Landships II

Vilkata · Brigadier

The Indiana Jones Tank.

JamesH · Major

Yes, it's definitely mostly Mk VIII with added turret, and, as you say, Indie's horse can barely keep up with it at full pelt.

It's worth watching the part where it falls over the cliff for some entertaining continuity errors: when it hits the rocks below and rolls over, the turret flies off to reveal no turret ring and access to the hull; cut to Indie's Dad and the other goodies, then back to the Tank - and the turret is back on! The hull side comes partly adrift and flaps slowly about, since it is obviously a plywood dummy, and then, similarly, miraculously reattaches itself.

That's magic.

Centurion · Legend

One has to treat the IJ films as tales of alternative history/universes. Anachronisms abound from the tailess aircraft that the Horten brothers might have got around to building some time about 1950 (Lost Ark - and where did he stow away on that U boat?), the early invention of the Panzerfaust (also Lost Ark) to the premature Zundap MC combinations (last Crusade) and the civilian airshp flight post Hindenberg (Last Crusade). Even the Temple of Doom has them (that convenient inflatable liferaft some 3 or 4 years early and the British approach to policing the Princely states that vanished about 1870). As for the tank it's obvious that Messers Wilson, Stern and Tritton must have been moonlighting in Berlin to produce a tank to the same formula as their TOG1 of 1941. Still they are ripping yarns!

Vilkata · Brigadier

What's really rather absurd, is that the tank would normally have heaps of machine guns, that have been mysteriously removed with the openings plated over in this fictional modified Mk.VIII. Throughout Jones's entire run-in with it, the gunners are trying to shoot him with the 57mm sponson guns!!! Indi' would have been deader than a doornail if the vehicle still retained its side hull MGs.

They're very fun movies, but as you guys have pointed out, if you actually start digging into the details they're really silly.

---Vil.

Phil R · Captain

and how about the tank in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen; we all know that superpowers and mutants are real, but that tank was a bit far fetched don't you think?!!

Mario Wens · Lieutenant

David Fletcher of Bovington Tank Museum once told me the film production manager came by and 'raced' through the Museum to find a good tank for the film. He pointed out one of the WW1 Landships (can't remember which one according to Mr. Fletcher) but said something along these lines: "that is what we want, but it lacks something, dunno... Yeah, that turret of that whatyoucallit in the other big hall would look great on it! Would you mind if we welded it on for the duration?"

Needless to say the Museum politely declined to play along. The crew ended up buildin a contraption themselves on the basis of the photos they took that day.

Mario

Jeeves · Corporal

So what was The Leagues one? (For those of us who haven't seen it; I.e., myself)

Phil R · Captain

while looking for a pic of the LXG one, i found these on this page (cant work out which one was used in the film, but these all look cool)

http://www.famousframes.com/cgi-bin/ImageFolio31/imageFolio.cgi?direct=Artists/0725~Manuel_Plank-Jorge/Film/LXG_Lineart&img=15

here`s the film frames

http://0301.netclime.net/1_5/T/H/0/10710742481798829.jpg

http://0301.netclime.net/1_5/8/V/W/1071074974219410.jpg

so its more like a mk...? 6? 9? who knows?!!

(and there was the nuclear fusion powered submarine....)

Roger Todd · Legend

I don't think it's modelled on any particular Mark, more 'inspired by'...

A props shop in London Village has a set of blueprints:

http://www.propstore.com/showimage.php?pid=3188&iid=9448

EDIT: Phil, cool links! Nice artwork (shame about the film...)

EDIT 2: Vilkata's attachments have just attached themselves to my post for some reason - it wasn't me guv'nor, honest!

-- Edited by Roger Todd at 14:47, 2006-06-28

eugene · Field Marshal

there is a new indiana jones movie in the works, hopefully it will have more fantasy/part historical vehicles!

oh isnt there a WWI aviation movie in the works too?

Tim R · Hero

Hey Guys

If you like Indiana Jones, check out the series Young Indy, the first few are all WW1 related, a little more Historical/Fantasy.

They are worth watching.

All the Best

Tim R

Phil R · Captain

yeah i love that young Indy series. i think his best (slightly portly) friend is in the Belgian army (or they both are) but are somehow attached to a french unit. the uniforms are rather good

Phil R · Captain

picture of Indy on his horse, easily outrunning the tank

http://www.theindyexperience.com/photo_gallery/Indiana_Jones_and_the_Last_Crusade/9.jpg

Centurion · Legend

The TOG 1 of WW2 has a very close resemblance to this.

TOG 1 Tank

It was intended to fit sponsons on which case it would have been even closer. This was put together by an reserected Landship Committee (Swinton, Stern, D'Eyncourt) and Wilson and Tritton. TOG stood for The Old Gang.

Roger Todd · Legend

I always liked the TOG1, such a magnificent folly (note the rather puny Matilda turret!). There's a nice little collection of photos in the archives at work showing TOG1 going through its paces; there may even be a sketch of the side sponsons, but I can't be sure as it's months since I looked.

Centurion · Legend

A blast from the past the TOG 1 may have been but the concept did lead on to the Churchill tank - a somewhat more useful machine.

Vilkata · Brigadier

In that picture of Indi running away from the tank, its apprent that another liberty was taken with this 'made up' modified Mk.VIII... It's waaay wider!! The tracks look about the same width, but the structure between the tracks is much broader. I suppose this was to make the tank have a muh more fierce dominating look from the front.

---Vil.

Mark Hansen · Legend

Vilkata wrote:

In that picture of Indi running away from the tank, its apprent that another liberty was taken with this 'made up' modified Mk.VIII... It's waaay wider!! The tracks look about the same width, but the structure between the tracks is much broader. I suppose this was to make the tank have a muh more fierce dominating look from the front. ---Vil.

Maybe it's a Mk VIII�. Wider than your average Mk VIII for that "We won't waste ammo, just terrify you" look.

theburk · Captain

ive acctualy seen one of them, i think there were a couple indie tanks made, both being exactly the same, in any event at least a prop replica was at disney world at the entrance to the ride "the indiana jones experiance" at least i think that was the name, it appeared to be some odd amalgamation of various early second world war tanks and late world war 1 tanks, having design implements from both. just like the prop flying wing from raiders, which does resemble in many ways prototype designs for flying wings (like the northrop designs) and obviously of course the german designs by the horten brothers. i heard somewhere that the plane (unlike the tank which was i believe built by ILM) was built by a british aviation company (though still not air worthy) i have a fine scale modeler that has ideas toward converting the disney toy to a real workable model, and infact bought three of them.