Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

I grew up loving the Indiana Jones series, and I was really excited to see the latest offering by George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. I did have a few hesitations about Harrison Ford being too old to pull off another action packed romp through history, and whether I would like Shia LaBeouf as Indy’s son, but I was willing to give the movie a chance. I realized that this was going to be a different Indy than I was used to. Indy was sexy back in the day; I had a total crush on Harrison Ford since he was Han Solo. And this Indy wasn’t flashing his ripped bi’s and muscular chest, at least I hope he wasn’t going to because that would be gross since Ford is almost 70. So, I had to come to terms with a slightly more mature Indy. Overall it was a fun and action packed getaway that audiences expect from the Indiana Jones series. There was humor, some history and lots of highly improbable actions sequences. But that’s what so great about Indy, he defies the odds and does it with a smirk. Though the movie was entertaining, I have to say I was disappointed with the story overall as it lacked creativity, and was in a word, lame.

Before you read any further - spoiler warning!!!

This time we see Indy battling the Russians in the cold war plagued 1950’s. I liked the way the film brought the viewers back to the warehouse where we left the Ark of the Covenant in Raiders of the Lost Ark. The last scene of Raiders always haunted me: that here could be a stock pile of treasures sitting in a military warehouse somewhere, collecting dust, and lost to everyone. I loved that Crystal Skull brought us back there, and we even got a little peak at the ark again (nice touch Mr. Spielberg!). There were a lot of little reflexive moments from the other Indiana movies that kept the audience grinning, but they didn’t save the movie.

When we find out the warehouse is located at Area 51, I knew where the movie was headed, and I was dreading it. Yes, Lucas and Spielberg played the alien card…again. Couldn’t they have come up with anything else…Atlantis, Stonehenge or what about something from Japanese history/ mythology? I know Spielberg and Lucas are well versed in alien lore, but couldn’t they have just resisted this once?? Anything would have been better than aliens. I realize that in the 1950’s Cold War era, aliens and space travel featured very prominently, but it just seems like such a played out a storyline, especially from Spielberg and Lucas: an alien race brought knowledge to the different races of Earth. They settled in South America living in splendor, from which the myths of the City of El Dorado originate. So not only do we have aliens, but we also have the lost city of gold. Wow, while we’re at it let’s throw in the fountain of youth, or even better, bring back the Holy Grail.

If we overlook the story, there were some highlights that are worth mentioning. Shia LaBeouf was a real surprise. His character fit in the movie really well, and had great chemistry with Harrison Ford. I liked that Indy’s son chose a dog nickname as well, Mutt, and that he was a greaser, looking so Brando-esque a la The Wild One. There’s a great scene at a café where Mutt starts a fight between other greasers and the preps as a distraction for Indy and him to get away from some Russian bad guys. It was a great moment, right out of The Outsiders. The other shining star was Cate Blanchett, who played the villainess in the Crystal Skull. I may be biased on this account since I am a huge fan of Ms. Blanchett, but she rocked as the hard ass Russian spy looking for the alien crystal skull to control human minds. She sword fights, and slaps Indy and Mutt around while never mussing her precision bob. I also really liked that the main villain was a woman, which is a big change from the other Indiana Jones movies in which the women were just pawns used by the main villain or they were used as comic relief.

Obviously the ending was left wide open for sequels, as we watch Mutt go try and pick up Indy’s trademark fedora as the Williams’ score swells, but it’s not yet time to pass on the mantle and Indy snatches it up with a cheeky grin before Mutt can get to it. Indy may be getting older, but he’s not done yet. Most likely Ford’s Indy will evolve into Connery’s character in The Last Crusade; not so heavy on the action and more emphasis on the humor. As long as the charm and wit from the old Indy comes through with the new Indiana series I will definitely make the effort to go see it, as long as the aliens are left out.