In a compilation like no other DVD collection, The Adventures of Young Jones: The Years of Change offers a look at one of the worlds favorite action heroes as a guide.
The release is is timed to occur with the May 22 release of the long-awaited Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
Presented on 10 jam-packed discs, “Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: The Years of Change” offers more than 25 hours of entertainment, including seven feature-length episodes and more than 30 entirely new documentaries exploring the people, places and events Indy encounters in his travels, from the creation of the Middle East to the Broadway boom, the birth of jazz and even the early days of Hollywood.
This is a different side to Indiana Jones and shows the academic roots behind his affinity for adventure, said Lucas. The hero we know as Indiana is first and foremost Dr. Jones, a man whose love for history and thirst for knowledge started when he was young, proving that learning about the world can lead to incredible things.
In “Adventures: Years of Change,” Sean Patrick Flanery (Boondock Saints, The Dead Zone) stars as Indy, alongside such acclaimed actors as Anne Heche (Men In Trees), Jane Krakowski (30 Rock) and Jeffrey Wright (Casino Royale). The DVD is released by Lucasfilm Ltd., CBS Home Entertainment and Paramount Home Entertainment. The 10-disc set features a comprehensive assortment of exhaustively researched special features that provide insights into world history.
The acclaimed documentaries were produced over a four-year period by former CBS News producer David Schneider. It has been an honor to help realize Georges vision for the Young Indy DVDs as an in-depth exploration of history with real-life facts that spark viewers curiosity and inspire them to learn even more, Schneider said. This set offers more of everything that Indiana Jones fans love: more action, more excitement and more historical information to truly bring the past to life.
“Adventures of Young Indiana Jones” DVD collections have received widespread praise from critics. Each of the three volumes features an unprecedented amount of special features that includes interviews with scholars, historians and luminaries from a wide range of disciplines.
A critically acclaimed combination of adventure, romance and history, “Adventures of Young Indiana Jones” was shot in 35 countries and utilized the talents of the industrys most distinguished actors, directors and writers, earning 12 Emmy Awards and 27 nominations over the course of its run. In addition, The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones was the first television series to use digital production, pioneering processes that would pave the way for Lucas own Star Wars prequels.
“Young Indiana Jones” films also feature the work of some of the industrys biggest names in directing and writing. Series directors include Bille August (Les Miserables), Mike Newell (Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire), David Hare (Strapless, screenplays for The Hours and Damage), Terry Jones (Monty Python and the Holy Grail and The Life of Brian), Deepa Mehta (Water), Joe Johnston (The Rocketeer, Jurassic Park III), Nicolas Roeg (The Man Who Fell To Earth, Dont Look Now), and Michael Schultz (Car Wash, TVs Everwood). Writers include Rosemary Anne Sisson (Upstairs, Downstairs), Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption) and Jonathan Hensleigh (Die Hard with a Vengeance).
“Adventures of Young Indiana Jones” complete three-volume collection contains 22 feature-length movies and 94 documentaries, interactive games developed by River Deep, an interactive timeline produced by Terra Incognita Productions and an historical overview by noted author and University of Texas history professor H.W. Brands.
The third of three comprehensive collections, “Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Years Of Change” is a 10-disc set presented in full screen with Dolby Digital English Stereo and English subtitles. The DVD is Not Rated in the U.S. and rated PG in Canada.
Disc One: Tales of Innocence
In Italy, Indys espionage work takes him behind enemy lines where he embarks on an important propaganda assignment that he hopes will bring a swift end to the war. Along the way, he engages in a comic rivalry with Ernest Hemingway over the affections of a beautiful Italian girl. After being wounded in action, Indy is transferred to North Africa where he joins the French Foreign Legion. While trying to uncover the identity of a traitor in his own ranks, Indy battles hostile Berber tribesmen and engages in an innocent flirtation with author Edith Wharton.
Companion Historical Documentaries:
Unhealed Wounds: The Life of Ernest Hemingway
The French Foreign Legion: The Worlds Most Legendary Fighting Force
The Secret Life of Edith Wharton
Thomas: American Storyteller
Disc Two: Masks of Evil
A top secret mission for French Intelligence brings Indy to Istanbul during the First World War. Exploring the citys dark and dangerous streets, he is thrust into a web of betrayal and murder when he discovers a vile plot to assassinate French espionage agents. Evil of a more enduring kind awaits him in Transylvania where he engages in mortal combat with bloodthirsty Vlad the Impaler and his horrific army of the living dead. With his very life at stake, Indy must garner all his strength and wits in order to defeat the fiend and save mankind.
Companion Historical Documentaries:
For the People, Despite the People: The Atatrk Revolution
The Greedy Heart of Halide Edib
The Ottoman Empire: A World of Difference
Dracula: Fact and Fiction
Disc Three: Treasure of the Peacocks Eye
The war in Europe ends but a new adventure begins for Indy when a mysterious man’s dying words”The eye of the peacock!”send him on a thrilling treasure hunt for one of Alexander the Greats most treasured possessions. Pursued by a dangerous one-eyed man, Indy follows the trail of the diamond from London to Alexandria to the South Seas where he has a run-in with a murderous band of Chinese pirates. The shipboard battle that ensues is a spectacular display of swords, guns and flying fists. Marooned by the pirates on a remote desert island, Indy is captured by savage headhunters, but before they can turn him into a shrunken head and cannibal stew, he is rescued by anthropologist Bronislaw Malinowski and makes a life-altering decision.
Companion Historical Documentaries:
Bronislaw Malinowski: God Professor
Anthropology: Looking at the Human Condition
New Guinea: Paradise in Peril
Disc Four: The Winds of Change
Working as a translator in Paris brings Indy in contact with T.E. Lawrence, Prince Faisal of Arabia and Ho Chi Minh. The brutality of realpolitik devastates the idealistic young Indy, and he returns home only to discover the ugly face of bigotry as encountered by his boyhood friend, Paul Robeson.
Disc Five: Companion Historical Documentaries:
The Best Intentions: The Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles
Woodrow Wilson: American Idealist
Gertrude Bell: Iraqs Uncrowned Queen
Ho Chi Minh: The Price of Freedom
Paul Robeson: Scandalize My Name
Robert Goddard: Mr. Rocket Science
Disc Six: Mystery of the Blues
Going to college and working in a seedy speakeasy brings Indy into contact with jazz great Sidney Bechet, who teaches him how to play the blues. Unfortunately, he also crosses paths with up-and-coming thug Al Capone and its only with the assistance of his dorm roommate, future Untouchable Eliot Ness, that Indy is able to solve a vicious murder and prevent himself from ending up in a pair of cement overshoes.
Disc Seven: Companion Historical Documentaries:
Rhythms of Freedom
Scarface Capone: The Original Gangster
Prohibition: America on the Rocks
On the Trail of Eliot Ness
Louis Armstrong: Ambassador of Jazz
Ben Hecht: The Shakespeare of Hollywood
Hellfighters: Harlems Heroes of World War I
Disc Eight: Scandal of 1920
In New York City, Indy covers a lot of ground as he stage-manages a Broadway musical, parties with 5th Avenue high society, reads poetry with Greenwich Village bohemians and trades barbs with the literary wits of the Algonquin Roundtable. Composer George Gershwin accompanies Indy in his adventures as he attempts to ensure that the show goes on despite temperamental stars, malfunctioning props and the fact that hes dating three very different women at the same time. The film includes wonderful production numbers and a marvelous musical score.
Companion Historical Documentaries:
Tin Pan Alley: Soundtrack of America
Wonderful Nonsense: The Algonquin Round Table
Broadway: America Center Stage
Disc Nine: Hollywood Follies
While working for a Hollywood movie studio, Indy finds that he is no match for wily, megalomaniacal director Erich von Stroheim when the two lock horns over the ever-increasing budget of Stroheims film Foolish Wives. Though battered by the film industry, Indy decides to give it one more chance and goes on a location shoot with legendary director John Ford. Ford and his cronies, including aging gunman Wyatt Earp, help him to see the magic of movies and moviemaking, and when an actor is accidentally killed, Indy pitches in to save the film.
Companion Historical Documentaries:
Erich von Stroheim: The Profligate Genius
The Rise of the Moguls: The Men Who Built Hollywood
Irving Thalberg: Hollywoods Boy Wonder
The World of John Ford
Disc Ten (Interactive Disc):
Special Features:
Extensive Interactive Timeline that details the history and locations of Indys adventures and previews footage of the companion documentaries.
Historical Lecture: New Gods for Old
Hunting for Treasure: Interactive Game
Lucasfilm Ltd. is one of the world’s leading film and entertainment companies. Founded by George Lucas in 1971, it is a privately held, fully integrated entertainment company. In addition to its motion-picture and television production operations, the company’s global activities include Industrial Light & Magic and Skywalker Sound, serving the digital needs of the entertainment industry for visual-effects and audio post-production; LucasArts, a leading developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software worldwide for video game console systems and PC; Lucasfilm Animation, founded in 2003 to create animated television productions; and Lucas Licensing, which manages the global merchandising activities for Lucasfilm’s entertainment properties. Additionally, Lucas Online creates Internet-based content for Lucasfilm’s entertainment properties and businesses. Lucasfilms motion-picture productions include five of the 20 biggest box-office hits of all time and have received 16 Oscars and 48 Academy Award nominations, while Industrial Light & Magic has received 14 Academy Awards and Skywalker Sound has received 18 Oscars. Lucasfilms television projects have won 12 Emmy Awards.
