INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL (2008)
INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL ***½ Rating: PG-13 Length: 124 minutes Director: Steven Spielberg (Raiders of the Lost Ark; Jaws) Writer: David Koepp (Spider-man; Jurassic Park) Starring: Harrison Ford, Cate Blanchett, Shia LaBeouf, John Hurt, Karen Allen, Ray Winstone, Jim Broadbent, Sasha Spielberg, Ernie Reyes Jr.
It took a little bit. When the movie first started, I knew that here was Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) and he was battling some Russian commie scuzz. He makes some cracks about getting older, gets betrayed by an old friend (Ray Winstone), meets his new nemesis- Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett- awesome as usual)- and ends up surviving a nuclear explosion by hiding in a the refrigerator of a perfect 1950’s model home. It’s business as usual, but it wasn’t until Jones and his new sidekick- a greaser teen named Mutt (Shia LaBeouf)- go exploring into the depths of a cave that I finally was able to relax and realize that I was, in fact, watching an Indiana Jones film. By God, it was a damn good feeling too. Like most of my peers, I was too young to ever watch any of the Indy flicks at the movies (I had a chance to see “Last Crusade”, but passed to see “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids” instead, I think- a regret I still have to this day), so it was glorious to finally see all the action on the big screen. Picking up a franchise after a nineteen year hiatus is tough, but the movies have become mandatory viewing for everyone. When the box set of the last three movies were finally released on DVD, they flew off the shelves. Who doesn’t love them? And what a relief that the newest addition (and according to Spielberg- not the last), “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”, is an admirably worthy addition to the legacy. You have to admire Spielberg and George Lucas for not rushing this thing out just to cash in. They even passed on scripts by high profilers Frank Darabont (“The Shawshank Redemption”), M. Night Shyamalan (“The Sixth Sense”), and Tom Stoppard (“Brazil”). It was worth the wait. Not to say that “Kingdom” is the best entry of the series- it isn’t- but it does fit right in. It has everything you’d want from an Indiana Jones movie- plenty of action, heart pounding chases, insane stunts, great Indy wisecracks, snakes, and even the return of Marion (Karen Allen) - Jones’ love interest from “Raiders of the Lost Ark”. This time around, after escaping the nuclear explosion, Indy finds himself tracked down by Mutt, who is a friend of one of Indy’s old colleagues- Professor Oaxley (John Hurt- looking like he went straight from the set of “The Proposition” to here). Oaxley has been taken prisoner by Irina Spalko in order to help locate a hidden skull that will lead the Russians to a lost city of gold. Of course, the two have to go try to rescue him and get the skull out of the hands of those commie bastards before all hell breaks loose. It’s funny how Spielberg can prove he’s still one of the greatest film directors of all time with a third sequel to a film he made in 1981. It just goes to show you how damned talented the guy is that he is able to reconnect with an audience that might be being introduced to Indy for the first time. You can also tell that the movie is a labor of love for him and Lucas. You know that enjoyed every minute making this movie. There will be gripes from some fans I imagine that will be let down and they will search and search to find reasons why. The main ones I’ve heard are silly “there’s no way so and so could do this”, “that could never happen", etc. etc. Have people forgotten that that is the point of the films? They are based on the serials of yesteryear. Where regular people have adventures and keep the audience on the edge of their seat. Sure, nobody could actually do what the characters do in these films during the action sequences, but that’s the point. It’s fantasy. It’s a reminder of a time when an action movie could be illogical with it’s actions, but didn’t treat it’s audience like it was stupid. It just gave them every cent worth of the ticket they bought to see it. "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" made every cent worth it. Good to have you back Dr. Jones.
This movie was very enjoyable, a great addition to the indy franchise. The only thing I found lacking was Cate Blanchet she just did not have the stage prescence as previous, she was no belloq, indy villains did and I did not care one way or the other what happened to her. I also didnt like how they had to throw in oh by the way brody and my father are dead. And suprisingly I was impressed by Shia Lebouf who I thought was going to suck but did not. But overall was a great addition . And come on Honey I shrunk the kids, what the hell were you thinking, even I saw last crusade in the theater.
This was another music blog, but let's face it- there are enough of those to go around at the moment and the web is becoming a bit too crowded for them (except for the bomb ass ones like "Fight Test", "Fluxblog", etc...). So, I decided to make this a movie review blog where I'll post reviews of the movies I watch. I'll include MP3s from the movie soundtracks to download when I can find them. Keep in mind these are just my OPINIONS, so you could very well love a movie I hate or vice versa- so please, don't bother posting comments on what an idiot I am for not liking a movie you like (or for confusing a slight fact- no need to call someone a dumbass for not knowing a remake was originally Thai and not Japanese. There are some rude people out there) It is pointless and I'd rather you just not come to the site if that's the case. Also, the MP3s posted are to help encourage you to either purchase the soundtrack and/or the individual group or artist's album(s). If you are the owner of any of the songs posted and want them removed- please let me know and it will be done ASAP. Thank you for stopping by!
INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL
1 comment:
This movie was very enjoyable, a great addition to the indy franchise. The only thing I found lacking was Cate Blanchet she just did not have the stage prescence as previous, she was no belloq, indy villains did and I did not care one way or the other what happened to her. I also didnt like how they had to throw in oh by the way brody and my father are dead. And suprisingly I was impressed by Shia Lebouf who I thought was going to suck but did not. But overall was a great addition . And come on Honey I shrunk the kids, what the hell were you thinking, even I saw last crusade in the theater.
Tyler
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