While wasting my summer watching television and listening to the radio, I have discovered that many people didn’t really like the new “Indiana Jones” movie. This completely baffles me. Is “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” perfect? Absolutely not. But overall, it’s a fine effort and a supremely entertaining film.
To explain my reasoning, let me take you back to 1999. Back then, Pluto was still a planet. MTV still showed music videos on occasion. Your mom didn’t know how to use the Internet yet. And on May 19, “Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace” was released to theaters. It had been 16 years since “Return of the Jedi” had graced the screen and, needless to say, fans were rabid for the long-anticipated prequels which were to tell the story of how young Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader.
And what did George Lucas finally deliver to us? A gigantic pile of crap. “The Phantom Menace” featured a few cool lightsaber duels, but it was mostly full of bad dialogue and horrible acting. “Episode II: Attack of the Clones” was even worse, though it didn’t feature Jar Jar Binks as prominently, making it slightly more tolerable. The final entry, “Episode III: Revenge of the Sith,” released in 2005, wasn’t horrible, but it still bore the marks of a sub-par film, filled with lousy writing and a number of cheesy moments. All in all, the “Star Wars” prequels were nowhere near the quality of the original trilogy.
That being said, can you really say that “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” was so bad? Sure, it has its share of unrealistic moments that might merit some eye-rolling and several instances of shoddy CGI work, but it was fun to watch. More importantly, it captured the same sense of heart and adventure that made the original “Indiana Jones” films so great.
In this newest entry, Dr. Henry Jones Jr., aka Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford), finds himself at the mercy of Soviet psychic Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett, “I’m Not There,” “Elizabeth: The Golden Age”), who wants Jones’ help in finding the elusive Crystal Skulls, thought to have supernatural powers. Along the way, Jones joins up with Mutt (Shia LaBeouf, “Disturbia,” “Transformers”), a greaser who wants Indy’s help in finding and rescuing his mother.
They use the clues left behind by Professor Oxley (John Hurt, “V for Vendetta”), a mutual acquaintance of the two men, to find the skull and meet up with Mutt’s mother, who turns out to be none other than Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen), Jones’ gal pal from “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” As the skull leads the new family to an ancient and mysterious destination, Spalko and Indy’s former friend Mac (Ray Winstone, “Beowulf”) are hot on their trail.
“Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” delivered everything an “Indiana Jones” movie should: action, adventure, comedy and even a dash of romance. The score from John Williams definitely kept me psyched throughout the movie as it invokes nostalgia for the previous films while perfectly accompanying the action of this one.
The writing is relatively sharp, though obviously cobbled together from a number of separate drafts of the script. Some have complained that the “alien” aspect of the movie is random, but I think it’s a logical step forward for the “Indiana Jones” franchise, especially considering what was going on culturally and historically during the late 1950s, when the film takes place. The visuals in the movie are impressive, though overdone and over-digitized in a few places. And there’s one particular instance involving vine swinging that I’d rather not remember.
But overall, the film is a winner, thanks in large part to the amazing work of Harrison Ford. Anyone who had doubts about the older Mr. Ford being able to jump back into the action of being Indy should hang their heads in shame. Ford does a fantastic job here, mostly because he’s comfortable in this character. Director Steven Spielberg managed to get the most solid performance we’ve seen from Ford in years. Let’s face it – since “The Fugitive,” Ford has basically been phoning it in. But in “Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” he’s back in his element and just as strong as he was in “Raiders.”
Karen Allen is another bright spot in the film. Marion was always the perfect match for Indy, and Ford and Allen play off that chemistry beautifully. They have several moments together in the film that are absolutely perfect and will make “Raiders” fans jump for joy.
Shia LaBeouf doesn’t disappoint as Mutt, the obvious candidate for the lead in the next Indiana Jones franchise. Though the character name is stupid, the spirit LaBeouf brings to Mutt is anything but dumb. He nails the “greaser” role to the point that you wonder if he’s going to ride off with the T-Birds at the end of the film.
I’ll admit, the Irina Spalko character is a tad clichéd. My mom even leaned over during the film and compared her to Natasha from “The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle,” asking if what Spalko was really looking for was “Moose and Squirrel.” But Cate Blanchett does a decent job, even while hamming it up as the curvy communist.
The film could have been a lot worse, considering the source. But Lucas and Spielberg delivered a wildly entertaining picture that can be enjoyed by moviegoers of all ages, whether they’re familiar with the franchise or not. “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” is a fun follow-up to the previous movies, “Raiders of the Lost Ark” in particular.
