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Movie: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Director: Steven Spielberg
Actors: Harrison Ford, Cate Blanchett, Karen Allen, Shia LaBeouf, Ray Winstone, John Hurt
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Man, it took a while and a lot of writers (like Frank Darabont) to get to this point. In the end, David Koepp was the one who pasted elements from other drafts into his script for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. It had to be a script that Steven Spielberg, Harrison Ford and George Lucas all could accept. The big question; is Ford still capable of portraying the adventurous archeologist? Either way, in the new installment, Indy faces the commies. No Nazi's this time around, but the KGB who needs Dr. Jones to find a crystal skull, which holds mysterious powers.
Indiana Jones is back, Steven Spielberg is back, they're all back! A rundown of the veterans; editor Michael Kahn, sound designer Ben Burtt, composer John Williams and even director of photography Janusz Kaminski captures the wonderful style of Douglas Slocombe, who shot the previous films. And there's also another blast from the past, Indy's Raiders of the Lost Ark-girlfriend, Marion Ravenwood, played by Karen Allen! Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull contains little hints to the previous movies, which makes it all more nostalgic. Everybody clearly is enjoying this reunion, and the audience can sense that.
But unfortunately, the movie has its flaws, and trust me, it's hard to face them, being a big fan of the series. I'll start with the shaky script, and I can't go into specific details because I'll reveal too much of the story. So let's move on with the other 'stuff' that bothers the filmcritic-side of me. I was hoping for old fashioned special effects, the real deal, and in a way, the first explosive half, delivers, but after that the action sequences loses strength due to the overuse of CGI. The movie's villain Irina Spalko, nice performance by Cate Blanchett, is poorly written and doesn't convince as Indy's biggest obstacle. Just like Indy's unreliable buddy Mac, played by Ray Winstone, who's character seems a bit off. Luckily, other characters simply work like magic. Shia LeBeouf is fantastic as Dr. Jones' sidekick, Mutt. You can feel the chemistry, especially when the three of them, Mutt, Indy en Marion, are together in a scene.
Is Harrison Ford still convincing as the good ol' Indiana Jones? Absolutely! No doubt about it! My doubts and fears were blown away the moment the film takes off. This is a real Indiana Jones flick, guys. A wonderful, fun Indy adventure with the charming attitude of Ford, the film score, the sound effects, the humor, the wonderful sets, and of course the spectacular over the top action!
A body is being dragged out of a car by Russians. It's a body of a man. He gets up and picks up his brown hat off the ground. A silhouette of the man, putting on his hat. In one shot, it's clear that this man is Indiana Jones. And suddenly, I'm that little kid again, watching Raiders of the Lost Ark for the first time in the theater. The man with the hat is back!
Written by Reggy 20/05/08
© paramount 2008
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