New Indiana Jones movie is … I don’t know.
June 2nd, 2008 by Ben Fry in Random Acts(Warning: this is more of a rant than a review and it contains some pseudo-spoilers.)
I know it’s been a week since the new Indiana Jones movie was released, but it has me still scratching my head. Mainly because I like it and I don’t like it at the same time.
I just don’t know what to think about it.
Ultimately, the movie has some good aspects. It was nostalgic for the original trilogy; that was good.
It still has the anti-hero common man that we all love to root for (even though we know he will win in the end; really, we ought to root for the villains since they don’t stand a chance against Indy); that was good.
There was plenty of smart-ass humor and comedic elements in the action scenes (snake-rope anyone?); that was also good.
Also good: the film stayed true to Indy’s character as it was in the first three installments. It was even interesting to find out what Indy had been up to over the last 20 years (international espionage, anyone?; somewhat gratuitous, but it makes sense considering Indy’s character and his being so well-traveled).
All this was good. But . . .
Did it seem to anyone else that Spielberg & Lucas relied too heavily on BIG SUMMER BLOCKBUSTER themes and devices (see: aliens and extremely unlikely action scenes)? Did anyone else cringe and/or groan during the “swinging-from-the-vines scene” or the “incredibly-huge-series-of-waterfalls scene” or the “bushes-to-the-balls-while- straddling-two-jeeps-while-moving-at-high-speed-and-sword-fighting scene”?
Maybe all that was in lieu of having to actually write a really good movie?
Did anyone think that maybe the movie’s title should have been “Indiana Jones and the Big Adventure You’ve Seen Before Along With Hints That We Will Try To Recreate The Franchise With a Young Actor Who We Hope Will Fill Harrison Ford’s Shoes!”?
I don’t know why I was expecting something better. I’m not even sure it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting. Hell, I might have even liked it . . .
. . . I just don’t know.
June 2nd, 2008 at 2:04 pm
The Movie Rocked. Reminded us of the last crusade, with Henry Jones III in place of Indy and Indiana jones in the place of Henry Jones I….. We loved the movie
June 6th, 2008 at 9:07 am
I think it’s an abortion of the franchise. The first was good, the second went over the top, The MPA had to come up with a rating system for that one, they called it PG-13. Because R wouldn’t sell to the demographic and PG didn’t cut-it with the parents, so they made up one in the middle. Then the third one was good, and this new festival-of-fun has no soul. Yeah, it has Indy, it has whips and guns, it has over-the-top action, but it doesn’t have a soul. This franchise needs to be kept in the past, something about over used special effects in the Era that the movie takes place in doesnt fit. And yes, the swinging-from-the-vines scene is a joke. Spielberg has gone crazy.
June 6th, 2008 at 11:20 am
Shayne, I couldn’t have said it better myself. In fact, I didn’t.