Movie Review: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Twenty-seven years ago, director Steven Spielberg and storyteller George Lucas collaborated to bring to life what would become one of the greatest action heroes ever put to film. Cracking his whip, and donning his fedora, Harrison Ford’s Indiana Jones rode off the screen, into the American subconscious and onto the pages of cinematic history, making 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' one of the highest grossing films of all time and earning it 5 Academy Awards. Indy’s adventures continued in 'The Temple of Doom' and 'The Last Crusade', with two more planned. Then Spielberg admitted that he had run out of ideas and Indiana Jones fell by the wayside for several years.

Now, nine years after 'The Last Crusade', Indy returns to the big-screen for another round of show-stopping adventure and archaeological intrigue with 'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull'. Buzz on the internet and among fans in general became intense shortly after the title was announced early September, which only increased with the first trailer in February. Now that the film has been released, reactions have been mixed.

The story is fairly simple and is along the same lines as the previous films, being closest to 'The Last Crusade'. The time is some 10 years after the events, set during the Cold War era of Elvis, Eisenhower, nuclear bombs and the Red Scare. Thus the bad guys are Communists instead of Nazis. The artifact are mysterious crystal skulls, last seen in ancient Native American civilizations, that supposedly grant the user psychic power over others. The Communists, led by persistent Agent Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett) will stop at nothing to find these skulls, even employing the knowledge of Indiana Jones, who, of course, wants to find them, and the legendary city in which they are located, for his own purposes.

Along the way, Indy is reunited with friends of old, makes new friends and discovers new enemies, and encounters secret riddles, ancient temples, savage ants, ill-tempered natives, unhappy monkeys, a snake or two, and beings more terrifying perhaps than anything he has met before. All of this makes for some electrifying action sequences. The film opens with a bang, involving Indiana escaping from a bunch of enraged Communists in a very familiar warehouse and a nuclear explosion. What follows is a fun motorcycle chase through the majority of a college campus, an intense and high-caliber car chase through the jungle with a few sword-fights and waterfalls thrown in for good measure, and finally several cool-looking booby traps that fall on our unsuspecting heroes in an ancient temple.

This leads me to the film’s major fault and that is special effects. Oh, there is nothing wrong with the special effects, believe me. They couldn’t be better. The car chase through the jungle seems mostly traditional, but several moments where the chase leads alongside a treacherous cliff-side are clearly computer-generated. Also, the finale, while looking spectacular in a huge way, is highly CGI. Therein lies the problem. The use of too much computer-generated imagery takes away from the realism and adds a sense of corniness that wasn’t there previously. Indeed, there are a few scenes were computer enhancement is painfully present, including scenes involving prairie dogs, monkeys, and the crystal skulls. On the other hand, the army of ants looks cool and believable. Those are just minor quibbles, though, and in general, the special effects and stunts are old-fashioned and look like it.

Besides the action, of course, there are the characters, and unfortunately, with so much action and all, there is little room for character development, but the actors are equal to the task, Harrison Ford proves at even though he is over 60, he can still carry a film. By donning that hat and cracking that whip, Ford makes Indy alive again and feeling as active as ever, if slightly older. Shia LeBeouf, as Jones’ sidekick Mutt Williams, made a lot of people nervous, but fears that he would be this film series’ Jar Jar Binks can be relieved. He makes as effective a sidekick as worthy of Jones and his chemistry with Ford rivals that of Ford and Sean Connery. Cate Blanchett manages to be both beautiful and evil as Agent Spalko, Ray Winstone and John Hurt both appear in equally strong supporting roles, and it truly was a delight to see Karen Allen’s smile again, although as Marian Ravenwood, she is given surprisingly little to do.

Altogether, Spielberg and Ford have crafted a fine film, equal to any other action film directed by Spielberg and above any recent action film that’s been released by anyone. It has its flaws, but what film doesn’t, and it’s pros far outweigh its cons. The action, the stuns, the John Williams music, the actors, the special effects, the nods to other films, including 'Star Wars', 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind', and 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' and the overall feel of the film all combine to make 'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull' the must-see film of the summer and possibly the year.

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