tale, and
the scenes
of the mounted attack are
particularly well done. Watch out for Daniel Craig in his pre-Bond days.
Quote:
Colonel:
A mounted charge against entrenched machine guns
and artillery? It's insane!
It's never been done.
Chauvel:
Perhaps because its never been tried. |
Video Clips:
Jerusalem
by Christmas
Mounted
charge |
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5.2mb |
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