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Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)

Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)


7/10



Starring
Harrison Ford
Cate Blanchett
Karen Allen
Ray Winstone
John Hurt


Directed by Steven Spielberg


One thing I know after seeing this movie is that I will forever be grateful to Steven Spielberg and George Lucas for the first trilogy in this franchise. I’m not saying this was a bad movie—Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is an interesting film, and the fight scenes (although quite lengthy) were good enough and very entertaining—but the franchise should have been left alone after Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade (1989).

The movie is plagued with fantastic acting and portrayals that make up for the dialed-down Indy in this installment. In 1957, Indy and his partner Mac are kidnapped by the Soviets, and with them, the Soviets infiltrate a warehouse labeled Warehouse 51. Together, they locate a mummified corpse recovered from a crash site. Before Jones can work up an escape, as he usually does, he discovers that Mac is a double agent working for the Soviets. Jones later escapes with the help of a fridge (you must watch to understand).


In Jones’ present time, he is approached by a young man named Mutt, who tells him that Jones’ friend Harold Oxley found a crystal skull in Peru and suffered a mental breakdown. Mutt also informs Jones that his mom and Oxley have been held captive in Peru.

Upon getting to Peru, they are captured, and Jones meets the person in charge of his and his friends’ capture: Colonel Dr. Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett). You have to watch the whole movie to discover what the Crystal Skull is, why the Soviets want it, and what they plan to do with it.

The movie didn’t have all it took to outshine the others, even though it had more help in the creation of effects, thanks to the fact that CGI is more effective in the 21st century than it was in the 20th. But when it comes to acting, seeing Harrison Ford back as Indiana Jones was great. Cate Blanchett, Karen Allen, Ray Winstone, and John Hurt also delivered outstanding performances. Although, seeing Shia LaBeouf as the son of Indiana Jones? Not so great. I feel the weight of the name Indiana Jones is too much for him to carry.

The first two Indiana Jones movies—Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and The Temple of Doom (1984)—were the best in the franchise, and this fourth movie wasn’t that awesome compared to them. Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was a huge financial success, and since Disney now owns Lucasfilm Ltd., be ready for a sequel because Disney is not one to let a financially successful movie rest until there’s no juice left in it.


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