Indiana rules the kingdom of the crystal skull

By Bart Elfrink

Let me get two things off my chest right up front. First, I love the original three Indiana Jones films, Temple of Doom being my favorite. Second, I have never seen an Indiana Jones film in a theater. I am 30 years old now, so that would have made me about 6 or 7 when Temple of Doom came out, and I cared more about Ghostbusters and Gremlins at that particular time in my life.

I was 12 when Last Crusade came out, so I was too young (according to my dad) to see a PG-13 Indy flick at the Theater, even though all of my friends went (and no, dad I would NOT have gone out and thrown rocks at windows on Broadway if they did it). So seeing a real, honest-to-God, Indiana Jones movie in a real movie theater is a new experience to me, and it did not disappoint.

From the get go, there is action, excitement, intrigue. Steven Spielberg is truly working his movie magic with this film; he is back at the top of his A-game. We begin the story in the location where Raider's of the Lost Ark ended -- inside the mysterious warehouse that is the final resting place of the Ark of the Covenant. It is now 1957 and there is an object in storage that the Russians need badly, and they need Dr. Jones' help to find it. After all, he was the person who found it 10 years prior. (That's 1947 kiddies, and if you look closely, you'll see Roswell NM written on the "box" and if you know your history, you can figure out what's inside.)

So of course they drag Indy out of the trunk of a car, and throw both him and his fedora on the ground, smack him around a little, and when he finally puts on the trademark hat and turns to face the camera for the first time, he truly looks like he has been out there fighting the Russians and the Nazis for the past 20 years. It's rough. At first I thought, WOW, Harrison has not aged well ... but it was actually a pretty good makeup job to make him look that disheveled. Or maybe it was a REALLY good makeup job to make him look not disheveled for the rest of the movie. I'm not sure.

The Russians have captured Dr. Jones to help them find this mysterious object of extreme power to help fuel Stalin's army of psychic soldiers, led by the always wonderful Cate Blanchett. She truly shines in this movie, even when her British accent slips through her Russian one. She is one evil psychic-comrade-with-a-killer-hair-cut. This is the part of the film that really worked. The prior Indy films had the evil guys looking for some religious artifact that would help them to rule the world, but this time around Indy's quest revolves around an object that is more sci-fi in nature.

Indy escapes from the Russians in a spectacular fashion -- of course he escapes, this is an Indiana Jones movie -- and finds himself in the middle of a nuclear bomb test site with one minute until the bomb goes off. How does he escape this one? Who knows? Watch the movie and you will be rewarded with one of the best-looking screenshots I have ever seen. It has to do with a mushroom cloud, so pay attention.

Paying attention isn't key to "getting" the movie, but for those of you who are really eagle-eyed, references to the previous films are buried in the scenes. I did not expect to see Sean Connery's face on screen in this film, but there it was.

Harrison Ford, the once-great actor who seems to have been "phoning it in" for the last 15 years or so, (Hollywood Homicide, anyone?) is in rare form here. I have not seen a performance this charismatic from him since, well, the last Indiana Jones Movie. One scene in this installment has Indy facing a giant rat snake that made me laugh so hard, I squirted soda out of my nose (Apologies to the person with the now-sticky hairdo).

The next paragraph is going to give away a pretty big plot point so, if you want to go in not knowing anything big, skip the entire paragraph. I warned you, so here goes.

Marion Ravenwood returns! With a Son! Yes that is right, Karen Allen, Indy's love interest from the first film is back. Along with Shia LeBouf, as "Mutt" Williams, her 21-year-old son. When Indy first sees her, the expression on his face is pure Harrison Ford. I don't know if it is love or nostalgia or just plain excitement, but all three appear on his face for a split second, and in that second, you can tell that there may have been other women in Indy's life, but there have been no other women quite like Marion. They haven't seen each other in 21 years, yet they begin fighting again just as if they were an old married couple. (21 years? But her son "Mutt" is 21 years old, how did, oh, I get it.) Way to go Indiana Jones!

Shia LeBouf, as Mutt Williams, the 20-something greaser with an attitude to match, was an interesting character. He is the reason Indiana has to go on this new quest for the Crystal Skull. He shows up and begs Indy for help, because the Russians have kidnapped someone named Dr. Oxley, a former friend and colleague of Indy's, and this Oxley sent a letter to Mutt written in an ancient Mayan language, and told him to deliver it to a Dr. Jones. And as far as sidekicks for Indiana Jones go, you could do a lot worse than Shia, who has an impeccable sense of comedic timing and can really hold his own with Harrison.

If you're looking for comedy, it is definitely here. If you are looking for action, it is here, too. If you are looking for the trademark Indiana Jones plot device whereby he has to come in contact with something extremely creepy-crawly, you WILL NOT be disappointed. This movie pays off, in spades. It was worth the 20-year wait.

Bart Elfrink reviews movies for SE Live on a tri-weekly basis. Look for his next one in an upcoming issue of SE Live, found every Thursday in the Southeast Missourian.