Movie Review: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Stars: 4 out of 5
Pros: Laughs and action in this summer blockbuster

Cons: The climax was a little out there

The Bottom Line:

Climax is out there

But it does fit the series

More fun with Indy

"You Want to be a Good Archeologist?  You've Got to get Out of the Library."

He's back!

The sequel that people have been wanting for 19 years has finally opened. And, looking at the box office numbers, people rushed out to catch the latest adventure of their old friend in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Okay, so it doesn't quite live up to the other movies in the series. But it is still a fun adventure.

Respecting the time between movies, the year is now 1957. Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) has been captured by a group of KGB agents led by Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett) and taken to Area 51 in the Nevada desert to find one particular box in a warehouse full of government secrets. While that box does fall into enemy hands, Indiana does manage to escape.

Unfortunately, these are the days of the Red Scare, and the fact that the Soviets now have that box means Indiana is now on a government watch list. Just as this is making things hard on his day job as a professor, Mutt Williams (Shia LaBeouf) finds Indiana. Mutt quickly tells him that Indiana's old college friend Ox (John Hurt) has been captured and needs Indiana's help. So it's off to South America on the trail of the fabled City of Gold and the crystal skull necessary to open it. Irina is only one step behind Indy, however. Can Indy figure out Ox's notes and rescue his friend while staying one step ahead of the Soviets?

I never watched the Indiana Jones movies growing up. In fact, I just watched the second one for the first time this year. Frankly, I think that helped my perspective. I didn't have warm memories of the originals tainted with rose colored glasses. Granted, I still really enjoyed them, but I was able to see their flaws.

And when it comes to this movie, I really enjoyed it, too. It honestly felt like no time had passed. The film looks much like the first three, albeit set in a different decade. There were some slow parts, but there was still plenty of action and humor. And it was all just slightly over the top fun, believable in the world created for the movie but not completely realistic. Fans of the series will want to watch for blink and you miss them moments that reference the earlier movies.

It's a shame that one of the biggest moments of the movie was spoiled early. It would have been perfect as a shock. Unfortunately, in the day and age of the internet, it is hard to keep surprises secret (says the guy who regularly haunts a movie news site and reads some TV spoilers as well.)

The emphasis in this movie is on the stunts and action, not the special effects. That helps keep the feel of the original movies. But the advances in effects make the ones here feel so much better than the original films. We've definitely come a long way in the last two decades.

That acting is fine as well. The standout was Cate Blanchett. I'm not sure why, but I was worried when I'd heard she was cast as the main villainess. I shouldn't have been. She was perfect. In fact, she stole some of the scenes she was in. Harrison Ford slipped back into Indy perfectly. And Shia was good as the young Mutt, making the side kick part into a pretty funny role.

My only problem with the film is the climax. While the series has always had some out there stuff, this one went a little overboard even for me. Thinking about the others, I'm not sure why this one bothered me so much, but it did.

On the whole, I'll be able to accept where they went with the ending and enjoy the film for what it is, an escapist action movie that entertains. This isn't serious movie making, but Indiana never has been. So go see Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull when you are in the mood for a fun summer action film.