Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull A
Starring Harrison Ford, Cate Blanchett, Karen Allen, Shia LaBeouf, and Ray Winstone
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Rated PG-13 for adventure violence and scary images
Appropriate for all ages (just my opinion)
The Story: Many years after Indy’s Crusade, the times have changed and now the Russians, rather than the Nazis, are the bad guys. They are lead by a female psychic/scientist that tries to force Indy to lead them to a lost city in South America where they might find treasure or even enlightenment to the world beyond ours. Along the way he meets up with ex-lover Marian Ravenwood (Allen) and her son (Labeouf). You don’t have to be Maury to figure that one out.
The Good: Let’s start with the beginning. Every Indy movie opens with a huge set piece, but no movie ever made (I know – big claim) could match up to this one. From Area 51 to the nuclear tests of New Mexico, this is as big of an opening as you could imagine for the adventurer.
The rest of the film follows suit. There is barely time to breath as Indy goes from one city to the next with the bad guys hot in pursuit. The action is fast and furious and more importantly – funny. There is a lot of humor thrown into every scene and you will find yourselves needing to take many a fingernail break so that you can laugh out loud.
It is more than apparent that Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Harrison Ford, and the rest of the cast and crew had a blast making this spectacular film and I think that most folks, as long as they don’t take it too seriously, will have a blast watching it.
The Bad: The worst thing about this film is the expectation of something different. People have been looking forward to it for too long and many will expect something far different than what ended up on screen. I’ve heard of critics being disappointed by the silliness, the script, and even the use of a science fiction driven plot, but I think that if your expectations are where they should be, then you will enjoy this film. After all – it’s Steven and George’s adventure – not yours. I can’t think of a better way to end the Indy saga than with a mix of adventure and sci-fi.
I will say that I wasn’t too impressed with Allen and Winstone’s roles or performances in the film. Allen is just not that strong of an actress and Winstone’s character is too predictable and clichéd.
The Summary: I loved every ridiculous minute of this movie.
Making the World a Better Place – One Review at a Time