George Lucas, Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford team up for another Indiana Jones adventure in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull- how good is it? Well, its great to see Indy again but I find it the weakest in the series so far
Indy's adventures have now fast forwarded from the pre-World War II years to the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. Although it helps to explain the fact that Ford is playing an older character, one can't help but feel the saga of Indiana Jones is missing something (I wish they would make a movie set in World War II but it will obviously be a tall order with Ford being his age- perhaps with future technology they could make him younger like what they did with Ray Winstone in Beowulf) since so many years have passed. Although Indy is now much, much older he can still fight it out and win against people half his age it seems- the plot this time revolves around the Russians and their quest using a crystal skull to find a lost city somewhere in South America.
Since Ford has gotten older (I know, I know, that remark is getting thin), he is joined by a younger, rebellious James Dean type named Mutt (Shia LaBeouf- his character's name is an in-joke based on Indy's name) who is a qualified fencer and takes after Marlon Brando's Wild One with his Harley Davidson motorcycle. Karen Allen also marks a return as Marion Ravenwood (Indy's old flame from Raiders of the Lost Ark) and her scenes with Ford are nearly pulled off to perfection but Lucas and Spielberg unfortunately play it more for light laughs rather than poignancy; Allen is important to the story since Denholm Elliot and Sean Connery no longer appear in the movie even though their characters are mentioned a number of times- it makes one miss them even more. The aforementioned Ray Winstone also appears as Mac- Indy's new British sidekick- although there is more to his character as he appears.
The bad guys are led by Irina Spalko (played by Cate Blanchett wearing a black wig) who herself happens to be a fencer as well- her trademark rapier is in contrast to Indy's trademark bullwhip.
What did I not like? Well, since Ford's Indiana Jones is such a cultural icon now Spielberg and Lucas would never ever even attempt to kill off this character and it shows- although Indy is exposed to danger constantly we are never made to fear that he is (or any of his friends) are in danger at all; Raiders of the Lost Ark introduced him so he was new to us while Temple of Doom gave us some real frights as to whether he would live on while everyone was afraid for Connery in Last Crusade- but with this latest installment clearly elevating Indy as an immortal character you knew he would pull out in the end.
The action sequences are frenetic and well made as usual but they don't break new ground- we have seen Indy going after convoys full of soldiers to get what he wanted before, after all. Other than the first action sequence in Area-51, we no longer even see Indy use his bullwhip any more.
Although it is great to see Indy back, I hope they don't go with Lucas' plan to replace Ford with the younger LaBeouf- his character doesn't seem very smart or talented at finding clues like Indiana Jones. All in all, an above average movie with the ever likable Ford as Indy though I wish they would have tried something new or daring rather than just go for the formulaic treasure hunt.
Since Ford has gotten older (I know, I know, that remark is getting thin), he is joined by a younger, rebellious James Dean type named Mutt (Shia LaBeouf- his character's name is an in-joke based on Indy's name) who is a qualified fencer and takes after Marlon Brando's Wild One with his Harley Davidson motorcycle. Karen Allen also marks a return as Marion Ravenwood (Indy's old flame from Raiders of the Lost Ark) and her scenes with Ford are nearly pulled off to perfection but Lucas and Spielberg unfortunately play it more for light laughs rather than poignancy; Allen is important to the story since Denholm Elliot and Sean Connery no longer appear in the movie even though their characters are mentioned a number of times- it makes one miss them even more. The aforementioned Ray Winstone also appears as Mac- Indy's new British sidekick- although there is more to his character as he appears.
The bad guys are led by Irina Spalko (played by Cate Blanchett wearing a black wig) who herself happens to be a fencer as well- her trademark rapier is in contrast to Indy's trademark bullwhip.
What did I not like? Well, since Ford's Indiana Jones is such a cultural icon now Spielberg and Lucas would never ever even attempt to kill off this character and it shows- although Indy is exposed to danger constantly we are never made to fear that he is (or any of his friends) are in danger at all; Raiders of the Lost Ark introduced him so he was new to us while Temple of Doom gave us some real frights as to whether he would live on while everyone was afraid for Connery in Last Crusade- but with this latest installment clearly elevating Indy as an immortal character you knew he would pull out in the end.
The action sequences are frenetic and well made as usual but they don't break new ground- we have seen Indy going after convoys full of soldiers to get what he wanted before, after all. Other than the first action sequence in Area-51, we no longer even see Indy use his bullwhip any more.
Although it is great to see Indy back, I hope they don't go with Lucas' plan to replace Ford with the younger LaBeouf- his character doesn't seem very smart or talented at finding clues like Indiana Jones. All in all, an above average movie with the ever likable Ford as Indy though I wish they would have tried something new or daring rather than just go for the formulaic treasure hunt.