After Thoughts: Indiana Jones
[Image taken from David Horvath's blog]
Rating: 
*Stop! Spoilers Included, you have been warned*
Last night, I met up with friends to watch Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, the following are some of my after thoughts. Before seeing the movie, I refused to let my opinion be tainted by reading any reviews or spoilers. Last Sunday, I prepped for the newest addition to the trilogy by watching the first 3 films. Nonetheless, I have established that I was quite excited for the release. I wish the same enthusiasm applied after watching the film.
First off, old Harrison Ford hit a lot harder than I expected it too. I think I saw him struggling to climb crates in the beginning of the film. Also, he barely used that infamous whip of his– this might have something to do with the fact that he can’t carry himself anymore. That’s just harsh isn’t it?
In this film, we saw a familiar face- Marion Ravenwood- from Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark. Her return was also a little odd, because just last weekend I saw her 20+ years younger. She still fit her character quite well though. Still complained, got kidnapped and was helpful in escaping from the bad guys. With her return, came the introduction of Shia LaBeouf’s character Mutt Williams (aka Henry Jones the 3rd!). It was obvious that Mutt would end up being Jones’ son, but I thought the way she told him was just stupid.
Nevertheless, after she informed Jones that Mutt was his child, the cheesy “love” scenes kicked in. I hate cheesy love scenes. That wasn’t as bad as some of Mutt’s characteristics. It seems its necessary for him to comb his hair at all the inappropriate times. Whatever, the guy is young no? And then, the relationship he and Jones have is a little unbelievable to me. Clearly, with Mutt the apple hasn’t fallen far from the tree, but aside from possibly 3-4 lines of hesitation, he pretty much accepts Jones is his father. Eh. I’m a fan of Shia LaBeouf, but there was a disconnect with me regarding his character.
The additional disconnect comes from Cate Blanchett’s character, Irina Spalko. Apparently, she’s Stalin’s little darling who believes psychic abilities are the new warfare. Her accent was off to me. Every time she came on screen, there was a glow. I do have to say though, those are some mighty straight bangs. I was quite impressed at how straight her hair was throughout the film.
On to the damn plot. Uh? Are we sure this wasn’t X-Files? Aliens?! Are you kidding me? It should be noted that the “crystal skull” looked like a really bad prop. And the entire time, I think they were alluding to aliens, but I didn’t expect how ridiculous it would get. Jones’ over-the-top lines like: “Knowledge was their treasure” just made it worse. I couldn’t help but burst into laughter, or giggle in my mind, during the entire ending. It was a joke. With this said, I refuse to let this movie ruin the trilogy for me. This movie will not exist and when Shia LaBeouf takes over the Indiana Jones movies, I’ll pretend he manifested out of thin air. It did entertain, but not in a good way.
Tags: Indiana Jones, Movies