Indiana Jones (Spoilers)

Who has watched Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull?

*** Warning plot spoilers. If you haven't watched the film yet then don't read on! ***

This has to be the most hyped film so far this year, and sadly it does follow the trend of the hype creating a big anti climate when you finally see the film.

I saw it last week and I was very disappointed and quite bored in parts.

Some of the film is very good. The opening part in the warehouse, and the end section in the Mayan temple are both very good. However much of the rest of the film is quite slow and boring, with the story either progressing very slowly or suddenly jumping a huge time span without much real explanation about how they drew conclusions.

Everything in the film's plot is solved much too easily and very quickly, making the majority of the plot neither convincing nor interesting. For example Indy receives a note from an old friend and works out that the writing they has used is from an ancient dialect that he won't understand until he first translates it into another language, and then into English. So how long does that take? About the time it takes his (later to be discovered) son to speak two lines of dialogue! So any mystery and intrigue was instantly lost.

Equally as the film progresses he somehow manages to know exactly where he needs to go next. For example, where to find the burial ground of the crystal skull, and so it goes on.

For me it just wasn't that interesting. There wasn't anything new in it, and the actors were just along for the money and not really performing.

The fight sequences between the Russian/Germans and Indy are very predictable and dated. I know they are to some extend all part of the Indy films, but the fights in previous Indy films have always had a lot of humour and have been great to watch. This film instead has too much farcical fighting that you are left sitting they just thinking that if it were at all realist they would have been dead a long time ago. Some scenes see the enemy firing a blanket of machine gun fire are Indy and his friends and the bullets are clearly spraying all over them, but they are never hurt. This was to be expected in the times of 70's and 80's James Bond era films, but not in films of today.

Maybe I'm being over critical. I did enjoy the film, but was just disappointed by the whole unoriginal nature of everything in it. The plot was too obvious, even the end. The enemy leader was way too stereotypical although she did play the role very well and was possibly the only main actor in the film worthy of note. And many of the action sequences were a little tired and seen before.

And Harrison Ford. Well I don't think he really stood out as being the main star of the film to be honest. Anyone could really have been playing his part, and it didn't really have to be an Indy film. They could have stuck a different title on it and changed the lead role and no one would have known.

Overall I would give it 6/10.

So what did you all think of the film?

Because I wanted to see this movie I tried to avoid any spoilers, but after reading some comments by people I just had to check out the Wikipedia entry to see if it was true.

Damn you Lucas, damn you!

First Star Wars and now Indiana Jones huh, he is a damn archaeologist, he deals with things of antiquity of humanity's past, not damn space aliens!

I remember a Aurthur C Clarke TV programme from the late 70's early 80's that dealt with mysteries and the crystal skulls at that time were too intricate to be made by such primitive peoples and were given a possible alien origin especially due to the Lines of Nacza being on the same continent. Now however it looks like the skulls were made in the 1890's at the earliest.
TBH is it any surprise with Speilberg and Lucas's love of Aliens (Xenosexuals?) that they take a simple story and weave it into crap?

Very nice review, although when I watch an Indy film I do want the cheesy fight scenes, quick one liners and pop corn fun action! I expect to be entertained from start to finish with a roller coaster ride of stunts, epic scenery, mysterious EARTHLY artifacts and interesting in-your-face comic book style characters.

I don't want Aliens, massive UFO's, CGI, or modern demography content to get the most bums on seats. I enjoyed the film (although I did go in expecting the worst), but it wasn't anywhere near as good as the original three. It felt like a film that just shouldn't have been made in modern times as it's suffered from them waiting so long to produce it. It felt like a last pay day kind of deal for all concerned, squeezing the last drops out of the franchise and just trying to re-create what they'd done before, but unfortunately none of it was quite as good!

I'll stick to the original three for my Indy fix, just as I do for Star Wars and Aliens.

I know I'm going to get shot down here, but my fav Indy was The Temple of Doom. I absolutely loved that film, from the brilliant script containing great interaction between "Short Round", Willie (who many found annoying??? I thought she was absolutely brilliant!) and Indy himself. The action is non-stop, from the fire fight in the restaurant, to the plane and river scene, the chilled monkey brains, scary sacrificial ceremonies, mine shaft cart fight and emotional ending when all the kids get set free and come running over the hill. Love it! The soundtrack was stunning as well.

The third was my second fav, with great scenes this time between Indy and his dad. Raiders of the Lost Arc was probably third in the list, but between all three we are talking paper thin differences - I love them all!

The fact is it's not just rose tinted glasses - older films are better. They were creating the genres, marching on untrodden ground, didn't have CGI filler to fall back on and weren't guided by men in suits and market analysts who strive for certain safe content over creativity. The characters and the script were the film and they had to dazzle and seduce audiences in a different way than the modern CGI action adventures of today. We still get the occasional good films, but they are now much less common unfortunately.

I'm really looking forward to the new Batman however!

Oh yes, the new Batman film looks great from the trailers. And in complete contrast to Indy they did the right thing and brought the Batman franchise completely up to date with the last film, creating a whole new approach to the universe that is more serious and much darker than the older films. They were great in their day but very cartoon orientated.

I'm not however looking forward to the next Hulk film. The trailers don't show anything new or interesting with it looking like another showdown between the Hulk and an equally sized enemy mutant. Much like all the other similar films and much like the end of Iron Man.

I 100% agree Harrision. Although the original 1989 Batman was very dark and the modern re-make has a lot of links to that film, the main one being setting the tone as to how Batman should be done.

The later light hearted comic book efforts felt more like a homage to the original camp TV series, which has its charm but I wouldn't like to watch a modern version!

The new hulk film looks like all the other sub-standard cash-in comic book adaptations, and the CGI hulk somehow looks worse than the original one (how have they managed that with better rendering tech of today?). More like a kids TV film than an adult movie, which after the firsts more serious approach was probably to be expected. No matter how bad the first was, it wasn't good that when they tried something different it got slated so badly. That sent out a clear message to the men in suits that creativity and risk is a BIG NO NO.

As for Indy and all the talk of script rejections and other complications as reasons for the film taking so long to make, I can't believe that was the best they could come up with given the time they had to think of ideas. Lucas and Spielberg really have lost the plot. After such a long period of time, they should have just left well alone.

It'll be nice to see the reimagining of the Jokers origin. As for IH, I've already stated my dislike of Ed Norton (his brother Graham is far better an actor) so i won't say anymore on that one.

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Originally Posted by Buleste

It'll be nice to see the reimagining of the Jokers origin. As for IH, I've already stated my dislike of Ed Norton (his brother Graham is far better an actor) so i won't say anymore on that one.

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I agree; can't say I'm a big fan either, but every film is a chance to improve!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bloodwych

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Buleste

It'll be nice to see the reimagining of the Jokers origin. As for IH, I've already stated my dislike of Ed Norton (his brother Graham is far better an actor) so i won't say anymore on that one.

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I agree; can't say I'm a big fan either, but every film is a chance to improve!

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You've been listening to Uwe Boll haven't you. Problem is it hasn't worked for him yet!!!


On a different note. When are they going to do an Elite film!!!

I have heard that Lucas himself was one of the main troublemakers when it came to the script.
Apparently someone else already penned a new script called "Indiana Jones and the City of the Gods" or something like that but Lucas was obsessed with space aliens.
Guess he won out in the end.

He's probably saving that title for his Autobiography!

Thats going to be "When I had a neck: George Lucas the early (talented) years."

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Originally Posted by Buleste

Thats going to be "When I had a neck: George Lucas the early (talented) years."

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LOL!!!

In one Simpsons comic, a bunch of criminals had set up a health and relax resort for celebrities and rich people, when those arrived they were secretly replaced by actors while the real people were forced to work in sweat shops.
The actors would go back and sell all assets and properties of the people they impersonated to cash in.

Captives include Bill Gates and the head of Apple but also George Lucas.

At the end of the comic the captives were released and Lucas discovered that in his absence his double had continued the Star Wars franchise.

Lucas while beating up his double "Jar Jar Binks? Jar Jar Binks!"

Perhaps that really has happened with Lucas.

Hello all,

Well I have just watched Indy IV in the theater, here are my thoughts of it.


*** Warning Spoilers! ***


I agree with others that it is in general an enjoyable movie, IMO at least more than current similar genre movies, I do feel that it is not really up to par with the original three movies.

There are a few nitpicks here and there I really think are overdone or would not have been needed.

The whole atomic test scene, I am sure that the more scientific knowledgeable people on the forum will agree with me that it is impossible to survive something on such a close range in a refrigerator with lead in it.
At that range wouldn't lead start to melt or become incredible hot, pretty much boiling Indy?

The Ant scene, while I have heard of the ferocious ants in the Amazon region (don't know the exact species), I don't think they drag of prey the size of humans into an anthill.

Even in the terms of Indiana Jones that is rather pushing it

The whole Tarzan scene was rather ridiculous.

And now for the biggest nitpick, the whole alien angle, were as in the previous movies there was still somewhat of an aura of mystery regarding the McGuffin of the movie (perhaps a little less in Temple of Doom), there was barely any mystery regarding the said crystal skull.

It was quickly made clear that it was the skull of an alien and that it could have all kinds of magical powers and great knowledge, in this case mind control.

Regarding the flying saucer part, not sure what to think of the alien resurrection part, that it was really needed, I have doubts about that.
I have played "Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis" and "Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine", both games also featured mysteries that dealt with advanced technology and a little bit of what may seem super natural, so the whole theme of ancient super knowledge isn't so bad, but is kind of the execution that I found a bit lacking.

The whole revelation of super inter dimensional creatures, they could have left that part away.

As for the end scene, well I guess Lucas wanted to give the saga some resolution, but honestly, we don't need a 'Son of Indiana Jones' series starring Shia LaBeouf which was so obviously hinted at the ending.
I didn't find Mutt that interesting.

PS, one thing they never explained is why the Russians needed the alien remains from Area 51, all they seemed to need was the skull the Conquistadors had taken with them.

I saw it today,
some parts of the movie it looks like Indiana, some parts He looks like other person, strange, he cannot have that look of indiana/han solo forever...
So by age he has, i think he was very nice in the movie.

I enjoy the part where the word "Sono" shows up, it means "sleep" in Portuguese.
Portugal yeeeeeeee
he he he

There was one sequence that i hate, the guy in the jungle in the trees like tarzan.... what a stupid thing, how can they do such a sequence....?

But overall i like it.

The 'Tarzan' scene was a nod to Return Of The Jedi.

Which is odd, as the scene from RotJ was a nod to Tarzan!!!