Yeah, the inflatable raft thing is exactly what I’m saying--with the exception of that moment, the rest of the film had pretty much no more “Yeah right” moments.
the Ark of the Covenant melting Nazis.. Glowing mystic stones.. Heart removal.. dude I think YOU are the one that’s reaching here. The Indiana Jones series is a throwback to the adventure serials of the 30’s. It’s never been ANY kind of believable because it’s not supposed to be. It’s high adventure plain and simple.
Pointing out the unbelievability of certain aspects of the film is like pointing out that Gwar sucks, you’re seriously missing the point. YES the monkeys were corny as hell and Aliens? Really? Aliens? But what did you think you were sitting down for, Citizen Kane 2? It’s an Adventure serial for gods sake! Moreover it’s an American film in a time when Americans are almost completely unable to make anything even remotely resembling quality cinema.
Yes a few of the plot points are corny as hell but it was very well shot and very well acted and compared to almost goddamn EVERYTHING else released in the last two to three years in America, it’s a stand out project. It’s not YET ANOTHER horrible Zombie film, it’s not YET ANOTHER remade horror movie, it’s not YET ANOTHER horrible “action” film full of SMURFING DOUCHEBAGS IN SHINY SKINTIGHT LEATHER BODYSUITS AND TRENCH COATS, and last of all it’s not YET another killer clown movie.
It’s a fun adventure film with it’s faults and if you can’t have fun with it then I feel bad for you son, I got 99 problems but being THAT jaded ain’t one.
Yeah, the inflatable raft thing is exactly what I’m saying--with the exception of that moment, the rest of the film had pretty much no more “Yeah right” moments.
the Ark of the Covenant melting Nazis.. Glowing mystic stones.. Heart removal.. dude I think YOU are the one that’s reaching here. The Indiana Jones series is a throwback to the adventure serials of the 30’s. It’s never been ANY kind of believable because it’s not supposed to be. It’s high adventure plain and simple.
All of what you name are completely believable in the scope of those movies. The supernatural element is set up in all of them.
However, a man getting in a refrigerator and being thrown 10 miles without getting even a minor scratch...a boy suddenly turning quite literally into Tarzan and swinging after cars that are driving at least 40mph--and he catches them and his newfound monkey friends apparently hate communism as much as we all do(even though they’re clearly socialist animals), and THEN, yeah, there’s aliens. (Note I left out the two hours of car chase/ball-hitting-plants)
Maybe I’m jaded...or maybe it’s YOU who’s ready and willing to swallow anything Lucas shoves down your throat.
F13 - 31 May 2008 03:50 PM
Yes a few of the plot points are corny as hell but it was very well shot and very well acted and compared to almost goddamn EVERYTHING else released in the last two to three years in America, it’s a stand out project. It’s not YET ANOTHER horrible Zombie film, it’s not YET ANOTHER remade horror movie, it’s not YET ANOTHER horrible “action” film full of SMURFING DOUCHEBAGS IN SHINY SKINTIGHT LEATHER BODYSUITS AND TRENCH COATS, and last of all it’s not YET another killer clown movie.
Well acted? Harrison was a cardboard cutout for the first 15 minutes of the movie. Cate Blanchett pulled her accent right from Rocky and Bullwinkle. The only reason it stands out is because it’s a huge letdown. It’s well directed, that’s it.
The cinematography was okay, but not a standout as far as Janusz is concerned. I can guarantee you that if he still needed a demo reel there wouldn’t be much from this flick going on it.
F13 - 31 May 2008 03:50 PM
It’s a fun adventure film with it’s faults and if you can’t have fun with it then I feel bad for you son, I got 99 problems but being THAT jaded ain’t one.
Sensei Thirteen has spoken.
Are you auditioning for a podcast here? You may wanna try harder, ‘cause you’re not nearly as witty as you think you are.
I watched Rambo 4 (First Blood 4, Rambo 3...WTF?!) today and I have to say it’s balls up better than the Indy fiasco. I’m now kind of saddened by my choice not to see it in a theater, while being equally sad I spent money on this Crystal Skull shenanigans.
I watched Rambo 4 (First Blood 4, Rambo 3...WTF?!) today and I have to say it’s balls up better than the Indy fiasco. I’m now kind of saddened by my choice not to see it in a theater, while being equally sad I spent money on this Crystal Skull shenanigans.
I couldn’t disagree more. Rambo 4 put me to sleep.
I can understand the how some people liked this movie and some didn’t. The whole “fridge” scene really took me out of the movie and that was near the start of the movie. I can suspend disbelief in movies when it comes to supernatural things, however that is a real thing that really did not need to be in the film. During the whole monkey scene all I could think about were ewoks.
I just wonder if the fact that it was Indiana Jones people have been less critical of the movie. I wonder if it had been called Alien Treasure if the same people would have liked it. Hell maybe I have been more critical because it was an Indiana Jones movie, but something just didn’t sit well with me. Like I said I thought it was entertaining in parts but other parts were so over the top that I just couldn’t get into it.
Are you auditioning for a podcast here? You may wanna try harder, ‘cause you’re not nearly as witty as you think you are.
Ahhh clever! No no Mr.Kangas sir I’m not auditioning. I already host a teeny tiny lil itty bitty show. I won’t be continuing the name calling out of respect for Amy’s board but let’s just say that A LOT of people around here aren’t as clever as they think they are.. and by around here I mean people quoted in this post.
A good example of not picking something apart and just enjoying it for what it is, is Fear of Clowns. I saw it years ago and loved it. Yes there were several elements lacking but it was fun and enjoyable and didn’t take it’s self too seriously.
I watched Rambo 4 (First Blood 4, Rambo 3...WTF?!) today and I have to say it’s balls up better than the Indy fiasco. I’m now kind of saddened by my choice not to see it in a theater, while being equally sad I spent money on this Crystal Skull shenanigans.
I couldn’t disagree more. Rambo 4 put me to sleep.
Stop watching movies before your bedtime then. :P
I think Rambo was the best bloody/gorey film the US has put out in awhile. The French film Inside tops it, but Stallone went crazy with body parts, grue, and blood splattering everywhere! I was cheering it on and I never do that watching movies at home.
I watched Rambo 4 (First Blood 4, Rambo 3...WTF?!) today and I have to say it’s balls up better than the Indy fiasco. I’m now kind of saddened by my choice not to see it in a theater, while being equally sad I spent money on this Crystal Skull shenanigans.
I couldn’t disagree more. Rambo 4 put me to sleep.
Stop watching movies before your bedtime then. :P
I think Rambo was the best bloody/gorey film the US has put out in awhile. The French film Inside tops it, but Stallone went crazy with body parts, grue, and blood splattering everywhere! I was cheering it on and I never do that watching movies at home.
Eh. I saw it in the theater, and not even the big screen made it any better.
Honestly, Indy surviving a nuclear blast in a fridge took me out of the movie no more than the rail-car jump or the bridge cut scene in Temple of Doom did. Sure, I laughed in a ‘holy shit that’s ridiculous’ kind of way, but hell, it’s an Indiana Jones movie. No offence Kangas, but I think you’re reading into it too much. Has anyone ripped apart Iron Man for being ridiculous? Or the forthcoming Incredible Hulk movie? No, and I believe Indy films belong in this genre, comic-book adventure movies where you leave your disbelief at the door and just enjoy the ride. I know for a fact that I stopped for one minute during KOTCS to question what I was seeing, I wouldn’t have enjoyed it. Instead, I just sat back and LOVED the two-odd hours of escapist cinema, a refeshing experience for sure since the last few films I’d seen were Garage and La Vie En Rose; two excellent films for sure, but two films with their feet squarely in stark, depressing reality.
Something else a lot of you are also forgetting, is that first and foremost, KOTCS is a KID’S movie. Albeit, a kid’s movie for adults to enjoy, but at heart a big dumb Indy rollercoaster ride of this generation’s whippersnappers (!) to enjoy. The cinema I watched KOTCS in was PACKED with kids; I was already regretting going to an early showing when I walked in and heard the shouts, screams and mobile phones beeping. But throughout the whole film, there wasn’t a peep. A kid in the seat in front of me sat google-eyed the whole time, the same kid who in another film would have been fidgetting, texting his friends and generally getting on my nerves. Sure, there were gasps and shouts, but only at times when the rest of the audience was doing the same. And at the end, a group of 10-ish year olds near the front got up and clapped. Honest to goodness, a group of smurfin TEN year olds applauding a film; first time I’ve ever seen it.
If you look at the original trilogy, they’ve all got their ‘kids film’ moments. Short Round karate-kicking grown men into submission in Temple, the giant boulder chase in Raiders, the circus train in Last Crusade. I believe the KOTCS needed those unbelievable moments; the fridge scene, the monkeys, the crazy natives that attack at the graveyard-pure kiddie film gold. Otherwise, the target audience would have firdgetting, texting their friends, and yes, getting on my nerves.
People are too jaded nowadays to totally enjoy any film all the way.
Crystal Skull was a good movie, with some bad moments, my only major CGI problem were the animals, they just looked fake. The fridge scene does harken back to the mine car chase, the boulder and the tank in Last Crusade. I don’t understand why people complain about that stuff though, these are movies they are not real life. Suspend your belief and forget about the real world for a couple hours and enjoy the movie or don’t enjoy it, but don’t complain that stuff should have been this way or that way, it is just a movie.
On the whole alien thing, was no one looking at the movie poster for this film? It is right there on the front, the skull looks like an alien skull. Did no one watch the trailer? You can see the magnetic box says Roswell on it. If people couldn’t realize that this was going to have something to do with aliens then that is their own fault, that part of the movie was handed to us before we walked in. Here is the thing though, at least it was handle differently in the fact that they weren’t from another planet, they were from a different dimension which is still somewhat on the mystical level.
My rankings of the Indy movies are Last Crusade, Raiders, Crystal Skull, and Temple of Doom.
Don’t know how relevant this is, but thinking abot it a bit more, but ...Crystal Skull wasn’t the first time we saw a Jones and a monkey hangin’ with each other. Obviously it was played a little more over the top this time around, but in Raiders..., Indy does befriend a monkey rather quickly . . . Just sayin’ . . .
I completely respect that not everyone’s going to agree about any particular film, and I completely understand that my own views are certainly colored by somehow NEEDING the Indiana Jones legacy to remain intact since Lucas managed to foul up his other contribution to my childhood movie-watching so badly, but I still think that, keeping in mind what kind of movie this was supposed to be, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull still WORKED. Its ridiculousness did go MUCH further than the previous films, and it’s certainly not my favorite of the four, but it is going to be a movie I’m going to go back to the theater to see a second time during its initial run, which is something I haven’t done since . . . Jurassic Park (or maybe Carpenter’s Village of the Damned, but in all fairness, I was kind of tricked into seeing that one twice).
As for wanting more Indy - I don’t think it’s realistic to think we’re going to see a follow-up in the vein of ...Temple of Doom meaning that we’ll see a film that takes place chronologically before this one, but I’d love to read about his WWII adventures . . .
I watched Rambo 4 (First Blood 4, Rambo 3...WTF?!) today and I have to say it’s balls up better than the Indy fiasco. I’m now kind of saddened by my choice not to see it in a theater, while being equally sad I spent money on this Crystal Skull shenanigans.
I couldn’t disagree more. Rambo 4 put me to sleep.
Stop watching movies before your bedtime then. :P
I think Rambo was the best bloody/gorey film the US has put out in awhile. The French film Inside tops it, but Stallone went crazy with body parts, grue, and blood splattering everywhere! I was cheering it on and I never do that watching movies at home.
I have stated before that I think Rambo 4 was a true exploitation film and a good one. It was made for entertainment and it was a blast. It was also a true action film and in a lot of ways a great horror film. This Indiana Jones arguement is pretty understandable when it come to films from childhood....I would imagine most of us have grown up watching those films so I’m not surprised by the passion.
The Crystal Skull is well made from a technical point of view, but the film is a video game, there are boss fights, there are people hiding in walls...and yes I checked my brain at the door I am familiar with the rest of the series, but this one stretches even my feeble little brain to the limits....I was with the film all the way to the jungle chase scene and it lost me, and I mean completely lost me. Another problem I had with the Jones flick was Karen Allen was completely wasted, I love this actress and all she did no matter how crazy things got was smile....it was a strange choice and maybe I’m missing the point....like everything Lucas touches it will divide fans....I just think thats four in a row he’s mucked up......Lucas owns my ass, Spielberg is one of the great film makers of all time, will I still buy the DVD, well....what do you think?
A good example of not picking something apart and just enjoying it for what it is, is Fear of Clowns. I saw it years ago and loved it. Yes there were several elements lacking but it was fun and enjoyable and didn’t take it’s self too seriously.
See, this calls into question your sanity. Now at least I can see how you’d like the new Indy--you have a history of liking pieces of sh*t.
And feel free to ignore my grumpiness. I really shouldn’t post when I’m tired…
Honestly, Indy surviving a nuclear blast in a fridge took me out of the movie no more than the rail-car jump or the bridge cut scene in Temple of Doom did. Sure, I laughed in a ‘holy shit that’s ridiculous’ kind of way, but hell, it’s an Indiana Jones movie. No offence Kangas, but I think you’re reading into it too much. Has anyone ripped apart Iron Man for being ridiculous? Or the forthcoming Incredible Hulk movie?
Those are superhero movies, which have their own genre and rules. They obviously bend the rules by their very premise. Indy is an action throwback to the old serials, but short of Temple(which we all admit was a previous low point) it has been set in our reality. The only caveat has been the supernatural element which is linked to the mythology of the series.
The Loafroaster - 01 June 2008 03:57 AM
If you look at the original trilogy, they’ve all got their ‘kids film’ moments. Short Round karate-kicking grown men into submission in Temple, the giant boulder chase in Raiders, the circus train in Last Crusade. I believe the KOTCS needed those unbelievable moments; the fridge scene, the monkeys, the crazy natives that attack at the graveyard-pure kiddie film gold. Otherwise, the target audience would have firdgetting, texting their friends, and yes, getting on my nerves.
You’re wrong on so many counts. If you think a little kid karate-kicking grown men is as unbelieveable as ANYTHING in KOTCS than you just don’t know what reality is(you can see videos of kids well-trained in martial arts who could kick an adult’s ass).
The giant boulder chase is not unbelievable. The circus train sequence is not unbelievable. There is nothing there THAT COULD NOT ACTUALLY HAPPEN. They are bigger-than-life sequences to emphasize Indy’s bigger-than-life persona.
However, the fridge sequence, the swinging, the monkeys, the 3(count ‘em) waterfall drops, the car chase with the 15 switches followed by swordfighting on top--these are all IMPOSSIBILITIES. I would have to be 6 to enjoy it.
You do not have to be 6 to enjoy the other films. I wasn’t 6 when I saw them, and I certainly enjoyed them.
