Reviewed by Lamar Kukuk
5/22/08
Every fanboy and fangirl
has their dream projects they'd desperately love to see filmed (you guys
can get back to work on the other four Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
novels any time now, thanks, and about a Buckaroo Banzai sequel...),
but I feel pretty safe to say that if America could speak with one cinematic
voice, it would have a single demand: more Indiana Jones, please.
It's not so much that either sequel to the iconic Raiders of the Lost
Ark is regarded as any kind of cinematic classic (although the last
half hour of The Last Crusade is amazing), it's just that we LOVE
Indy himself like pretty much no other character identified with only one
actor. Even the American Film Institute had to reserve a spot for
him right behind the sequel-unfriendly Atticus Finch at #2 on its' 50 Greatest
Movie Heroes list in 2003. So for almost two decades, we've waited
for Indy's three equity players, director Steven Spielberg, writer/producer
George Lucas and star Harrison Ford, to find a script they could all stand
to collaborate on. At last, it's here: Indiana Jones and
the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a spirited, albeit virtually schematic
adventure that pits the man with the bullwhip against Russians, man-eating
ants and the kinds of things they hide at Area 51 (aside from The Ark,
that is). Friends old and new join Indy for the ride, and references
to the other movies abound. It's not a great movie, but it is a quality
geekfest, and it's pretty much got Indiana Jones in it. What more
do you want?
It's 1957, and Indy (Harrison
Ford, of course) is still hard at work, now battling to keep precious artifacts
out of the hands of communist agents like self-styled psychic Irina Spalko
(Cate Blanchett). After an initial meeting that involves Area 51
and probably the stickiest spot Indy's ever found his way out of, he returns
to his day job as Professor Henry Jones Jr. at Marshall University.
But these are troubled times, with the Communist Witch Hunts at full steam,
and his association with traitor “Mac” McHale (Ray Winstone) gets Indy
booted from his teaching position. It's just then that he's approached
by young greaser Mutt Williams (Shia LaBeouf), sent by his mother to enlist
Indy's help. An old colleague (John Hurt) disappeared into the South
American jungle while searching for mythical crystal skulls reputed to
have the power to fire up and control the machinery in the fabled city
of El Dorado. But Irina and her goons know a lot more about the skulls
than Indy, enough to form a plan that will ensure Communism's triumph over
the West. As if that wasn't enough for Dr. Jones to handle, did I
mention that Mutt's Mom is his old flame Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen)?
Or that she's got some interesting news for both Mutt and Indy about why
the kid's real first name is Henry...?
There are really only two
questions that matter about a new Indiana Jones sequel, so I'll get them
out of the way: Is Harrison Ford back in character and does the script
totally suck? Yes, and No, and as a result, Crystal Skull
is as good as fans had any real reason to expect. I'd place it between
the superior Last Crusade and the entertaining but really messy
Temple
of Doom on the Indy sequel list. One advantage it has over either
of those movies is a blistering pace and narrative simplicity close to
those of the original Raiders. Alas, it lacks the artful flourishes
of original co-writer Lawrence Kasden and for a plot that involves some
pretty amazing forces of the universe, it's strangely lacking in dramatic
urgency (though it's by no means short on physical danger). It mostly
careens from one action setpiece to another with just enough connective
tissue to explain why we're going where we're going, but some of those
setpieces are really great. Highlights include an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink
chase between Mutt's motorcycle and commies in a jeep and a truly remarkable
jeep chase sequence through the jungle that includes vehicles slamming
into each other on a cliffside and Mutt swordfighting with each foot in
a different jeep. The climax is full of sound and fury and some things
even Indiana Jones had never seen before, but it has the “sit back and
let it happen” inevitability of the Raiders wrapup that no doubt
inspired it without the sensationally ironic staging.
But what's most important
in an Indy movie are the performances and they're quite good here.
Ford owns the role, could probably have played it when he was 12 and will
still be able to play it when he's 90, albeit maybe without doing his own
stunts. The movie has a lot of fun with his age (65, for the record,
although Mutt does guess 80 at one point), but, man, I sure hope I'm still
that fit and cool when I'm a sexagenarian! The film makes no attempt
to ignore the passage of time: the Henry Jones we see here is a more
settled, thoughtful one than when we last saw him, and Ford updates the
role skillfully in lots of little ways. But some things never change:
the old spark is still there with Allen, his Raiders co-star who
steps flawlessly back into her role as well. LaBeouf is perfectly
cast as Mutt, with sparkling father-son chemistry with Ford, and a generally
fun take on a character who demands to be able to comb his hair before
being executed. Blanchett does a superb job of taking a role that
could easily have been a ridiculous Bullwinkle caricature and putting
real menace behind it. Hurt is lots of fun in a role that requires
him to mostly babble incoherently. Winstone brings his special brand
of spirited sneakiness to Mac, and Jim Broadbent delivers his usual warmth
in a few scenes as the Dean at Marshall (a role that was originally to
have been filled by Sean Connery as Indy's Dad, had he not opted to remain
in retirement).
Another plus is that the
movie loves us for loving Indy: it's not wall-to-wall in jokes, but
plenty of references to the other movies and even the Young Indiana
Jones TV series are here (the snake gag is a showstopper), and Spielberg
has made a deliberate and successful effort to not only duplicate the style
of the other 3 movies, but also to “update” it to the 50's: the film
looks very much like it occurs in the 50's movie world, just as the earlier
films took place in the one of the 30's and 40's. As you'd
expect, the stuntwork is pretty elaborate, and the visual effects, while
not cheesy, try to remain rooted in the world the earlier films have established.
Were this 1981 and Indiana
Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull our first meeting with these
characters, perhaps James Bond would have been bumped up a spot on that
AFI list, but it's not, and all we Indy fans really need to get our fix
is fast action, daring escapes from Certain Death, and a general level
of fun. Skull delivers on all three fronts. As with
The
Last Crusade, its' delightful final scene is meant both to provide
a fitting send-off and also to leave the door open for further adventures:
as a simple gesture in the closing moments demonstrates, there's only one
Indiana Jones, and he's always welcome at a theater near me. |
