Check Out the Trailer

The man in the Fedora hat is back. While the next installment in this franchise could be titled “Indiana Jones and the Search for Lightning in a Bottle,” which is what the series has been trying to capture since RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, the first new installment in 19 years nicely bridges the gap in time, in both the real and fictional worlds, placing the action in the 1950s and crossing ancient and modern myths. The aging hero can still take a punch, but he comes off wiser. For all he’s been through, he should have all the wisdom in the world already, but I’ll get to that later.

Director Steven Spielberg, working from a screenplay by JURASSIC PARK scribe David Koepp, gets the story cooking right from the start. Indiana (Harrison Ford) and his partner Mac McHale (Ray Winstone, THE DEPARTED) have been kidnapped by Russians, lead by Soviet super-agent Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett, I’M NOT THERE), with her stark black Louise Brooks hairstyle and mysterious psychic abilities. She’s looking for the contents of a box in a government warehouse and needs Dr. Jones to find it. This incident kicks off an adventure that will lead our dashing hero to Peru in search of a highly magnetized (well, highly magnetized when the plot needs it to be) crystal skull, which could be the key to learning all the knowledge in the universe and beyond. So of course this would be of interest to the evil Commies, who want to get inside our brains and control our every thought. Along for the ride is greaser Mutt Williams (Shia LaBeouf, TRANSFORMERS), who informs Indy that his old friend Prof. Oxley (John Hurt, THE ELEPHANT MAN), who has dedicated his life to studying the legend of the crystal skull and it’s connection to El Dorado, is in danger. And lets not forget Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen), Indy’s girl from the original film; she’s back too.

It’s very hard to discuss the plot, which is really just an excuse for amazing action set piece after amazing action set piece, without ruining some of the surprises that the filmmakers have so skillfully kept secret up to this point. Like all the Indy adventures the supernatural plays a role, and this installment has the supernatural in spades. The 1950s setting is used wonderfully to bring in new villains — the Russians — and use them in an interesting mythical way. As the past adventures painted the Nazis as emotionless power hungry killers, this film paints the Soviets as scheming power hungry killers, which is just the myth that surrounded them during the 1950s. Like RAIDERS, greed for power and wealth is pitted against Indy’s thirst for knowledge. The film also throws in ’50s iconic elements such as Marlon Brando-like WILD ONE bikers, the nuclear threat and… well, you’ll have to see the movie. It combines these elements with the series’ signature ancient pulp material like natives, giant killer ants and jungle-hidden temples.

While the world is wonderful, Indy’s gaggle of sidekicks is about two to three too many. No one is as annoying as the sidekicks in TEMPLE OF DOOM, but they are less a part of the fabric of the story than any sidekick in any of the films. Mac turns out to be a tired character we’ve seen a million times before. Mutt is a collection of greaser types and never gets to breath as a character until later in the film. However, LaBeouf is charming enough to not allow the character to become forgettable. Marion shows up midway, argues with Indy, drops a bombshell and then sticks around to survive impossible events with four other really lucky guys. Hurt’s Oxley is crazy and that’s about it. The only new character that’s interesting is the villain. Blanchett can do no wrong in my book and she makes Irina Spalko a classic bad… person.

Now don’t let that last paragraph dissuade you from seeing this film. For where the film wanted to take us, some of the characters were needed. It also brings the series full circle and allows it to grow. Marion is just one of many winks to the first film. CRYSTAL SKULL, with its new iconic villains and interesting twists of myths, actually breaths new life into those areas, which the series hasn’t had since RAIDERS. While the rapport between Indy and sidekick isn’t as good as Indy and Marion in the first film nor Indy and his father in the third, this film presents us with easily one of the best villains in the series, which has always been the key to the Bond series success. If the series does go on, this adventure clearly sets up a new direction with new character dynamics to explore. Indy is older and wiser and has knowledge to share. So maybe the next film will be titled “Mutt Williams and the…” — okay, maybe not.