Movie Series Review

The Indiana Jones Series

            It’s probably the greatest action/adventure series of all time.  Steven Spielberg directed all four of the globetrotting movies (Raiders of the Lost Ark, Temple of Doom, The Last Crusade, and Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) that follow archeologist Henry Jones Jr. aka Indiana Jones and his various sidekicks through his adventures.  Harrison Ford plays the iconic character.  He’s a professor by day and a BAMF by night.  He’s the only character to appear in every single film and it’s not easy to keep me interested in something relying on only one character.  I tend to prefer ensembles.  But, Indiana is such an entertaining character and the plots are always fun that I can easily watch all four of them.  He’s good but he’s not perfect.  I think that’s what makes him loveable.  He’s constantly getting in over his head but he always manages to get himself out by the skin of his teeth.  The movies have a great blend of action and comedy with a touch of drama thrown in here and there.  What I love about a good film series is that unlike most films that spawn sequels, the first isn’t necessarily the best.  All four films vary in quality, of course, but I think they are all worthy films on their own.  I’m going to talk about each one from my least favorite to my favorite.

#4 Temple of Doom

            Written by Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz, this is the second film in the series.  It stars Kate Capeshaw as the token Indy girl named Willie Scott and Ke Huy Quan as the sidekick, a young kid named Short Round.  This is also a prequel to the first film.  It’s not bad, as I said I’ll watch any of them, but I find it a bit dull.  My biggest gripe is that they spent a good 40 minutes down in the temple.  I like Indiana Jones best when he’s travelling all over the world.  40 minutes in one location got boring for me and I just wanted them to go somewhere else, anywhere else.  Short Round alternated between kind of cute to really obnoxious.  I deal with him because he played Data in The Goonies and I have much love for that character.  The Willie Scott character gets a lot of hate and I understand why, but I kind of like her.  Yes, she screamed and whined through the whole movie, but for some reason that amused me.  I found Marion Ravenwood in Raiders to be far more annoying.  The only time Willie really bothers me is when she’s taking her sweet time saving Indy and Short Round from a certain death.  That was frustrating.  This movie did break the formula of racing toward a coveted object like the other films revolve around, but you know what, sometimes formulas work.  Temple of Doom is supposed to be dark, but I didn’t find it dark enough to be moved by it.  I guess they wanted kids to be able to watch it.  There are some great bits in the movie though.  The mine cart ride was a blast.  Overall, the story could have used more excitement, the sidekicks could have toned it down, but it still had a solid plot and Indy was still Indy.

#3 Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

            This film was written by David Koepp.  The most recent film in the franchise and boy was it a long time in the making.  The Last Crusade came out in 1989 and Kingdom of the Crystal Skull came out in 2008.  Harrison Ford has aged.  That can’t be helped, but he’s still in good enough shape that I had no trouble buying the character pulling off the action.  He’s still got it.  He’s still Indy.  This time, Indy is reunited with Karen Allen’s Marion Ravenwood, his love interest from Raiders.  She’s much more tolerable here than she was the last time we saw the character.  She’s mellowed a bit without losing her core characterization and she, thankfully, doesn’t spend the whole movie shrieking “IIIINNNNDDDYYYY!!!!” at the top of her lungs.  Cate Blanchett plays the villain in this one and it’s nice to see more than one female character play a significant role in this series.  Shia LeBeouf plays Indy and Marion’s son, Mutt (I know, the name, it’s dumb).  He also gets a lot of hate for this movie but I liked him in it.  I’m not sure what people’s issue with him in it is, unless it’s just general dislike for the actor himself.  He’s fine for the role he was given.  This one differs greatly from the other three because they added an alien plot.  The previous three have been grounded in religion and superstition.  I’ll admit that when I realized aliens were taking part in this, I wasn’t pleased.  It’s not enough to make me hate the movie, but I kind of wish they had kept more in theme with the previous films instead of taking an alien route.  But, people have brought up that this movie, unlike the others, takes place in the 1950s where B science fiction movies were popular so perhaps it was homage to that.  The first hour drags a bit but once Marion shows up, it becomes a lot of fun.  I love the jungle chase and the dry sand scene.  Also, while I think the father/son plot is kind of weak and underdeveloped I did like the little nods that Indy was getting more and more like his own father through the process.  I’m good with Indy marrying Marion because I will admit she’s the only one of the girls who really makes sense to be the love of his life.  I liked that the sidekicks this time were his (future) wife and son.  The odd family dynamic worked for me.  I think it’s a good movie and it moves faster than Temple of Doom and there isn’t as much cringe worthy “humor” thrown in.  If there is a fifth one, I’ll go see it.  Why not? 

#2 Raiders of the Lost Ark

            The original Indiana Jones film written by Lawrence Kasdan.  Great story, great action, a great score, and great characters.  I get why many people think it’s the best.  I think this one handles a more serious side better than Temple of Doom does.  There isn’t as much comedy in this one.  It still has some hilarious moments though.  I think the scene where Indy shoots the swordsman is brilliant.  As much as I warmed to Marion in Crystal Skull, I am reminded of how much I disliked her in Raiders.  Gosh, she just shouted nearly every line she had.  I liked her personality; I just did not like Allen’s over the top delivery.  I get it.  She’s feisty, but did she have to yell so much?  Other than her we have John Rhys-Davies playing Sallah, one of the series best sidekicks and Denholm Elliot as Marcus Brody.  Paul Freeman’s villain is probably the best villain they’ve had.  He’s supposed to be the dark side of Indy and I think that makes him interesting.  I’m not sure why I don’t like this one more than I do.  I suppose that as good as the plot is and the individual characters are, I find it a little bit cold.  I don’t connect with it on an emotional level as much as I do with some of the others.  Still, it’s great.  From the opening action sequence all the way to the melting Nazis, it’s a fun film to watch.  In particular, I love the scene with the fire in Marion’s bar and the scene with Indy fighting the Nazis on the trucks.  The scene where they open the Ark is powerful as well.  I just love nearly everything about this movie.  Ford at the center really grounds it.

#1 Last Crusade

            Maybe I’m biased because this is the first Indiana Jones movie I remember seeing.  I only saw about the last 20 minutes and I don’t think I even knew what I was watching but I never forgot it.  The third installment was written by Jeffrey Boam.  But, I must also add that Tom Stoppard did a lot of the dialogue for the film which explains why it's so quotable.  It’s easily the funniest and most charming of the films.  It mainly works because of Sean Connery (and that is the only time I will ever say that).  He is so good in it and he has surprisingly wonderful chemistry with Ford.  This is a father/son tale and it’s told much better than in Crystal Skull.  Indy loses much of his BAMFness (yes, it’s a word) around his father because don’t we all feel somehow inadequate next to our parents?  He still gets things done though and of course, he saves the day.  It’s an old story.  The father and the son were never close and they barely speak because they don’t understand each other.  But, added with so much action and humor, I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed this particular cliché more.  The scene where they are tied back to back to chairs is hilarious.  Even when they are at their most distant at the beginning, you can feel that they love each other and know each other as only family can.  It’s lovely to see.  Adding to the comedy, Sallah and Marcus return and they are largely used for comic relief.  I know a lot of people didn’t like that, but I thought it was great.  This is the only time we got to see Marcus in the field, so who is to say he wouldn’t be that goofy and out of his depth?  The Indy girl in this one is a different take.  She turns out to be a villain.  She isn’t all bad.  She clearly cares about the Jones men, but she has no problem betraying them or whoever else to get the Holy Grail for herself.  I suspect that this was done to get her out of the way so that the father/son story could properly develop.  The final act is flawless, in my opinion.  When Indy’s dad finally shows his son how much he loves him by telling him to let the grail go, oh that’s some powerful stuff.  As the four guys ride off into the sunset, I would have been more than happy to have that be the final chapter.  I don’t think I could ever grow tired of this movie.