9. Thuggee On Fire - Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom
One thing that goes unexplained in Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom is the reason why anybody under the "The Black Sleep of Kali" is returned to their normal state after being exposed to fire. It's never discussed by any of the characters, and the movie doesn't show us how Short Round knows to wave fire in Indy's face to release him from its spell. But a deleted scene would have explained to audiences how Short Round learned that fire was the way to save his possessed friend. In this particular deleted scene, then, Shorty - a prisoner in the catacombs beneath Pankot Palace - watches on as a Thuggee guard whips a child. Suddenly, a fissure from the ground sends molten hot lava at the guard, and he is broken free of the Black Sleep. He's dragged away by other guards at this point, but Short Round realises this is the way to rescue Indy. No footage of this moment is known to exist; just the pictorial evidence seen above. It's kind of an essential scene in retrospect, and one that would have imbued Temple Of Doom with one explanation that it kind of needed. Why would Shorty burn Indy otherwise?
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
