The New Indy starts filming

[ZB9]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

saw this, and thought it was good. It was vintage Indy Jones, which is what i was curious if they were going to be able to pull off. They bridged it nicely with the old movies imo.

[nemesis04]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

They should have left the series alone and rest in the past. There was no need for this movie.

[davin]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

Anyone here play "Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis" many years ago on the PC? That could have been made into a good movie.

Anyhow, I saw this one and had a good time at the theater, although . . .

Spoiler

We learned that Dr. Jones was a colonel in the military and was at the Roswell alien dissection. Why? He's an archaeologist.

Even in "Temple of Doom" we saw more of Dr. Jones, the man, as in sides of him that made him more of a human being. In "Crystal Skull," it was almost always the "action" version of Indiana Jones - there just didn't seem to be a good balance between both sides.

I also didn't know why Dr. Jones would run off with Shia LeBouf's character to South America anyway. Karen Allen was good in "Raiders" and she had such a small part in this one. It would have made more sense to me if she had been the one to lure Indy to South America with or without her son. This would have given her more screen time anyway.

A good action flick as a whole, but to me, it didn't live up to Indiana Jones standards.

Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis is my favorite game of all time, would have made a killer movie, shame the whole alien angle had to be taken.

I saw the movie last Friday with the girlfriend. It was good, not great. Both of us agreed it wasn't really Indiana Jones, he just felt out of place. They tried to have way too much going on, that car chase scene was way too long.

Spoiler

I felt the alien angle was not good. I didn't like it throughout most of the movie, but I was fine with it when I turned off my anger towards "people couldn't have possibly come up with agriculture by themselves" angle (If aliens helped us out, it would have been nice for them to save the several thousands if not tens of thousands of years it took). I would have been fine if the aliens didn't come back to life and leave like that... wtf? That was stupid. The start of the movie was too action packed for me, AN ATOMIC BOMB??? The guy goes inside a metal fridge as the superheated wave of fire burns everything and Indy is not melted inside? Whoever made that fridge should have a contract with the military, built to withstand temperatures above 1000 F? There were other gaps in the story that didn't really make sense, but I tried to just enjoy the movie and not question it, and it was entertaining, though a very clear #4 of 4. I don't really like "Mud" being the next Indiana Jones, what is he going to do, grease back his hair and comb when he gets into danger?

[madscientist]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

I am really surprised that most of you all think that Raiders of the Lost Ark is superior to the Temple of Doom. Raiders almost slowed to a crawl abouthalf way through the movie, where as Temple keeps chugging along at a very deliberate pace. I guess that's why we all have our own opinions!

1. Last Crusade
2. Temple of Doom
3. Raiders of the Lost Arc
4. Crystal Skull

[davin]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

I am really surprised that most of you all think that Raiders of the Lost Ark is superior to the Temple of Doom. Raiders almost slowed to a crawl abouthalf way through the movie, where as Temple keeps chugging along at a very deliberate pace. I guess that's why we all have our own opinions!

1. Last Crusade
2. Temple of Doom
3. Raiders of the Lost Arc
4. Crystal Skull

I enjoyed Raiders a lot, it had some of the more memorable moments in the series in my opinion (the Rock and Idol at the start, the basket search and fight with the swordsman (where Indy shoots him), the room with the ark, and then the plane fight and subsequent chase). The end to me kind of got long, but to me that was my favorite of the entire series. I think people are too hard on Temple of Doom, to me that is the most enjoyable one to watch with other people. Last Crusade was good, and I love to watch it again (I've been to the library/church/museum in Venice) but I guess to me it doesn't separate itself from Raiders as my favorite.

1. Raiders
2a. Temple of Doom
2b. Last Crusade
3. Crystal Skull

[USF11]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

This movie just felt like a "money grab".

It was better then most of the crap that is out there, however it was nowhere near as good as any of the previous movies.

[Laettner32]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

In "..Lost Crusade", didn't Indy and his dad drink from the cup of Christ..giving them "eternal life" as was the selling point of the whole 3rd movie? So shouldn't Indy live "forever" like the Templar Knight in the "Crusade" protecting it? Much less his dad?

[davin]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

In "..Lost Crusade", didn't Indy and his dad drink from the cup of Christ..giving them "eternal life" as was the selling point of the whole 3rd movie? So shouldn't Indy live "forever" like the Templar Knight in the "Crusade" protecting it? Much less his dad?

The power of the cup was limited to within the seal in that building. I believe the knight said something to the effect of "thus is the limit of eternity" or something like that. So once Indy and his dad left the temple, it was no longer effective.

[VanCitySportsGuy]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

I was disappointed in this film. The ending was beyond stupid but I did enjoy some of the action scenes. This film has been a huge worldwide box office success, so I wonder if we will get another Indy movie down the road.

Don't bother staying until the end of the credits, I did this and there wasn't anything extra at the end.

B-

[Altimus]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

I was disappointed in this film. The ending was beyond stupid but I did enjoy some of the action scenes. This film has been a huge worldwide box office success, so I wonder if we will get another Indy movie down the road.

Don't bother staying until the end of the credits, I did this and there wasn't anything extra at the end.

B-

I was actually going to stay till the end but my GF was like there won't be anything for this crappy movie. Good thing I listened.

[davin]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

I was disappointed in this film. The ending was beyond stupid but I did enjoy some of the action scenes. This film has been a huge worldwide box office success, so I wonder if we will get another Indy movie down the road.

Don't bother staying until the end of the credits, I did this and there wasn't anything extra at the end.

B-

I didn't even think to look, I'm not a big fan of that stuff anyways.

[nxt]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

Saw it this past weekend. Didn't like it at all. Should've watched Ironman instead.

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

I literally just got back from watching this and really am not sure what to think or how to feel. I most feel total indifference to it, but am on the verge of saying it was good.

It didn't feel like an Indy movie to me until he actually got out of the United States, but then it never truly felt like an Indy movie. It just felt like a movie that Indy was stuck in the middle of and had to wade his way through to familiar people to reach the end. The whole alien-skull plotline was good when the alien thing wasn't being talked about. I personally find it fascinating to think that aliens visited our most "advanced" Civilizations, but I don't think aliens fit into Indy's universe. Maybe that's just me, though since I thought this would have made a better season story-arc for X-Files.

All in all, it felt like one big old-school reunion just to reunite. Harrison, George, and Steven felt like they were just going through the motions, bringing in all the familiar components of Indy's universe to validate the movie and sometimes it just felt forced. I mean, you had George's CGI happy hands with his typical LucasFilms sounds (honestly, that deforestation truck sounded like a Star Wars vehicle). Steven with his ending, but not really an ending ending (speaking of which, I am praying that was just a tease, not a signal of continuing the series with Shia). And Harrison felt like he was barely into it at all sometimes.

It was an enjoyable movie, but it is no way nearly as good as the previous three.

And whats up with the freakin' groundhogs?

[LetsGoPitt]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

I know I'm guilty of thread-bumping, but I finally got around to seeing the film, and I wanted to weigh in on it....

Because it took me three weeks to see the film, and because I'm a self-admitted fanboy when it comes to these sorts of movies, I pretty much knew the basic premise of the film. I also knew that a lot of people had issues with it, but I have to agree with what a few others have said: why are aliens more far-fetched than the power of God (not looking to start a religious argument here, just making a point)? Theories of extraterrestrial influence on ancient civilizations have been around for a long time. Consider Stargate -- although that was a bad movie, but for reasons other than the basic plotline.

For my part, I really enjoyed Crystal Skull. I thought they captured the 50s flavor at the beginning of the movie perfectly, no doubt helped (yes helped) by George Lucas and his experiences making American Graffiti. I liked the way they played up the fact that Indy was getting older, and they included several nods to the bickering Indy and his father had in Last Crusade, but with the roles reversed including a moment where Indy declares, "This is intolerable!" Shia LaBeouf, to his credit, didn't annoy me, which is more than I can say for just about anything else he's been in. Cate Blanchett did a decent job in a sadly underwritten role as the villain, which means that she gets lumped in more with the Walter Donovan's and not with the René Belloq's of the series. The biggest disappointment to me was that Karen Allen was given so little to do! In fact, the same can be said for most of the supporting cast. Ray Winstone shows up as needed and plays for whichever side either a) advances the plot or b) allows him to continue to be in the scene. John Hurt does a decent job, but his insanity is a transparent plot device that gets them where they need to go and then conveniently vanishes when it's no longer required.

A lot of people are complaining about the (over) use of CGI, but for the most part, I can't agree. Sure, the backgrounds were digital in a lot of cases. But guess what? In the other Indy films, they were fake too, but back then they called them matte paintings. This wasn't like Star Wars, where everything was fake, including the people some of the time. The only really objectionable part for me was the monkey scene, but for the most part I thought the effects added to the scene, instead of detracting from it. In fact, it was refreshing to see a lot of real stunts being performed (by Harrison Ford too!).

And about the ending...

Spoiler

like I said above, I have no issues with the alien angle to the story. I didn't even mind the flying saucer at the end, because it was in keeping with the 50s B-movie angle. I just felt that the whole finale of the film was an anticlimax. Usually, Indy is able to use his knowledge of the artifact in hand to defeat the enemy. He knows that you're not supposed to open the Ark and is able (with Elsa's help) to trick Donovan into drinking from the wrong Grail. Here, he basically does very little except to watch Spalko replace the skull and subsequently be killed by the aliens. I would have liked a little more here than simply "I want to know everything." Did they kill her on purpose, or was it simply a case of getting what you asked for? It's never explained very well...

I know I'm complaining about a lot of things, but I did enjoy myself watching this movie, and a lot of these gripes are coming after thinking about the film, not while I was watching it. It's certainly not the best in the series, but it's a cut above Temple of Doom, which for this amateur critic has very little going for it. By the way, if you thought the effects in Crystal Skull were cheesy, go watch the mine car chase again, or that horrible matte job during the cliff/rope bridge scene. Or some rather sub-par effects in Last Crusade even. Let's be honest, Indy has never had the best effects, but that's probably by design.

In conclusion, I recommend the film, especially if you're a fan of the originals. ***

And in case you were wondering about the rest of the series:

Raiders of the Lost Ark: ****
Temple of Doom: **
Last Crusade: ***1/2

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: The New Indy starts filming

I just didn't feel like the whole plot/mechanics of the skull was explained well at all. Like you said, in the other movies Indy had a fairly good grasp on what needed to be done/said, but in this one it just seemed like he had no idea. Even the alien influence on the ancient civilization part of the story never really felt like it was explained, more implied than directly acknowledged.

I still don't get why Temple of Doom gets a bad rep - sure its not as good as the first or third, but I don't think its horrible.