Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Rating

Director

Steven Spielberg

Screenplay

David Koepp, George Lucas, Jeff Nathanson

Length

124 min.

Starring

Harrison Ford, Cate Blanchett, Karen Allen, Shia LaBeouf, Ray Winstone, John Hurt, Jim Broadbent, Igor Jijikine, Alan Dale

MPAA Rating

PG-13 for adventure violence and scary images.

Review

After a lengthy hiatus, one of the big screen’s greatest adventurers returns in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Harrison Ford dusts off the old fedora once more to take on the role that made him a box office star 27 years ago. As Indiana Jones, he has discovered the location of the Ark of the Covenant (Raiders of the Lost Ark), rescued children from an ancient cult (Temple of Doom) and tracked down the legendary Holy Grail (The Last Crusade). Now, he’s back in pursuit of his ex-wife’s son’s father who has disappeared in Peru while investigating the mysterious Crystal Skulls said to hold great psychic power.

After escaping Nazis in his last film, Indy takes on a Cold War-era foe in the Russians led by Col. Dr. Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett) who heads a special task force designed to locate objects of metaphysical nature in hopes of developing a new line of defense in the “war” that relies on psychic power.

After the opening scenes in an Area 57 bunker (where the government had originally stored the Ark at the end of the first film) where Irina forcibly convinces Indy to help her locate a heavily magnetic box that he once examined for the U.S. military, it’s clear that the film had significant plot problems. After over two hours of ridiculous plot revelations, the film collapses in a flurry of extra-terrestrial proportions.

George Lucas tried to dissuade fans from getting their hopes up for the film as many of them probably had fond childhood memories of the films that may have been tainted by age. However, the first indication of a disappointment should have been the quick and early rejection of a script penned by the off-and-on Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, The Mist). Spielberg even liked the idea, but Lucas quickly nixed the idea and we’re left with a screenplay by David Koepp who’s just about as unreliable as Darabont, but with much less sense of emotional depth.

The performances are far from spectacular. Ford has delivered far better in the past and shows only signs of weariness over having to once again pull out his old whip. Karen Allan, who makes her first return to the franchise since the original film, just proves that there’s a reason she hasn’t done anything great or even perfunctory since then. Ray Winstone is also a disappointment in as Indy’s good friend Mac.

Even Cate Blanchett who is easily one of our best working actresses can’t save the film with her delightfully villainous turn. Her presence on screen helps lighten some of the duller moments even if her performance isn’t the exactly Oscar fodder. Shia LaBeouf is proving to be one of Hollywood’s more reliable action actors. Although he has not yet reached his thespic prime, he acquits himself more than adequately in the film. And if Blanchett is the star of villainy, John Hurt is the undisputed king of lunacy. His Professor Oxley is loopy fun, driven mad by constantly staring into the eyes of the skull.

For fans of the original films, there is a lot in The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull that is reminiscent of the glory days of the series. The jungle chase scene is among the best ever filmed. However, for every great segment, there are five or six bad ones, leaving a barely entertaining film that presents far too many historical inaccuracies and emotional gaps and provides one of the most horrid titles in recent memory, being eclipsed only by Lucas’ three Star Wars prequels, which should have proven to audiences that they shouldn’t expect too much out of a production in which he is involved.

Review Written

July 11, 2008