Nineteen years on from his last adventure the return of Indiana Jones has been the talk of the industry lately, any introduction or re-capping of the film is largely unnecessary here, others have covered Indy’s comeback in more detail and in greater depth than I could. Still in doing so quantifying the actually film becomes difficult, how do you separate out the feelings of expectation? Or the inevitable comparisons to the earlier films? In truth I don’t think you can, we all bring baggage to every film which is what makes them so fascinating and interesting, it is our own personal reactions that matter, and more than most the Indiana Jones films are personal. Many people have grown up with the films either at the cinema or at home and the reverence for the series means that any new entry will be scrutinised, loved by some and derided by others.
This is just such a film, and watching it and thinking back on it I can now both see why people would not like it, and why some would adore it. Thankfully I fall much more heavily in the latter category, the film is not without its flaws, but it also irresistibly entertaining and fun and shot with the style and wisdom that only comes from someone of Spielberg’s experience, that he brings his top game to the film helps smooth over many of the cracks that may threaten to otherwise derail the film.
Set in 1957 the film cleverly uses its timeframe as an advantage, the use of Russians as the bad-guys and the nature of the crystal skulls all play heavily on the iconography of the era, early scenes that play with the suspicions of communist spies and nuclear warfare play well against Harrison Ford’s now older Indiana Jones. He is not the same man he was before; age has taken its toll in some ways and the shift in tones help give the movie a different feel. Spielberg’s period films are always fascinating and the way the 50’s is recreated, especially in the opening hour is expertly done, throughout the film is masterfully shot and gives a more filmic and authentic feel. In fact the strongest section of the film is the first hour; it is slower but intriguing with a good set-up and mystery. A large part of this is due to the character of Mutt, Shia LeBeouf has taken a bit of a hit for this film but I thought he was great in the role, engaging and prickly and had good chemistry with Ford, if anything it is the nature of the character that will conflict people rather than the way it was handled in the film.
Once the characters reach the rainforests of South American the action kicks in and whilst some of the sequences are expertly handled and exciting some suffer from an overuse of CGI and the fake look dampens the tension, despite promises of ‘old-school’ filmmaking there are a few key scenes that are plagued by this issue and whilst some of the effects in the film are breathtaking (one shot at the end definitely fits this bill) others stand out and take you out of the film.
The ending as well is probably the weakest part of the film, it’s not bad per-se but just involves characters re-acting to events out of the their control, Indy doesn’t really take control in the way that he used to and the lack of clever puzzles or booby traps is a bit of a disappointment. There could also be criticisms that the supporting cast is under-used throughout, John Hurt’s crackpot professor has very little to do and whilst Cate Blanchett is obviously having a ball in her role as the main villain, she isn’t given enough to do at times and her supposed psychic powers are never actually utilised.
Ultimately though the film won me over, it was entertaining, slick and fun and most of all felt like an Indiana Jones film. It was definitely strange seeing one on the big screen for the first time and getting used to Harrison Ford in the role again after all this time, but at the end of the day the film maintains the pulp sensibilities of the original films with enough verve and wit to pull through the awkward patches. These films were never realistic or serious and with adult eyes it is harder to view this film in the same light as the originals, there are films best watched with the eyes of a child, for escapism, heroism and adventure.
For all that could have go wrong though Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a minor triumph, it is by no means perfect but somehow manages to overcome its myriad of flaws to become an entertaining and fun piece of cinema, if you let it. The nitpickers will have a field day and many could well be justified in hating it, but for the rest of us we won’t care, we will be off once again with Mr Jones, enjoying the ride.
Indiana Jones is back, whilst the setting and character have changed a bit over the years the sensibilities remain spot on and as long as your willing to let go and enjoy it there is a lot to like here. Despite the odd jarring moment this is, for the most part, a blast, quite literally, from the past.
Nineteen years on from his last adventure the return of Indiana Jones has been the talk of the industry lately, any introduction or re-capping of the film is largely unnecessary here, others have covered Indy’s comeback in more detail and in greater depth than I could. Still in doing so quantifying the actually film becomes difficult, how do you separate out the feelings of expectation? Or the inevitable comparisons to the earlier films? In truth I don’t think you can, we all bring baggage to every film which is what makes them so fascinating and interesting, it is our own personal reactions that matter, and more than most the Indiana Jones films are personal. Many people have grown up with the films either at the cinema or at home and the reverence for the series means that any new entry will be scrutinised, loved by some and derided by others.
This is just such a film, and watching it and thinking back on it I can now both see why people would not like it, and why some would adore it. Thankfully I fall much more heavily in the latter category, the film is not without its flaws, but it also irresistibly entertaining and fun and shot with the style and wisdom that only comes from someone of Spielberg’s experience, that he brings his top game to the film helps smooth over many of the cracks that may threaten to otherwise derail the film.
Set in 1957 the film cleverly uses its timeframe as an advantage, the use of Russians as the bad-guys and the nature of the crystal skulls all play heavily on the iconography of the era, early scenes that play with the suspicions of communist spies and nuclear warfare play well against Harrison Ford’s now older Indiana Jones. He is not the same man he was before; age has taken its toll in some ways and the shift in tones help give the movie a different feel. Spielberg’s period films are always fascinating and the way the 50’s is recreated, especially in the opening hour is expertly done, throughout the film is masterfully shot and gives a more filmic and authentic feel. In fact the strongest section of the film is the first hour; it is slower but intriguing with a good set-up and mystery. A large part of this is due to the character of Mutt, Shia LeBeouf has taken a bit of a hit for this film but I thought he was great in the role, engaging and prickly and had good chemistry with Ford, if anything it is the nature of the character that will conflict people rather than the way it was handled in the film.
Once the characters reach the rainforests of South American the action kicks in and whilst some of the sequences are expertly handled and exciting some suffer from an overuse of CGI and the fake look dampens the tension, despite promises of ‘old-school’ filmmaking there are a few key scenes that are plagued by this issue and whilst some of the effects in the film are breathtaking (one shot at the end definitely fits this bill) others stand out and take you out of the film.
The ending as well is probably the weakest part of the film, it’s not bad per-se but just involves characters re-acting to events out of the their control, Indy doesn’t really take control in the way that he used to and the lack of clever puzzles or booby traps is a bit of a disappointment. There could also be criticisms that the supporting cast is under-used throughout, John Hurt’s crackpot professor has very little to do and whilst Cate Blanchett is obviously having a ball in her role as the main villain, she isn’t given enough to do at times and her supposed psychic powers are never actually utilised.
Ultimately though the film won me over, it was entertaining, slick and fun and most of all felt like an Indiana Jones film. It was definitely strange seeing one on the big screen for the first time and getting used to Harrison Ford in the role again after all this time, but at the end of the day the film maintains the pulp sensibilities of the original films with enough verve and wit to pull through the awkward patches. These films were never realistic or serious and with adult eyes it is harder to view this film in the same light as the originals, there are films best watched with the eyes of a child, for escapism, heroism and adventure.
For all that could have go wrong though Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a minor triumph, it is by no means perfect but somehow manages to overcome its myriad of flaws to become an entertaining and fun piece of cinema, if you let it. The nitpickers will have a field day and many could well be justified in hating it, but for the rest of us we won’t care, we will be off once again with Mr Jones, enjoying the ride.
Indiana Jones is back, whilst the setting and character have changed a bit over the years the sensibilities remain spot on and as long as your willing to let go and enjoy it there is a lot to like here. Despite the odd jarring moment this is, for the most part, a blast, quite literally, from the past.
