Indiana Jones IV & The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull • Reviews

[CoGro]

Just got back from the premiere and Last Crusade is on TV as I type this.

Some spoilers that you probably all know if you're paying attention to this thread, but I'll tag it anyway.

[spoil]

[align=left]This is a tougher one to review for me. On the one hand, there's plenty of nostalgia, thrills, smiles, and adventure to be had - I'll get into that in a bit. On the other hand, as a work of film, it's disjointed, often flat and lacks motivation. There feels like no real reason why the movie had to be made.

I'll come out and say it: it's not a classic. At first viewing it isn't Last Crusade, maybe not even Doom and definitely not Raiders. There's not one moment off the top of my head I can think of where you're totally sucked into the moment and the film has tapped into your core (and this could very well be due to being overwhelmed by my first viewing of a new Indiana Jones). There are moments that made me smile and musical cues that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up but really nothing that separates 'Crystal Skull' from the others. There is some great direction from Steve and a LOT of potential from the STORY (as opposed to the plot) but nothing really comes together like it should. It really makes me want to read the discarded scripts, because Koepp's couldn't have been the best. Some people will disagree with me on this one, but what people would call 'Lucas's' influence on the film (aka the alien stuff and the E.T. ending) was really the coolest part of the film, it just needed a better build up. I read a review that the ending is closest to Doom's, but it's actually much closer to Raiders in the way it transpires. The problem is the script - Moriarty from AICN hit it perfectly on the head. I'm no dummy, so if I can't understand how we go from A to B and B to C in an Indiana Jones movie something has to have gone wrong.

I just don't know why Indiana Jones cares to go on this adventure; I can make rational inferences based on what the script wants to TELL me is the logic behind Indy's motivation but it's never expressly stated and in fact needs to when you see how it all plays out:

**DON'T READ THIS IF YOU DON'T WANT THE PLOT RUINED**

Indy gets fired, decides to move and teach elsewhere when suddenly Mutt shows up and tells him that his mother 'Mary' said that Dr. Jones would help him find Oxley/his mother and tell him what this letter means. Then bad guys show up which I guess gets Indy interested on what this whole thing means, he reads from a book is a very bland exposition scene, and off they go. I typically LOVE the history in these films, LOVE; but due to the lack of connection between Indy and the relic he's after you really don't care about the rest. In Raiders, he's on a mission against the Nazis and the Museum gets the reward, in Doom he's out to save a village from death and reap fortune and glory, in Crusade he's out to save his father who has INTENSE motivation to recover the grail. Here, not only does Mutt not give a shit about what's going on, he doesn't even know what's going on so how and why should Indy give a shit? It's like his motivation is: "I can either get back on that train and go to NY and teach or go with this stranger and kind of figure out what this random mystery means." Needless to say, on first viewing it didn't pull me in and make me forget I was watching a movie.

That for me was the major problem with the film. There are minor nitpicks and since this is a 'review' I'll get them out of my system. We've heard the score, we really like the score, but in the film it doesn't grab you. This isn't Williams' fault - it's the script's. The script doesn't allow Williams to spread out the cues and build up to anything of particular interest. There's no 'grail theme' that hits you in Act One when Connery says "Will he who illuminated this. . . illuminate me" and constantly builds towards the finale, or Ark theme that grabs you from the bible all the way through. The call of the crystal works GREAT in the finale, but there's no significant buildup to it. It could have been a GREAT macguffin, but the script really botches it. Second, know that I'm not that guy that bashes CGI: I don't think Lucas has assfucked the Star Wars series by injecting painted backgrounds and rubber characters into the universe. Nor do I think Indy would have suffered with a couple digital touchups. On the very bright side, there is not ONE digital stunt double that I picked up on during fights and workable stunts. However, there's one scene that you've been hearing of involving Mutt and a group of monkeys that is utterly rediculous and just doesn't belong. It pulled me right out of the movie and I had to work to get back in. CGI that works = amazing nuclear explosion, ant scene, waterfalls, finale. My third gripe has to deal with the characters. The actors were all great, as you would expect, but the characters themselves feel flat and/or unecessary. Mac? I dunno, he's not in it enough for me to care about him and really he's just a plot device. Oxley? The ultimate plot device. He may as well BE the macguffin. Marion? God, I wish she had more to do. I wish she had a real reason to be there. Mutt? Honestly, Shia is terrific and gets high, high marks for his work here. His banter with Indy is great and you'll all love it. It keeps going back to the script though, but it's true: it just doesn't do the actors, the characters or the story justice.

Now the good (sorry it took so long to get here). The opening scene is classic Spielberg. . . I just wish it was the third act of another adventure and not the first act of this one (re: the Indy formula). Harrison Ford is the fucking man. He jumps right back into the role like he never left it; it's unbelieveable really. He handles the action very well and the adventure scenes are rock solid. Nostalgia moments galore including lines from earlier fillms, musical cues, etc. The Indy/Mutt motorcycle chase scene through the city is classic Spielberg and maybe the most classic-feeling fight of the movie, beginning with the scene at the bar.

I know, the bad/disappointing looks like it dwarfs the good but that's due to two reasons: 1. I think I need to see it again and become comfortable with another Indy movie, 2. the good is usually not easy to critique, hence why it's good. Also, what's good is VERY good and not just OK. You're going to smile A LOT in this movie. You won't be totally disappointed and maybe not even disappointed at all. You will, maybe more than ever before, see how a mediocre script can totally hijack a good story with good acting and great set pieces.[/align][/spoil]

[Hade]

There feels like no real reason why the movie had to be made.

I've heard that somewhere before.

[TiniTinyTony]

My Spoiler Free Review>

Upfront let me say that if you can avoid the temptation and curiosity of the new Indiana Jones adventure, then I suggest you do so. This movie starts out well enough with a small laugh or two. Then you begin to wonder, "What the heck is going on?" Then there is maybe another laugh or two, and a some action mixed in, but the magic just feels missing. My overall impression was that it was mildly entertaining and it tried its best to give you that old school feel, but it just wasn't able to capture it fully. Maybe they were trying too hard, I don't know, but it definitely had promise and I just didn't feel that it reached the caliber of the previous Indiana Jones installments.

[ETandElliott]

Personally, I loved it and I think most of the crowd in my theater did as well considering the applause it got. I'll need to see it several more times, but here are some thoughts.

First, I've heard a lot of bitching about the CGI. Forget about it. Certainly, there are many scenes that utilize computers, but most all of them look fantastic. The jungle chase where Mutt duels with Spalko (from opposing vehicles) looked fucking incredible. I'm not sure if that was real or what. There were thankfully never any noticeable digital replacements for actors. Yes, Mutt swinging with monkeys looked poor, the whole scene was basically unnecessary and felt wholly out of place.

The action was great. Standout scenes are the motorcycle chase, jungle chase and the cemetery warriors scene, which had the audience jumping.

I was able to get into the story and the legend of the Crystal Skull, Akator and all that. Once Indy meets Mutt, he does pretty much just take off on an adventure. To me it was Indy not just going after an old friend, but getting back in the saddle so to speak. It just worked for me and considering Indy had been fired and lost his friends/family, what did he have to lose at that point?

Mutt was a great character. I'd heard negative things about it, but honestly the scene where Mutt starts a fight in the diner was hilarious. They never made the Father-Son thing cheesy, which I found unbelievable. I was happy.

The other supporting characters were pretty good, although I was disappointed that Spalko didn't get more time to really be, well, villainous. I did like Cate Blanchett's performance very much. She's established as an intelligent character and respectful of Jones' knowledge and skills, which I dug. But I honestly would have liked to see her as a bit more over-the-top. That's me. Ray Winstone was just annoying for most of the picture.

Dovchenko's death was fucking awesome.

The aliens and saucer didn't bother me, I actually liked it a lot.

I can't quite put my finger on it just yet, but the film just felt rushed at times. Like perhaps they should have made some script revisions or something.

Williams' score had some standout moments not on the soundtrack. It was hard to hear a lot of times.

[Maveritchell]

I thought the film was pretty fun. It didn't feel the same as I remember the other movies, and some of the suspension-of-disbelief action actually made me laugh out loud, but Indiana Jones was still Indiana Jones and the rapport between the main characters was really nice. I felt like I got my ten dollars' worth, and honestly that's all I'll ask from a movie.

[DiMeS]

All i can say is great movie, it had elements that reminds you of the previous films. Harrison was good, Cate was good, surprisingly Shia was not the annoying type that i expected. As stated before the only out of placed character came from ray winstone, oh well. I like the message at the end with the whole knowledge concept.

I spose it'll take some people to accept this new indy installment, all i can say is BRING ON INDY 5!!

[Wesman]

Welp,

first off: I liked it. As a matter of fact, I laughed out loud several times, and I'm still not sure if it was because it was really that funny, or if I just wanted it to be. The whole theatre seemed to think it was funny as well. That being said...

I stayed spoiler free for this one, and I think that heightened my enjoyment much like it did for episode III. I found the plot interesting, even if the powers that be seemed to actually TRY to make it unimportant.

Pro's and Cons:

Great feeling of Indy being back on the screen, Ford delivers some great one lines - "I like Ike" and "Why the hell didn't you make him finish school!!??" are my favorites. CGI - I was opposed to its signifigant use, but it works well. Karen Allen and Indy nostalga. Shia Lebouf was actually great. Indy's fights were good for the most part, he still has it. Not like he used to, but hey, he was still Indy and thats what I wanted. The story telling moments where Jones is just sitting and talking were some of my favorites, he was Dr. Jones again, and it was good.

The main plot was poorly told. I'm gonna see it again, but the ending was rushed and you kind of struggle to make sense of any of it. I got the point, but I guess I was just left wanting a deeper explanation, something to make it worthy of a Jones movie. You really never got that - this movie wasnt about a plot, it was about getting Indy back on the screen and taking people on a ride - it did that well. The set peices, especially near the end looked terrible in my opinion. It's funny to me that 25 years ago, given all the advances in lighting and what not, the sets looked more believeable in the old movies. Cate Blanchett - Not her fault, but her character was just plain pointless and annoying.

And for the worst part - Jar Jar Binks strikes again. Im not referring to Shia LeBouf... I just mean in general. George got his hands around this movie and turned it into Jar Jar stepping in poop in TPM. First the refridgerator flying for miles in the middle of a nuclear explosion and Indy rolling out of it like, "whew, that was close". The dumb prarie dogs... on more than one occasion. The monkey's and the "tarzan" moment. All of these things made me cringe and wonder... WHAT THE HELL ARE THESE DOING IN THIS MOVIE.

Final diagnosis?

I cannot seem to rank where this movie stands in relation to the other Indy films. I feel bad saying it is the worst of the 4, because I had a great time at the theatre. Its almost as if it is not an Indy movie at all, but a summer action flick for the family with no real plot or emotional signifigance - with familiar characters (which I think is all they were after anyway).

This is how I feel about it: If Indy 1-3 were Indiana Jones Movies, then Indy 4 was like Riding the Indiana Jones ride at Universal Studios... or MGM or whatever.

Fun, wild ride - but somehow it still disappoints. 7 / 10

[Ayatollah Krispies]

First, I've heard a lot of bitching about the CGI.

I haven't seen this movie yet, so I can't judge the quality of said CGI -- but I do find this bitching funny in light of the fact that TOD has some of the absolute worst matte effects I have ever seen. And it won the Visual Effects Oscar!

[Joe1138]

I was actually surprised by how much I enjoyed this movie. It's probably the most far out entry in the series (and given the terrain the other movies traveled, that's saying something) but the flick had me from scene one. I think I might prefer it to Last Crusade if only because the pacing felt faster and rarely let up. I can't wait to see this thing again. Screw the haters, (myself included) this is a damn fine entertainment.

[darthpsychotic]

My review:

1. Raiders Of The Lost Ark
2. Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull
3. Temple Of Doom
4. The Last Crusade

Saw this at the midnight opening. The beginning starts out with a American Graffiti drag race between 1950s Hot Rodders and Russians disguised as Military Cargo Truckers set to Elvis Presley's Hound Dog.

Since I have a copy of the cam I can take requests for .avi sequences. Although by this evening the public torrent trackers should be well seeded.

[CoGro]

Going back tonight and hopefully I feel better about it the second time around.

I think whether you liked this movie or not, there should be some good discussion about the script: its failures and successes. I feel strongly that there was a great movie here that got lost along the way. I hope to learn more about why these characters were included and how this ship could have been righted and made into a classic.

My pre-second viewing thoughts on how I would fix it, for what it's worth:

1. Opening sequence works well, but what was the point of the Russians finding the alien again? I don't get how it was relevant at all. I think it should have been a misc relic that constituted the last act of a previous adventure, not the first act of this one.

2. Keep Mac with the Russians. Indy's too smart to allow Mac to flip flop like that. Mac was basically a plot device to allow the Russians to follow the gang into Akator in the finale.

3. Eliminate Oxley or Marion. I guess I'd go with Oxley because his character was worthless, but Marion needs a better reason for being on this adventure. Abner's got tons of relics collected, why not be all clever and make one of those relics important to finding the Crystal Skull? Better yet, give Indy the proper motivation and make one of those relics HIS and they captured Marion to lure Indy into the Amazon and take it. See, I just made the movie better and I thought about it for 5 minutes. I should drop out of law school.

Those simple plot fixes would have helped the movie tremendously.

EDIT: I think it's funny that for all those blaming Lucas for this film's shortcomings, Episode III is arguably better directed, written and executed.

[foxbatkllr]

I enjoyed it and all the bitching about CGI and blaming everything bad on Lucas has me LOL'ing. I will say this. It definitely felt different from the other Indy movies. However, I feel its appropriate because of the time period. It's 19 years later, there's no more Nazis and everyone is much older. It shouldn't feel the same. Totally different era, totally different feeling. At times the movie did test the bounds of my suspension of disbelief but I got over it once I thought about the other films, especially when removing myself from my usual Christian perspective.

[darthpsychotic]

My take on Indiana Jones IV is this: George Lucas is Indiana Jones and this is a Lucas film.


"I got a bad feeling about this"

In addition to the American Graffiti opening there is Star Wars all up in this mother. From the "bad feeling" line being dropped in a Indiana Jones film by Ford himself to echoes of The Trash Compactor scene when the group fell into the water when the temple steps retracted. The most awesome Star Wars scene of them all was The Empire Strikes Back one:

"Trust me"

Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood is all sorts of awesome in this movie. In Empire, while piloting the Falcon, Harrison Ford pulled off all sorts of cool in the Millennium Falcon. In Indiana Jones IV, the Falcon is the amphibious jeep and Han Solo is played by Karen Allen. While Indiana and Mutt are going crazy over Marion's perhaps Crystal Skull fueled - crazed driving, she heads towards the cliff. Ravenwood is like "trust me" drives over the cliff and lands on a tree branch which softly places the amphi-jeep into the river below. Marion accelerates over the branches and into the river causing the tree to snap back thus swatting the pursuing Irina Spalko gang.

And it don't stop because she won't stop - there is the cliche waterfalls scene. The catch here is there is not one waterfalls, not two waterfalls, but three waterfalls. Marion Ravenwood drives over and through them all.


The Droid Factory or Mutt Williams = C3PO

Unfortunately there is some negative aspects of the Star Wars influence. One of the criticisms of Attack Of The Clones is that C3PO was used way too much as comic relief which was most apparent in the Droid Factory sequence. In Indiana Jones IV, the Droid Factory sequence was (part of) the Jungle Chase. In one scene, Mutt straddles two jeeps driving parallel while fighting Irina Spalko. Somehow Mutt is ejected from the jeep into the trees above into a pack of monkeys. After observing the monkeys for a few moments, Mutt starts swinging from vine to vine and back into Marion's jeep.

When we first meet Mutt, he isn't C3PO at all. Mutt is Andrew Garcia from Godfather III, who to me was much worse of an actor and character then Sofia Coppolla's. Mutt's initial tough guy act just didn't come off to me. Although the subsequent beer snatching and motorcycle chase made up for it.

Prairie Dogs = Jawas in Podrace

Another lift from Star Wars is after Indiana escapes from the Russians (the first of many) and passes by a pack of CGI prairie dogs. We already seen one Prairie Dog in the opening and didn't need to see another gopher, much less 4 or 5 of them. This is Indiana Jones not Caddy Shack.


Other thoughts: In plenty of internet reviews there was mention of too much exposition. I found all the archaeological talk to be interesting and got the sense Lucas wanted to have Irina Spalko and Indiana Jones "help" one another because they shared the same interest in the Skulls in general. Cate Blanchett as Irina Spalko by the way kicked all sorts of ass. During the Jungle Chase she even demonstrated some Darth Maul style martial arts.


A few things did bother me: Indiana's removal from college. In Raiders and Last Crusade we were shown Indiana as professor with adoring female students. In Skull, Indiana was "let go" for allegedly being communist basically in front of his students. Later we see Indiana at home talking about the passing of Brody and Henry Sr. In the next scene we are introduced to Mutt who mentions his mom Marion. I guess this is to show we must lose old things so we can gain new things. There was way too many age-oriented comments by Mutt. Also, the fight between Indiana and the Russian was way too long. Lastly, Indiana should have used whip instead of the snake to get out of the quicksand.


Yeah Marion Ravenwood and Oxley were all sorts of awesome along with Indy.

[ETandElliott]

Mutt's initial tough guy act just didn't come off to me.

That's the thing though, he wasn't a tough guy, he was just hiding behind that image.

In regards to Cate Blanchett, that bob hairstyle, accent and her incredible ass were doing all sorts of things for me.

I've seen it again and I think that, in general, it's a good Indiana Jones movie. The aliens (or inter-dimensional beings) were way better than the Sankara Stones as a MacGuffin, and I'd have to say the bizarre climax with this one was pulled off much better than the temple with the knight and grail game in Last Crusade. The whole theme of a family coming together in this one wasn't pulled off as well as the Father-Son theme in Crusade.

[Red-Eye Knight]

I'm starting a series of wallpapers for KOTCS, here's a download link to the first one with more to follow:
(I thought I'd post them here instead of Images or Workshop since Indy's such a hot topic. If that's not cool, let me know.)

http://www.sendspace.com/file/i29iiy

[Ayatollah Krispies]

Marion needs a better reason for being on this adventure. Abner's got tons of relics collected, why not be all clever and make one of those relics important to finding the Crystal Skull?

Any good reason why Oxley couldn't have been Abner instead, as early rumors suggested? Seems like Marion's involvement would have made a lot more sense.

[darthpsychotic]

Yeah I don't mean to come off as anti-Mutt Williams and didn't realise it was supposed to be a act. It's just that I prefer "cool guy" snatchin-beer-from-preps Mutt and motorcycle-chase Mutt over "if any of you homos touch my stuff I'll kill ya" like that one guy from Bill Murray's Stripes. I also enjoyed Journey to Akator Mutt when he talked about his upbringing such as learning fencing and language study.

One thing that CoGro mentioned was Oxley and the movie was about him as much as the Crystal Skull. Hurt was pleasantly crazy as Oxley.

Oxley: Help? One order of "help" coming right up!
Enter Irina: Well well well, if it isn't Dr Jones ._.

As stated previously I'm also of the belief that the Crystal Skull had some sort of effect on Marion.

Yes, the Crystall Skull was awesome as a McGuffin as was the scene where the 13 Crystal Skull Skeletions combined to form Close Encounters Alien, because apparently the aliens were Transformers.


Speaking of ass I could have done without seeing Karen Allen's in that one shot during the Jungle Chase.

[Joe1138]

My take on Indiana Jones IV is this: George Lucas is Indiana Jones and this is a Lucas film.

I definitely hear what you're saying; I thought the prairie dog gag had Jawas in Ep. I written all over it too. Still, if you look at the way the shots are framed, the movie has Spielberg's distinct visual style carried over from the previous films. Thinking back from last night, Indy IV feels more like a clash than a true collaboration between Lucas and Spielberg. Given some of the zanier moments it would have been interesting if "Crystal Skull" had been a Steven Spielberg production of a George Lucas film. That's not to take away from the final product though.

[Wrath Mania]

I largely agree with CoGro's review, so I'll try not to retread what he already said. I have seen the movie twice. I am horrified to say it did not hold up well for me on a second viewing. So many scenes just felt agonizingly slow, due to either "HEY, LOOK AT THIS SET PIECE", or "HEY, LOOK AT THIS ABRUPT CGI MOMENT".

The amount of blame Lucas is getting for this movie is ridiculous, as many already said. If he was responsible for anything, it was the only part of the movie that really worked for me (the alien stuff). The bare story was his idea, and as CoGro said, the concept was fantastic. I love the alien shit. It just got executed horribly, and while it's easy to blame Mr. Lost World Koepp, it's probably justifiable. And let's be honest, Spielberg shockingly dropped the ball here. It's almost as if he was trying to channel Michael Fucking Bay. And that was this movie's problem, it felt like every other overblown summer blockbuster. It wasn't an AWFUL movie, just mediocre, nowhere near the other three. And that's even worse.

I know some would disagree with me, but I felt in the Star Wars prequels the CGI felt natural. Lucas shot 'around' it, didn't make it much of a spectacle. It was handled very well. In this movie it was simply obnoxious. We don't need to cover the tarzan fiasco again, and the waterfalls were cringe worthy. In addition, I'm shocked at how poorly paced the movie felt. It was as if they said "hey, let's get the characters back together!" and just threw shit at a wall to see how it would work out.

As already said, the idiot masses will bash Lucas for this, even though Revenge of the Sith (and IMO, Phantom Menace) are far higher quality movies. Revenge of the Sith is a movie I can watch over and over (and with Lucas/Spielberg movies, that's what counts a lot for me). It ages like fine wine.

Crystal Skull is aging like milk.

EDIT: Also, if anyone could upload the part from The Lost World were the T-Rex eats David Koepp in his appropriate cameo, I'd appreciate it (It's during the awful city ending).

[Topeka]

Saw the midnight screening but just now getting around to talking about it. This was exactly what I was expecting: Indiana Jones twenty years older, fighting the Cold War and running around amidst digital lens flares.

Did it surpass my expectations? No. But it clicked with me and just seemed to fit. The scifi craze of the fifties permeated nicely. Spalko's use of the Jedi Mind Trick was laughable but understandable. The introductions of Indy and Marion sent chills up my spine and received applause from the audience.

Spalko stole the show for me, and I wanted her to. I wanted to see more of her because she is much more than a villian. She wants the knowledge of the Skull just as much as Indy wanted the Ark of the Covenant. She is in control, furious and cool at the same time.

Everyone seems to diss Mack. He may not have been likeable but I laughed every time he yelled "Jonesy!".

The film has it's negatives, but they've already been touched on. I think if you step back from whatever grand visions you had as a fan, you'll see how much this film makes sense in the evolution of Henry Jones Jr. Harrison pulled it off very well, and the adventure is back.

9/10

[CoGro]

Got my second viewing in earlier tonight. My thoughts, some revised:

1. the plot works better upon a second viewing, but is still too complicated for an Indiana Jones flick. Too much Oxley and we just don't care.

2. So I'm assuming the whole point of the opening sequence is that the Russians are hoping there's a crystal skull inside the Roswell alien or else that entire act is worthless. If I'm wrong here, then refer to point 1 - the plot is way too complicated and requires too many inferences to be good.

3. The diner/motorcycle chase is classic. Absolutely classic. The Area 51 sequence is solid, but the motorbike chase is special.

4. Far too much expositionary dialogue in the film. Indy gets a ton of it in the last act (and throughout) and it just doesn't fit his character at all.

5. There are times during the movie where I felt "OK, this feels terrific. There's genuine magic here," then something will happen to take you out of it. The jungle chase is fun, but it doesn't feel classic - especially when monkeys get involved. The ant scene though? Terrific.

6. Indy/Marion relationship is pretty forced and I wish there was more room for this relationship to breath. Their best scene together was the sand/snake scene. Overall, Koepp did a poor job writing the family thread. Crusade did a magical job with Indy and his Dad and aside from a few nice cues (Henry Jones' theme comes up a couple times) Crystal Skull doesn't capture the connection between Indy and Mutt the same way.

7. Interdimensional aliens? Just say they're from fucking outerspace.

Overall, I did enjoy it more the second time around. I felt more comfortable with the plot and story and while the flaws did stand out (almost all script-related) I let myself go with the flow and enjoy the ride. Because Crystal Skull deviates from the Indy formula, it catches you off guard and demands that you adjust your expectations. Had this been better filmmaking, the transition would have been a little easier, is all.

[darthpsychotic]

After my subsequent viewings of Indiana.Jones.And.The.Kingdom.Of.The.Crystal.Skull.TS.XviD-KAMERA ( ) Mutt Williams and the Jungle Monkeys has grown on me. It's just that my initial impression was Mutt was thrown up in the trees, makes some sort of instant bond with the monkeys and they all en masse staged a vine-swinging assault against the Russians.

My only real issue with the film now is what I consider the overuse of the Indiana's age references and the (to me at least) depressing scenes: Indiana getting blacklisted in front of class at Marshall and the subsequent reflection on getting older and the deaths of Henry Sr and Brody. When Indiana was drinking in those scenes, it was like Lucas was making Indiana Jones: The Dark Knight with screenplay by Frank Miller.

Fortunately those scenes were in the first half hour. On the positive side, the Russians and Aliens were in fact were sorta cool. The opening Terminator-esque, Russian-led Army Base massacre and Spalko handling a AK-47 and Jeep-mounted machine gun from the Jungle Chase especially. "Dasvidania, Dr. Jones".

The Alien ending to me was no different than the ending to Raiders which is a good thing. One event I didn't expect, and I followed the spoilers - including the graphic novel scans showing a "orb" of some sort - was HOLY SHIT FLYING SAUCER OUT OF FUCKIN NO WHERE.

[CoGro]

I forgot to add that I loved Indy beating the fuck out of Mac every chance he got.

"You broke my nose!"

"I TOLD YOU!"

and "JONESY!!"

"Hello, Mac!" BANG.

Random punches to the face are a staple of this series and these films can't get enough of them.

"Kid, hit this guy." WACK

"Hey! That's my boyfriend!" WACK

*Brawl commences to 'Shake, Rattle and Roll'.

Classic stuff.

[Wesman]

I still say the best line in the movie is "Why the hell didnt you make him finish school?!"

[MannyOrtez]

Just got back from the premiere and Last Crusade is on TV as I type this.

Some spoilers that you probably all know if you're paying attention to this thread, but I'll tag it anyway.

I agreed with some of your issues with the film but disagreed with some others...

My response & my general thoughts:

[spoil]

[align=left]I disagree about the motivation for Indy & Mutt at the beginning - I thought they actually did a good job of that by developing that Mutt had a connection to Oxley and, of course, to his mom. The missing piece I felt was that they should've come out right then and made it clear that this was MARION, and that would've amped up the intensity for Indy. But I thought the A-Bomb - as goofy as the fridge escape may seem - was a perfect way to set the stage and make the stakes clear in terms of the Russians & their interest in getting to the power of the skull first.

In general, I thoroughly enjoyed the film, but there were a few things that really irked me. Like CoGro, I'm not a CG basher, I'm not afraid of CG. But the CG ants and monkeys were terrible and unnecessary. I thought the treatment of Marion's character was good, but not great - she became too jokey, and really, the movie started to lose its intensity upon her arrival. The Mutt & Indy stuff was great, and the first half of the film did have a Raiders feel to it. Then it turned a little Temple of Doom, it was still enjoyable, but aimed more for laughs than thrills, IMO.[/align]

[/spoil]

All in all, I could give a more lengthy review, and likely will in time, but I would give it a 4/5 and place it as the 3rd best in the series. I look forward to any future movies as I really thought that Indy & Mutt was the best part of the movie and the two had great chemistry.

[ETandElliott]

"Nice try kid but I think you just brought a knife to a gun fight."

"You fight like a young man. Eager to begin, quick to finish."

Those are a couple of my favorite lines.

[bearvomit]

Harrison threatened by Russia for "Capitalist Propaganda"

Leaders of the Communist Party of St. Petersburg have accused the actors Harrison Ford and Cate Blanchett of being "capitalist puppets" and promoting crude, anti-Soviet propaganda in their new film, "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull."

They have urged Russian moviegoers to boycott the film and told Ford, 65, not to visit the country.

The swashbuckling archaeologist’s fourth adventure is set in the Cold War in 1957. It pits Indiana Jones against a sinister KGB agent, played by Blanchett, who leads a ruthless team of Soviet spies in the hunt for a skull endowed with mystical powers.

The Communist Party’s ideology committee in Russia’s second largest city saw red over the plot. In an open letter, it declared: “Your work in this film is an insult to the Soviet and Russian people, who remember the difficult Fifties when our country was concluding its reconstruction after the Great War, but did not send merciless terrorists to the USA.”

The letter said Russians are fond of many of Ford's other roles, but not this time.

“You have no future in Russia any more. Speaking plainly, it is better for you not to come here. You will be beaten and despised.”

The protests appeared to have little impact on the film’s commercial prospects. It was released on Thursday on 808 screens in Russia, a record for a Hollywood film.

The Communist Party has withered since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, but it remains the second largest party in the Duma, the Russian parliament.

Didn't they just kinda justify it themselves ??

[Raveers]

That's so retarded. I can't remember but weren't Germans in one of the other films? If so Germany might as well do the same fucking thing to Ford. How retarded can one be these days?

[DiMeS]

Didnt temple of doom get banned in india for a while?

[Hade]

It was not very good.

5/10

Doesn't compare to any of the others. I'd say that it was pretty much what I expected. Sadly, I'm sure it will make a lot of money. I expect another one in a couple of years.

[ETandElliott]

I saw/heard Williams conduct "The Adventures Of Mutt" tonight with the Boston Pops.

[CoGro]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,357923,00.html


This made my day. Amazing.

[SI]

This is one flick I will be seeing more than once, for a whole bunch of different reasons.

[Obi-Wan Starkiller]

:what:

That's so retarded. I can't remember but weren't Germans in one of the other films? If so Germany might as well do the same fucking thing to Ford. How retarded can one be these days?

I'm pretty sure Germany is going to stick its head in the sand any time something comes up about the Nazi Party.

The film: I wanted to like it. And I did at certain moments. The conquistador sequence overall was great. Indiana and Mutt at school. But basically everything after finding the crystal skull was convoluted and over the top. I know this is Indiana Jones. I grew up on these movies. And I love all three of them, even Doom (first Jones movie I saw in theaters). But there are so many things in the second half of the movie that seem so out of place, even in an IJ movie. The monkeys, over the waterfalls . I don't even mind the alien thing. I thought it worked pretty good for Indiana Jones. I'm almost mad at myself that I don't like it more. I might catch it again on DVD to see if anything changes for me, but I won't see it again in theaters.

[ETandElliott]

"There's no Sears and Roebuck here, grab the snake!"

[The_Somnambulist]

That Doomtown scene was awesomely surreal!

+

"Don't be a child, find something to fight with!"

[Joe1138]

Caught Indy IV again last night at the Arclight on the Cineramadome. Definitely enjoyed myself more the second time around and if you're in the L.A. area do yourself a favor and check it out on the Dome, it really is a unique experience. I think once you become acquainted with this new adventure, it's easier to see it fitting alongside the others. The scene that I didn't like as much was the finale. *SPOILER* I didn't need to see Indy and Marion's wedding to get that they were one big happy family now any more so than I needed to see Indy and Henry Sr. playing catch at the end of Last Crusade to understand that they had reconciled. I guess the real litmus test will be whether or not it holds up on DVD over the next few years.

By the way, they also had Mutt's bike from the film on display in the lobby at the Arclight. Here's a quick pic I grabbed.

[TiniTinyTony]

It grew on me a little more after a second viewing. Still I enjoyed Raiders and Crusade the most, then Temple then Crystal Skull.

[Wesman]

You know, the more I think about, and hear complaints about the waterfall scene, the same thing pops into my head.

Temple of Doom.

Inflatable raft.

Riding raft out of an airplane.

Falling a great distance, landing on the side of a mountian.

Sliding down side of mountain on said raft, into water.

Going over huge waterfall in raft.

Awesome scene.

Why didnt we complain after that?

Im giving the waterfall scene a pass.

[DarklyDreamingDeckard]

I'm bothered by all of the critics who were irked that Indy just sort of stands around for the final 10 minutes of the film. Spalko soaks in the knowledge from the Crystal Skeletons and Indy watches (before running when the temple starts falling apart and the saucer takes off). My point being, isn't that pretty much how events transpired at the end of 'Raiders' with Belloq and the Ark? I can't imagine why Indy watching said events is a problem now compared to then. I like the idea of our ballsy hero knowing better then to fuck around with forces that he/we can't comprehend, and witnessing his antagonist's fate as a result of their arrogance.

And did anyone else get a John Wayne vibe from Harrison's line delivery in this film (a little wiser, a little more sarcastic)?

[CoGro]

As silly as the monkey scene was (believe me, I think it was rediculous), it wasn't all that different than watching Short Round use Kung Fu to kick ass (especially since those guards just stereotypically fall over like they were hit by shotgun shells). There's definately a lot of similarities in the camp between KOTCS and the other films. People are just more peeved about the use of CGI, I think.

[ETandElliott]

Yep. Frankly, as poor-looking as that particular part was, the variation of the Raiders March on the score was fantastic (you later hear it at the end of the credits finale). The waterfall scene can be compared to that raft escape in Doom. I mean, it's Indiana Jones. The kind of movies where a door will close threatening to trap our hero and then magically rise to an earlier point of closure allowing him to escape at the last second. Or where our hero will be inches away from being killed by a rock crusher and then, regaining his strength, have suddenly moved to a safer distance. And of course where our hero can gain most of his major character traits during an afternoon hike with his Boy Scout troop. I had a great time as usual.

[bearvomit]

very entertaining. what more can you ask for in a movie?? yeah, the tarzan scene was a little overboard, but it held my attention through the whole movie with no drops in the excitement. excellent !

Edit* one thing I will add is Shia does not have the charisma of Harrison. He can't carry an Indy film as the lead, no way. Side-kick, fine, him with the hat, no way!

[DiMeS]

just came back from my 2nd vewing, everything made more sense seeing it again. definantly worth seeing it twice.

[Daglington]

Hrm. I enjoyed most of it, but it's certainly the worst of the 4 movies.

As always, the bads stick out more than the goods. Here's what really shat me:
1) Tarzan. Ridiculous scene. Plus he's able to swing fast enough to catch up to the cars?
2) Marion. Terrible acting. Just seemed to happy to be there, the character really brought nothing to the story.
3) Aliens/interdimensional beings. Everything was great until the end. I get that it paralleled Raiders, but...meh, didn't enjoy that bit.
4) The occasional scene where Indy would fall over and you expected him to call out and ask for his walking stick. Or a "Help me I've fallen and I can't get up" type line.
5) The obvious copies of The Mummy. That is, the flesh eating ants vs the flesh eating scarabs. The annoying traitor who is just after gold and dies because of it. I know The Mummy is an Indy rip-off, but not it's gone full circle and KotCS has it as a rip-off of a rip-off. I just groaned at that point.

The goods:
1) It was still an enjoyable ride.
2) Indy was still Indy.
3) Mutt was fine, better than I expected.
4) Some of the references to the old movies were good.
5) I found the pacing good.

Overall, I liked around 80% of the movie. And I like that at around a 90% level. That makes it a solid 7/10 movie to me. But I found it to be the worst of the Indy movies. The style was definitely different, and I'm fine with that. But it just wasn't what the others were. And that's fine too.

[Obi-Wan Starkiller]

You know, the more I think about, and hear complaints about the waterfall scene, the same thing pops into my head.

Temple of Doom.

Inflatable raft.

Riding raft out of an airplane.

Falling a great distance, landing on the side of a mountian.

Sliding down side of mountain on said raft, into water.

Going over huge waterfall in raft.

Awesome scene.

Why didnt we complain after that?

Im giving the waterfall scene a pass.

As silly as the monkey scene was (believe me, I think it was rediculous), it wasn't all that different than watching Short Round use Kung Fu to kick ass (especially since those guards just stereotypically fall over like they were hit by shotgun shells). There's definately a lot of similarities in the camp between KOTCS and the other films. People are just more peeved about the use of CGI, I think.

I think the reason these things didn't bother me then was because I was 4. I was a kid, didn't find things like that to be so unbelievable. So even now, I look back on doom with fond memories and can look back on it without feeling it as ridiculous. I guess as an adult it is harder for me to see that for the first time and not find it horribly awful. And that is kinda sad.

[bearvomit]

Jones makes $269 Million worldwide in 4 days: http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=45426

News

Indiana Jones Reaches $269M Worldwide in 4 Days
Source: ComingSoon.net
May 26, 2008


Paramount and Lucasfilm's Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull earned an estimated $126 million from 4,260 theaters domestically in its first four days, while its international box office total has already reached $143 million from 8,300 locations (the sixth-biggest foreign debut of all-time). The worldwide total stands at $269 million with still another day to go in the four-day Memorial Day weekend.

"Indiana Jones" made an estimated $101 million from Friday to Sunday, plus $25 million from its opening Thursday. The studio expects the film to earn an additional $25 million in North American theaters on Monday which would bring the five-day domestic opening gross to $151 million. It would be the second-best Memorial Day opening ever trailing only last year's Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, which made $139.8 million for the four days and $153 million with a partial Thursday included.

Disney's The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian added $23 million in the Friday-to-Sunday frame to push its total to $91 million in its first 10 days. Internationally, "Prince Caspian" made $18 million and brought its tally to $49 million, for a worldwide total of $140 million.

Marvel Studios' Iron Man (released by Paramount) collected another $20.1 million from Friday to Sunday to bring its domestic sum to $257.8 million. Overseas, the comic book adaptation added $12.5 million to push its total to $228 million for a worldwide sum of $485.8 million.

[Ternian]

It was enjoyable but the story was a bit messy and too much of everything was trying to be crammed in.


Oh and I wish sequel makers would stop trying to reapture the first instalments by fluffing out the movie with references to the previous movies. ARGH!

[Fantana]

I purchased the box set a few months ago but never really popped them in the dvd player. I saw the movie this weekend and I loved it, so obviously I went home and threw in Raiders. And then watched the Temple of Doom. Tonight is the Last Crusade.

The point of this whole post is Kingdom of Crystal Skull was so good I am doing it backwards now and watching the old ones for the first time now. BRAND NEW Indy fan.

[darthpsychotic]

The opening trailers: There was no reaction to the Batman Begins II or Wall-E trailer. Kung Fu Panda and The Clone Wars however got some oohs and ahhs. The what I termed, Indiana Jones: The Dark Knight segments: Indiana reflecting about age and death and the blacklist scene was way shorter than my initial impression as was the Dovechenko fight. The other issue of Mutt Williams and the Monkey Bunch scene turned out to be quite enjoyable. Yes I said "enjoyable" - listen it was The Crystal Skull calling the monkeys. Seriously!

The use of swear words really surprised me from what I now call my "real theatrical" viewing. Mutt is like "BULLSHIT" and "SHIT" every so often. Another new issue is the movie should have been shot digitally. The HD trailers quality to me at least was vastly superior to the retro film look Spielberg (or Spielb as my cropped german cam read) went for.

Regarding the Russians complaints about portrayal I would say they were absolutely wrong. When it was first revealed that the Russians were to be the villains I immediately thought of backwards stereotype from the Cold War era. The Russians were dope as fuck. Irina Spalko spread her legs for Christ's sake during the Ants! sequence. Don't forget Jungle Cutter - oh man Jungle Cutter wasn't in the film nearly long enough but damn did that Hot Rod kick ass.

Lastly, my favorite character was Cemetery Warrior - I love that motherfucker