NEW Indiana Jones & The Kingdom Of (DVD)

Always anxious to see the next one hoping each time
it will not be the last one. It will be a shame when he stops!

They might have gotten a little lazy with this sequel but this film was alright. The opening scene is incredible, as we return to the warehouse last seen at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark. Here we see Indiana Jones for the first time since Last Crusade: Older, Wiser, and more mature. But the man can still use his whip. The thing with Crystal Skull that I really loved was that this is a different Indy. If you go in to this movie expecting to see some crazy stunts like in the previous films then you won't be satisfied. Indiana has settled down. He is in his 60's. We know what he is capable of. We know how tough he is. They didn't have to show him be the tough as nails archaeologist that we came to love because we are so familiar with him. What Spielberg did this time around was have an Indy that is more in the role of Henry Jones Sr from Last Crusade.

In a way, we have watched Indiana grow up over the course of the four films. We've seen him as the young hero and now we see him as the older hero. Spielberg said that he was making this movie for the fans. He didn't come out to make this better than Raiders. He came out to bring us Indy one last time. To show that just like all of us, Indy has grown up with the times, but he still has it in him for one last adventure.

Shia Labeouf was great as Mutt. I honestly wouldn't mind seeing a spin off with just him (maybe). Marion is always great and the chemistry between her and Indy is perfect. Cate Blanchett did a great job as Irina Spalko, she was beautiful, and a great choice for the part. But the true star of the movie is again Shia LeBouf. He so far does well in every movie he is in, but in this movie he does even better. He is funny, entertaining, and is believable as the slightly soft kid pretending to be tough. The whole alien plot was a bit much, but had a great moral at the end, the true treasure was knowledge. Though this is base on 1950's everyone was talking about aliens, and little green men, and the race to space around this era. It was nice to see Indy go after something different this time around.

For all the complaining about the CG and the impossible sequences, again, this was Spielberg and the crew having fun probably without much effort. They weren't trying to win an Oscar. They just wanted to bring back Indiana Jones. Throughout the whole film, Harrison Ford seemed like he was having a blast and so was I. All in all, even though it didn't feel like the original three, it was a "O-kay" addition. As long as you come in just wanting to have a fun time at the movies, then you will love this movie. Beside that the action sequences is decent and the story is very original. This will probably take you one watch for you to like it or not. Cheers Jones.

Let me be very fair by stating that this film is beautifully recreated in Blu-Ray with all the special effects and sound seemingly amplified! It's a beauty!

However, the fourth installment of "Indiana Jones" is a disappointment. The entrance scene with Indiana and his fedora in a silhouette is a nice start, but the film's plot quickly disintegrates into implausibility. Now, I do understand the Saturday `Flash Gordon' type stories where credibility is stretched for entertainment, but this film stretches and breaks. Marion is back (Karen Allen) and her entrance is so very welcome, but she soon disappears into a one-dimensional character. Indiana's new side-kick (Shia LaBeouf) misses his mark and only annoys when constantly slicking back his hair (thanks to George Lucas). John Hurt is such a great actor, it hurts to see him delegated to barely speaking, but his face tells a lot more than the dialogue around him. Cate Blanchett is thoroughly believable as the commie villain, but her character is also `dumbed-down'.

The action scenes are not as inventive as previous Indiana Jones films (remember the first 15 minutes of "Temple of Doom" from the dance number, "Anything Goes" to jumping out a three-story building to a car chase to jumping out of a plane in a raft to sliding down a snow peaked glacier to dropping off a cliff into a wild raging river and on and on...?) There is nothing like that here. There is a floating car with our heroes that goes over numerous gigantic waterfalls and no one gets hurt (only a little wet). The car chase scene on the cliff never gets too exciting and to see LaBeouf swinging on vines ala Tarzan is just TOO much to have the audience believe. Do I need to add the scene where Indy survives a nuclear blast by hiding in a refrigerator that is blown a mile away? And finally, I apologize, but the "Close Encounters" ending is fairly dramatic, but with all that torrential water gushing, mountains collapsing and the winds hurling around the characters, why don't their clothes or hair move at all? It is the most egregious CGI overlook since George Lucas ("Return Of The Jedi") had Mark Hamill fly through the redwood forest on the air-scooters and the ferns didn't move at all.

Like I said, I tried to be fair. It is still a great film compared to most that is out there. But when Lucas and Spielberg set the bar SO high with previous works, they can't top themselves and that hurts - kind of like growing up and realizing your heroes are really ordinary people. But it's still worth watching (or owning), if only for its historical significance and the beautifully filmed scenery (in Blu-Ray!!!) Get the first three in Blu-Ray as well. The difference will make the films seem like new!