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Last Updated: Jul 1st, 2008 - 11:38:21 |
It is difficult to imagine that Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, who have brought us some of the most riveting movies in recent memory, including “War of the Worlds,” “Saving Private Ryan” and, of course, the “Star Wars” franchise, could join forces and produce the mediocre sequel “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.” (Dag, even the crystal skull looks fake!)
After all the fireworks to the order of 9.0 that we’ve seen from these two, “Crystal Skull” comes across like Spielberg 1.0. His 1977 “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” certainly had more snap, crackle and magic than this. It’s not that “Crystal Skull” doesn’t have its signature moments, such as the requisite killer bugs, creepy caves and villains with foreign accents, but it has far more moments that are tepid or even vapid. Even die-hard fans might push back from the table dissatisfied or even sleepy.
Contributing to the problem are less-than-energetic performances, starting with Harrison Ford reprising his famous 80’s role as Henry “Indiana” Jones. Indy is a college archeology professor who moonlights as a treasure hunter/grave robber/adventurer in pursuit of prized artifacts of the world. Unlike Sean Connery, who seems to be an evergreen badass, the likeable Ford just seems to have lost the energy for this type of role.
There also isn’t much to say for 21-year-old Shia LaBeouf, who is being pumped as the next Tom Hanks but, for much of this film, seems to get bogged down playing some poor man’s imitation of The Fonz. Of course, when all the performances aren’t so great, that usually points to weaknesses in the script, this one by the accomplished David Koepp (“War of the Worlds,” “Spider-man” and “Panic Room”). Let’s just put it this way, after a nearly 25-year hiatus, the script has the same tired dramas and jokes. This time, German Nazis are replaced by Russians, hapless natives of Africa and the Middle East are replaced by Latin Americans—and Indy is still scared of snakes.
Created by Lucas in a style to pay homage to the serialized adventures of the 1940’s, Indiana Jones movies have always idealized the genteel intellectual who likes to let out his thug side on weekends—preferably among some dark natives. This go-round, however, the story doesn’t know what it wants to be. The old-fashioned adventure vibe, with a setting in the 1940’s, is short on adventure and comes across as corny. On the other hand, the special effects and discovery that made the first film in the series, “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” a fun, if problematic rollercoaster ride, are lacking in this sequel.
It’s not fun being the bearer of bad news to Indy fans. But with the price of gas and food, it could be that you’re being more selective about where to plunk down your cash.
“Crystal Skull’ has some interesting references to Mayan culture and fun scenes involving car chases, the test of a nuclear bomb and an unexpected trip down a steep waterfall. There are plenty of pieces and snippets here. Unfortunately, these pieces don’t add up to the action-packed summer blockbuster we’ve come to expect. Hate to ask, but can Jason Bourne come out to play?
This review also appeared on Tom Joyner's BlackAmericaWeb.com,/i>
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