Is Indy 4 that bad?

It's well-made as always but it gives off the impression that everybody involved was treating it as a weekend excursion rather than giving it their all. Even John Williams' score is a bit lackluster despite a few fun moments.

 

That reminds me of something I've been meaning to ask. Do we have a thread for the soundtracks to the Indy films?

 

It's obviously the worst of the four films IMO, and I'd honestly prefer it wasn't made. We literally had Indy riding off into the sunset at the end of Last Crusade, which I thought was perfect. But that's a moot point. KOTCS exists and it does have redeeming qualities, even if the whole isn't up to par. I can enjoy it in a 50s B movie kind of way, I guess.

 

Love it. I think it's the second best behind Raiders. TOD is a mess imo and I never saw the greatness in TLC. Always came off as a poor man's Raiders.....

 

There's probably something from several years ago but I haven't seen any recent threads. I might try creating one sometime soon.

It's a rich man's Raider's. It might technically be a rehash but the father/son dynamic between Connery and Ford and the constantly funny and occasionally poignant writing elevate it greatly in my mind. Temple of Doom is a mess but it's fun in its energetic unrestrained pulpiness. Some of Spielberg's very best action directing is found in that movie.

 

Eh, maybe. I have to rewatch. It's been awhile....the tank scene was pretty cool though.

 

I just purchased Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull on Blu-ray and it sure does look beautiful, When I pop it on my 42 inch LG HD TV It looks much better then in DVD and In The end the film holds up the test of time and when It Is a 10 year old film I think It will be looked at In a new light!!!!!!!!!!!

 

In terms of blu-ray picture quality, I actually prefer the other 3 Indys (Temple of Doom to a lesser extent). I'm just not a fan of the cinematography in this one. Spielberg's framing is breathtaking as always but the pee-yellow color filters, softer focus, high contrast lighting make this Spielberg's ugliest film for me (with the possible exception of The Lost World). I hope he finds somebody other than Janusz Kaminski for this next film.

 

I prefer to think of them as "piss-yellow" color filters, like the cars in American Graffiti .

 

Though I know I'm in the minority here, I thought KOTCS was excellent. I actually liked it much better than TLC, which I didn't like; I felt it was unnecessary to have IJ's father in the film. As Spielberg himself said, having Connery in the film "unbalanced" the movie; I also didn't like how he treated IJ like a little kid - very emasculating. The focus should instead have been on IJ himself (as in the other films) instead of IJ & hid Dad - he played second fiddle to his father in TLC, which I felt took away from the effectiveness of the film.

 

I think the colors In KOTCS was to give it a 1950's look ... I don't have a problem with the colors.

 

I loathe this film with all my being. The one element I like is Shia LaBoeuf's performance, where he's this 50s tough-kid with a heart of gold. Everything else, IMO, tanks in this movie. It's an embarrassment.

 

It's not perfect, but I think KOTCS was fun.

 

Raiders of the Lost Ark was a B movie idea Lucas and Spielberg turned into a A+ film. With Kingdom of the Crystal Skull they simply made another B movie. It's not the best Indy adventure but it is a fun and harmless movie completely unworthy of all the hate.

 

It's not that bad. I've come to accept it's not particularly great, and there's a lot about it that's awful, but enough that's redeeming that the film itself isn't. Everything in the US during the first forty or so minutes is pretty fun, for the most part. It's only when it starts relying too heavily on the formula of Raiders that I feel it completely falls to pieces. But it's not nearly as bad as The Phantom Menace or Attack of the Clones, and I'd say it's much more consistent than Revenge of the Sith even if that film has more singularly impactful moments, whereas I find Kingdom of the Crystal Skull to be the least memorable film out of both SW and IJ.

I could go on about why I think the film doesn't work (and I have in the Indy 5 announcement thread), but I don't think it's deserving of the severe level of hate it receives. It's not really worthy of adulation, either, and I think the fact that it's strictly middle ground, with a lot of okay stuff, a couple moments of genuine inspiration, and several instances of outright badness that frustrates people so much.

Still, I'm extraordinarily hopeful about Indy 5. I think Spielberg is going to pull out all the stops to end his tenure with the franchise on a high note, and given that I consider him to be our greatest living director, and perhaps the best in American history (his versatility is insane and his expert film craftsmanship feels almost effortless), I'd say he's more than earned my trust and optimism.

 

I really agree. I think that.

When I saw Kingdom of the Crystal Skull for the first time, I had a good time with it. I laughed, I was thrilled and I was glad to see my hero again. It has his ups and downs... specially I think the second part of the movie is less inspired, but I think it's a funny film and a great adventure. Maybe it doesn't pretend to be special, I think it's another chapter more in the series and I think the movie executes perfectly that role. Harrison is superb in almost every scene and the beginning of the movie is brutal to me.

Maybe the previous ones were more perfect and well terminated. And I think I would like more solitaire action of Indy in Kingdom, but, anyway, I love the movie. I find the hate towards this film exaggerated... It's like some people were really hurt or something... or like the movie had ruined their lives. Relax, my friends, it's only a fun adventure of our good old Indy, nothing more. Yes, it may have some weird things or errors, but I think it's better take the good things (and I think there are many good things in this movie, really! I enjoy it very much!).

I only enjoy this gift Spielberg, Lucas, Harrison and Williams gave to us

 

while I like Indy 4 I had hopes Indy 5 would have been a prequel instead, like Temple Of Doom was to Raiders

 

The problem with that is the age of Harrison. It had worked if they had shot the film inmediatly after Kingdom of Crystal Skull. Now it's difficult to make (and with digital effects would be weird, I think).

I think it would had been amazing they had made a pair of films (before Kingdom) in the 90's.

 

I think the movie starts out as very promising with the whole 50's vibe and everything, only to escalate into a dull cat-and-rat-hunt between the Russians and Indiana that lacks substance and logic.

The first act is really a lot of fun, to be honest. The café scene with Mutt and Indiana is especially funny and well-done, and the motorcycle chase through the campus is a great action scene, classic Spielberg style. And yeah, I actually liked the "nuke the fridge" scene. But then once Mutt and Indiana starts looking for the crystal skull, the movie turns into valium - the reason for everything just seems so unjustified, and the story appears to be following down a straight line. Which is a shame. The movie gets some redeeming qualities at the end with Irina Spalko's awesome death scene and the giant flying saucer, but it's not enough to make up for most of the second and third acts. I'd give Crystal Skull a 2/5, which says something since I give 5/5 to all three previous Indy films.

 

Though I love Crystal Skull, I have to agree partly. It's like in the first half of the film Spielberg and his crew had many desires to make the movie. I find them motivated, inspired. The camera movements, cinematography and the actions sequences are great in the first half of the film. But in the second half it's like Spielberg was tired or something... Like he was making the movie in automatic pilot, if you get what I mean. Everything is more normal and less special towards the end. There is no real danger, there aren't neither close ups of Indy nor action sequences in solitaire with him. It's like the overall group diminished the power of each individual character and scene. It's hard to explain. And, like I said, I love the movie, but I think it lose power along the minutes towards the end.

 

I really liked it. It did have some weak areas but overall, I think people exaggerated the whole "it's so terrible" thing. The Russian lady threw me off a bit but I guess it is a bit like Hitler collecting different artifacts...

 

It's great fun! Makes you wish they never stopped making them. Starts off awesome and goes right into the story at Area 51 which is a wonderful call back to Raiders. I love the 'nuking the fridge' scene. Russia seems like the next realistic enemy. The soundtrack is splendid; "You ain't nothin but a hound dog." Shia LaBeouf IMO is the worst part of the film. Sure a religious artifact might of been more interesting however I believe they were saving that for Indy 5, so long as Skull was successful. And it was and I'm sure Indy 5 will bring in even more bank. I'm not a fan of Cate Blanchett or Igor Jijikine who plays Russian Colonel Antonin Dovchenko but most the rest of the cast I'm delighted with. I always thought that the ending borrowed a little from The X-Files movie but it looks great and make for a great story. I suppose it could have done better by using practical effects more rather the CGI, although they will correct that I'm sure for Indy 5.

 

Indy and Marion got married (FINALLY). What's not to like about that? At least they can live happily ever after, unlike Han and Leia.

 

Meh, it didn't feel earned to me. Put them on the screen together, have them repeat a few jokes, have them have no romantic scenes, and then get married out of the blue. I didn't like it. Just like Indy having a son was reduced to a punchline. Unlike Indy's strained relation with his father, there was no depth. Indy 4 is fundamentally flawed IMO.

 

This is the biggest flaw with KOTCS, I felt like I didn't care about anyone on screen other than Indy, very poorly written in that regard IMO.