Nineteen years after The Last Crusade, Indiana Jones is finally back in movie houses across the country. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (PG-13) stars Harrison Ford reprising the classic title role. This time Indy is in South America searching for a crystal skull that was sacred to an ancient race of people. The year is 1957, so communists have replaced Nazis as the bad guys. Cate Blanchett, Karen Allen, and Shia LaBeouf costar. Steven Spielberg directs.
Ryan: It's been a long wait and Indiana Jones is back, and while not (quite) better than ever, still pretty darn good. There's something special about seeing Indiana Jones on the big screen and that in and of itself makes for an enjoyable movie going experience. While the movie is more Temple of Doom than Raiders or Last Crusade it still delivers the excitement and captures the essence of the Indiana Jones mythos. Resurrecting a cinematic icon like Indiana Jones after a nineteen-year wait is a tough challenge. But Spielberg and company have delivered--maybe not the slam dunk that most people were looking for--but--a more than suitable (closing ?) chapter to the Indiana Jones narrative.
Andy: The best compliment that can be paid to this film is that it feels like an Indiana Jones movie. Unlike the reborn Star Wars movies of the past decade, Crytal Skull fits in with the other Indiana Jones movies pretty well. It recaptures the spirit of the first three movies, nailing the campy action that made those 80s movies so special. It does not seem quite as magical as the others, but much of that may have to do with the special way in which the original movies aged. This film is not without flaws, but it’s hard to argue that it doesn’t fit into the Indiana Jones tradition nicely.
Ryan: One of the biggest questions surrounding the movie was Harrison Ford's age (65) and how that would effect a seemingly age-less hero. By the end of Ford's first scene that question is easily put to bed. Harrison Ford is not the star that he once was but for this movie he delivers a crowd-pleasing performance. Also delivering a noteworthy performance is Ford's sidekick, LaBeouf. I was about ready to say that I'm not sure what it is about LaBeouf that makes him so enjoyable to see on screen but it's really quite simple. He's just a really gifted actor.
Andy: It seemed like Ford’s age was the main topic of discussion leading up to the release of this film. Make no mistake, this is an old Indiana Jones, but he didn’t seem as old as I expected him to. Maybe the fights are a little slower, and the jumping and diving seems a little creakier, but Indiana Jones was always about attitude, and that hasn’t changed. The dry, everyman one liners tossed in around the action sequences are still there, and there is no question that it is still Indiana Jones. As for the next generation of action stars in the movie, I don’t think there could have been a better choice than Shia LaBeouf. He has already shown great versatility and magnetism, and there is no reason to believe he won’t be a silver screen mainstay for decades to come.
Ryan: While Crystal Skulls explodes with the kind of the action and swashbuckling adventure that audiences want from an Indiana Jones movie, there's no question that the biggest obstacle for most moviegoers will be to accept (or not) the film's plot dealing with the mythology of the crystal skulls. I did accept it mainly because it parallels the film's period (the 1950's) and it continues the theme of there being a supernatural element to the artifact that Indy is after. But on-the-other-hand I can see how a supposed alien (or not) element to the story might not sit will with a lot of Indy fans. Depending on how much one accepts that or not will go a long way in determining whether one likes or dislikes the movie.
Andy: Without spoiling any aspects of the film’s conclusion, I will say that I was initially skeptical about the conclusion of the movie (like most of Spielberg’s work over the last twenty years). It just gets a little out of control. But thinking back to the Nazi’s faces melting at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark, I realized that the ends of all of the Indiana Jones movies are a bit ridiculous, and this just falls in line with those. I still feel like it is one of the weaker points of the film, but not enough to spoil the overall effect of the movie.
Indiana Jones’s return to theatres is ultimately a triumphant romp through the jungle, well worth seeing for any fans of the franchise. Final grade: B+.
Ryan: It's been a long wait and Indiana Jones is back, and while not (quite) better than ever, still pretty darn good. There's something special about seeing Indiana Jones on the big screen and that in and of itself makes for an enjoyable movie going experience. While the movie is more Temple of Doom than Raiders or Last Crusade it still delivers the excitement and captures the essence of the Indiana Jones mythos. Resurrecting a cinematic icon like Indiana Jones after a nineteen-year wait is a tough challenge. But Spielberg and company have delivered--maybe not the slam dunk that most people were looking for--but--a more than suitable (closing ?) chapter to the Indiana Jones narrative.
Andy: The best compliment that can be paid to this film is that it feels like an Indiana Jones movie. Unlike the reborn Star Wars movies of the past decade, Crytal Skull fits in with the other Indiana Jones movies pretty well. It recaptures the spirit of the first three movies, nailing the campy action that made those 80s movies so special. It does not seem quite as magical as the others, but much of that may have to do with the special way in which the original movies aged. This film is not without flaws, but it’s hard to argue that it doesn’t fit into the Indiana Jones tradition nicely.
Ryan: One of the biggest questions surrounding the movie was Harrison Ford's age (65) and how that would effect a seemingly age-less hero. By the end of Ford's first scene that question is easily put to bed. Harrison Ford is not the star that he once was but for this movie he delivers a crowd-pleasing performance. Also delivering a noteworthy performance is Ford's sidekick, LaBeouf. I was about ready to say that I'm not sure what it is about LaBeouf that makes him so enjoyable to see on screen but it's really quite simple. He's just a really gifted actor.
Andy: It seemed like Ford’s age was the main topic of discussion leading up to the release of this film. Make no mistake, this is an old Indiana Jones, but he didn’t seem as old as I expected him to. Maybe the fights are a little slower, and the jumping and diving seems a little creakier, but Indiana Jones was always about attitude, and that hasn’t changed. The dry, everyman one liners tossed in around the action sequences are still there, and there is no question that it is still Indiana Jones. As for the next generation of action stars in the movie, I don’t think there could have been a better choice than Shia LaBeouf. He has already shown great versatility and magnetism, and there is no reason to believe he won’t be a silver screen mainstay for decades to come.
Ryan: While Crystal Skulls explodes with the kind of the action and swashbuckling adventure that audiences want from an Indiana Jones movie, there's no question that the biggest obstacle for most moviegoers will be to accept (or not) the film's plot dealing with the mythology of the crystal skulls. I did accept it mainly because it parallels the film's period (the 1950's) and it continues the theme of there being a supernatural element to the artifact that Indy is after. But on-the-other-hand I can see how a supposed alien (or not) element to the story might not sit will with a lot of Indy fans. Depending on how much one accepts that or not will go a long way in determining whether one likes or dislikes the movie.
Andy: Without spoiling any aspects of the film’s conclusion, I will say that I was initially skeptical about the conclusion of the movie (like most of Spielberg’s work over the last twenty years). It just gets a little out of control. But thinking back to the Nazi’s faces melting at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark, I realized that the ends of all of the Indiana Jones movies are a bit ridiculous, and this just falls in line with those. I still feel like it is one of the weaker points of the film, but not enough to spoil the overall effect of the movie.
Indiana Jones’s return to theatres is ultimately a triumphant romp through the jungle, well worth seeing for any fans of the franchise. Final grade: B+.
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