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

So, after 19 years, Harrison Ford returns in fine form as Henry Jones, Jr. in Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. While film works on many levels, like the two other sequels, nothing compares to the first film, Raiders of the Lost Ark. The film, for me, settles inbetween the darker, more violent Temple of Doom and the wimsey, ultra-light Last Crusade.

I liked it, but did not love it. And that’s mostly because I think there are enough mythical, superstitious stuff out there, here on Earth that the film did not have to become a prelude to The X Files. Hell, I almost expected the Cigarette Smoke Man to pop up and try to cover it up. Still, its loopy and at times confusing But its obvious that Harrison Ford is having a lot of fun, thus the film is a welcome return to the old style of grand movie making: it’s don’t have to make any sense, so just sit back and enjoy the ride.

And while Indy 4 does try to avoid giving into those trivial references to the previous films, there are some classy tributes to both Denholm Elliott (who played Marcus Brody in the first and third film, and who died in 1992) with a portrait hanging in the school and photo on Indy’s desk and a statue and Sean Connery (who played Henry Jones, Senior and while still with us, is retired and did not want to cameo in the film) in another picture on Indy’s desk.

Jim Broadbent does a fine job replacing Elliott, while Cate Blanchette hams it up as Russian Soviet agent Irina Spalko. The return of Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood also adds a better dimension to the film and like Ford, appears to be having the time of her life.

I’ve always kind of liked Shia LaBeouf and while he has the spoiled teenager/goofball down pat, his performance is subtle and a nice throwback to the greaser days of the 1950's (his ride in on his motorcycle is a tribute to Marlon Brando). And, if done right, I could see LaBeouf taking on the mantle for future Indiana Jones films.