Joe’s Review: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Wow, that title really is long. And “wow” is the one word that I would use to describe Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. The latest installment (19 years in the making) in the Indiana Jones series features things you definitely don’t expect out of an Indy movie. It does bring back a lot of what made the Indy series so popular, but there are some “are you serious?” moments for sure.

First off, I really enjoyed the film. The intro scene wasn’t quite what I thought it would be, but it segued nicely into what was to come. It was really great how they introduced Indy back to the big screen with his trademark hat. I also thought Cate Blanchette did an excellent job as the villain Irina Spalko, a top Russian scientist trying to develop psycho-weapons for the KGB.

The basic story behind The Crystal Skull is … the crystal skulls. Indy is brought into the middle of the Russian Mission to find relics to help them develop psycho-weapons. The one that they are after is … the crystal skull, which was found to have powers over people, even speaking to people to get them to do what it wants. It is supposedly a lost relic of the ancient Mayan civiliation. Legend has it that when the skull is returned to the city from which it came, the person who brings it back will get great riches and all the power of the city.

Throughout the adventure, there are your typical Indiana Jones scenes. There’s a fight with a large foreign guy in a pit of stuff… there’s running from stuff that threatens to kill you, and plenty of things popping out of places where they shouldn’t. Oh, and snakes too… there has to be snakes. I don’t want to spoil the movie so I’ll leave things at that as far as a synopsis goes.

Anyway, another aspect of The Crystal Skull that I really enjoyed was the introduction of Shia LaBoeuf as Mutt Williams. His character was likable, got involved in the action really well, and added a nice little aspect of clashing with Indy. I know I’ve ripped on him a little bit over at Film School Rejects, but I think that this was a very good choice for someone to bring into the series. Something about his acting style and the way he interacted with Harrison Ford made his character perfect.

Harrison Ford’s return as Indy was also admirable. For someone his age (even though I’m sure there were stunt doubles). he pulled off the role very well. Indy’s wit and brains were there as usual. He did a very good job of keeping the Indy feel of the movie. I don’t know if there will be another film in the series, but I think they’ve got to do it soon if Lucas plans on doing it, because I’m not sure how much longer Ford will be able to play the character. That being said, his performance was brilliant.

So what makes me say “Wow” about Indy?

I keep cutting my head off a bit in the videos… I’ll work on that!

Rating:

- Definitely go see this!

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