Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull «««
PG-13, 127m., 2008
Cast & Credits: Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones), Cate Blanchett (Irina Spalko), Karen Allen (Marion Ravenwood), Shia LaBeouf (Mutt Williams), Ray Winstone (‘Mac’ George McHale), John Hurt (Professor ‘Ox’ Oxley), Jim Broadbent (Dean Charles Stanforth). Directed by Steven Spielberg. Screenplay by David Koepp. Story by George Lucas and Jeff Nathanson based on characters created by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman.
Nostalgic. Formulaic. Critic-proof.
Such are the words I use to describe Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull; the fourth and obviously the most anticipated sequel to the roller coaster adventure series created by George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, and star Harrison Ford.
I say “anticipated” because it’s been 19 years since we last saw Ford’s archeologist adventurer ride off into the sunset in the supposed final installment of the series, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989).
If my three words used to describe the latest installment don’t come off as particularly favorable, it’s because “nostalgia” wise, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull brings back memories of how great the original (and yes, it was really an original) Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) was.
Although Temple of Doom (1984) and Last Crusade could never quite match up to the original, all three were fun, humorous, often edge-of-your-seat roller coaster rides. Watching all three was like getting on a new roller coaster some amusement park just built for the current summer season.
Instead of being a thrilling non-stop adventure ride though, Crystal Skull feels like we’ve just returned to those old amusement parks 19 years later, but there are no new rides worth jumping on. Everything done here was done better in the previous three. Alas, this roller coaster ride we get on for two hours inside the dark theater reveals nothing new. We just about know what’s going to be around that next corner.
We get, not surprisingly, a truck chase sequence that takes place along the mountainous high cliffs of Peru where Indiana Jones battles Russian agents in a fight to get his hands on a prized skull that supposedly holds great powers. The scene clearly brings back reminders of the more exciting chase sequence in Raiders where Jones battled the Nazis for the Ark. There is even a brief shot of the “Ark of the Covenant” early on in the film’s first few minutes.
By comparison, the climax in Crystal Skulls echoes the horrific and yes, much more impressive visual effects of Raiders as well. Would you be surprised if you saw the Russian soldiers get sucked up into the sky by supernatural forces, or maybe I should say forces from outer space, while their leader dies a similar special effects laden death that befell the series other villains (i.e. eyes burning, face and body exploding)?
I kept getting the feeling we should be unexpectedly surprised when it’s revealed that a young leather-clad biker named Mutt Williams (Shia LeBeouf) turns out to be Indiana’s son. Or for that matter, when Indiana’s former flame, Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen), enters the picture. Instead of being surprised though, all I can do is just smile.
I wonder if screenwriter David Koepp, who also wrote the screenplay for Spielberg’s War of the Worlds (2005) really thought when writing the dialogue and planning out these scenes truly felt that such revelations would leave the audience with inaudible gasps.
Which brings me to the word “formulaic.” To quote the phrase, “If it ain’t broke, why fix it?”
Like the previous installments, Crystal Skull supplies the who’s who in terms of persons, places, and things. The year now is 1957. The persons’ or perhaps I should say the villains this time are Russians led by dark haired vixen, sword wielding agent Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett) who has the ability to read minds and is after a pair of ancient skulls believed to have special powers.
The film once again sends us on a world wide trip from the Nevada deserts where nuclear testing is done to the Mayan temples of Peru. The characters run into giant scorpions (the bite isn’t as bad as those from the smaller ones), giant red eating ants that can swarm a victim in seconds and are able to carry them into their underground lair, observant gophers, and oh yes, lot of monkeys.
All this makes the film “critic-proof” in much the same way that the Star Wars prequels were. It don’t matter what negative commentary the entertainment media says. It’s all about clever marketing. Lucas employs the same similar marketing formula when it comes to choosing the perfect theatrical release date as he did with the Star Wars prequels. To put it simply, release the film a weekend before Memorial Day where no other major release can compete with it over the next week, and watch the millions come in. It don't matter what happens after that. The film will have already paid for itself. That’s not to say the filmmakers failed to churn out a good product.
I enjoyed the performances. If there is one character throughout his movie career where I firmly believe Ford feels at home playing and could go on doing the role despite his age now at 65, it’s this one.
To quote his line from Raiders, “it’s not the years, it’s the mileage.”
Ford once again proves he is the unstoppable David who despite overwhelming odds is able to conquer any Goliaths that stand in his way whether it’s Nazis, sacrificial priests or Russians.
Karen Allen’s return as Indy’s brief romantic flame from the original shows she is still as feisty as she is mouthy.
I even liked LeBeouf’s character who acts like he is channeling Marlon Brando’s motorcycle biker from The Wild One (1953).
It’s Blanchett though who steals the show with her perfect Russian accent who likely wouldn’t hesitate killing someone by simply wrapping her legs around a male and squeezing them until their spine breaks the way she smashes man-eating ants between her legs.
If Blanchett’s Spalko had been a real Russian agent, I have no doubt she probably would have been the inspiration for creating the Natasha character in the Rocky & Bullwinkle & Friends cartoon (1959).
The storyline involving aliens and flying saucers however would no doubt feel right at home in an X-Files movie, but it doesn’t belong in an Indiana Jones picture. Given the controversy at how Lucas, Spielberg, and Ford could not agree on a screenplay the past several years, I can’t help but wonder what other ideas such screenwriters/directors like Frank Darabont (The Mist-2007) had in mind for the character when they submitted their scripts to the three box office Gods only to have them all rejected.
Which brings me back to the word “nostalgic.” Perhaps the only reason why Spielberg, Lucas, and Ford, all of whom are now in the early to mid-60s returned to doing a fourth one after so long was to get one done before they are too old to make another. I have no doubt that for Ford, it was the opportunity to bring in some box office gold given that he hasn’t had a $100 million dollar hit in a long while.
For Lucas, it was the chance milk the franchise and double his money the way he has done with the Star Wars movies when it comes to merchandising. There are already rumors flying around Hollywood that a fifth one could get made and Spielberg has been quoted saying in interviews he wouldn’t rule out making more installments "only if you [the audience] want more.”
The ending seems to suggest that it will be LeBeouf’s character who could take over the reigns from Ford if there is another one.
I can’t picture him as the main character starring in a title called “Mutt Williams and the Kingdom of Giant Ants” however.
That might even sound like a cruel joke to fans who only see Ford as the whip-wielding archeologist and no one else.
I get the feeling Ford’s Indiana Jones feels the same way. Heaven help anyone who dares trying on that brown hat should it come blowing their way.
©5/31/08
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Downey's performance makes 'Iron Man' rust free
Iron Man «««
PG-13, 126m., 2008
A few minutes after the credits rolled at the conclusion of Iron Man was a brief scene that lasted about a minute. The much talked about final shot was discussed on various websites hours after the film’s premiere May 3, 2008. The websites, however, didn’t give away what happened. All that was said on a couple of the sites I visited was something to the extent of “be sure to stick around through the credits.”
I saw Iron Man on a Monday afternoon, three days after its successful $100 million box office debut, so I had known already about that “final shot.” More than a handful of people in the theater with me, however, it seems did not as they all filed out as the credits rolled. One of the ushers told several individuals to stick around through the credits. Not many did. Other than myself, it was only two other guys, possibly slightly younger than me who waited.
Then came that much talked about final scene. Unless the internet already gave away what happens, I won’t divulge the shot’s secrets except to say the scene predictably paves the way for another movie franchise in Marvel Comics library of superhero characters. The shot didn’t leave me salivating the way I am sure fans of the Iron Man comic books reacted opening weekend inside packed movie houses. I could just hear the ghostly sounds of “ooohs” and “ahhs” throughout the empty auditorium.
The other two individuals it seemed were not so impressed either. One of them commented the usher could have just told them what happens as though they just wasted two minutes of their precious time.
PG-13, 126m., 2008
Cast & Credits: Robert Downey Jr (Tony Stark/Iron Man), Terrence Howard (Jim Rhodes), Jeff Bridges (Obadiah Stone/Iron Monger), Gwyneth Paltrow (Virginia ‘Pepper’ Potts), Leslie Bibb (Christine Everhart), Shaun Toub (Yinsen), Faran Tahir (Raza). Screenplay by Mark Fergus, Matt Holloway, Art Marcum, and Hawk Ostby based on characters created by Stan Lee, Don Heck, Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby. Directed by Jon Favreau.
A few minutes after the credits rolled at the conclusion of Iron Man was a brief scene that lasted about a minute. The much talked about final shot was discussed on various websites hours after the film’s premiere May 3, 2008. The websites, however, didn’t give away what happened. All that was said on a couple of the sites I visited was something to the extent of “be sure to stick around through the credits.”
I saw Iron Man on a Monday afternoon, three days after its successful $100 million box office debut, so I had known already about that “final shot.” More than a handful of people in the theater with me, however, it seems did not as they all filed out as the credits rolled. One of the ushers told several individuals to stick around through the credits. Not many did. Other than myself, it was only two other guys, possibly slightly younger than me who waited.
Then came that much talked about final scene. Unless the internet already gave away what happens, I won’t divulge the shot’s secrets except to say the scene predictably paves the way for another movie franchise in Marvel Comics library of superhero characters. The shot didn’t leave me salivating the way I am sure fans of the Iron Man comic books reacted opening weekend inside packed movie houses. I could just hear the ghostly sounds of “ooohs” and “ahhs” throughout the empty auditorium.
The other two individuals it seemed were not so impressed either. One of them commented the usher could have just told them what happens as though they just wasted two minutes of their precious time.
I open my review with that reaction because it not only explains the attitude of those two but how I not only feel about all these multi-million dollar superhero adaptations headed to the big screen the next few years, but about a majority of comic book movie franchises past.
Let’s be honest. The big screen adaptations of Iron Man, Fantastic Four, Ghost Rider and the Spider-Man and X-Men trilogies are made for fans of the classic characters created by Marvel Comics. They aren’t made for non-fans like myself who not once opened up a 30 page Iron Man comic book. The closest thing to comic books I ever read was if it was spawned from blockbuster movies and television shows like Indiana Jones, Star Trek, and Star Wars.
It’s the fans, a great of majority of who likely attend comic book and science fiction conventions, who demand perfection when Hollywood decides to bring their favorite superhero to the big screen in hopes of creating a promising franchise. When the project fails, or perhaps stalls in a holding pattern, as has been the case with the Fantastic Four movies (2005 and 2007) and Hulk (2003), the critical reaction from fans, not to mention the box office figures is catastrophic.
I found what made the Spider-Man (2002-2007) and X-Men (2000-2006) franchises work was not the visual effects eye candy, which Iron Man, has plenty of, given its $180 million budget. I wasn’t surprised to see “Iron Man” outrun a couple air force fighter jets and damaging one by accident. The final battle sequence where the hero in all his red and yellow metallic glory is seen battling another iron clad villain reminded me of a similar climax in Robocop 2 (1990) between two mechanical metallic characters.
Iron Man's storyline is as formulaic and predictable as most every other origin story from Marvel Comics that’s been brought to the big screen to date. The life change Iron Man’s billionaire military industrialist playboy Tony Stark goes through, as played enjoyably by Robert Downey Jr. is not much different from the venomous spider bite that gave Tobey Maguire’s Peter Parker the ability to spin webs, crawl alongside skyscrapers and fly through the air swinging from web to web like he is Tarzan.
“I should be dead already,” Stark says upon his near-death experience in Afghanistan after escaping from terrorists who want him to build a missile. “It must be for a reason. I just finally know what I have to do.”
That line reminded me of the one Uncle Ben told Peter Parker in Spider-Man (2002).
Let’s be honest. The big screen adaptations of Iron Man, Fantastic Four, Ghost Rider and the Spider-Man and X-Men trilogies are made for fans of the classic characters created by Marvel Comics. They aren’t made for non-fans like myself who not once opened up a 30 page Iron Man comic book. The closest thing to comic books I ever read was if it was spawned from blockbuster movies and television shows like Indiana Jones, Star Trek, and Star Wars.
It’s the fans, a great of majority of who likely attend comic book and science fiction conventions, who demand perfection when Hollywood decides to bring their favorite superhero to the big screen in hopes of creating a promising franchise. When the project fails, or perhaps stalls in a holding pattern, as has been the case with the Fantastic Four movies (2005 and 2007) and Hulk (2003), the critical reaction from fans, not to mention the box office figures is catastrophic.
I found what made the Spider-Man (2002-2007) and X-Men (2000-2006) franchises work was not the visual effects eye candy, which Iron Man, has plenty of, given its $180 million budget. I wasn’t surprised to see “Iron Man” outrun a couple air force fighter jets and damaging one by accident. The final battle sequence where the hero in all his red and yellow metallic glory is seen battling another iron clad villain reminded me of a similar climax in Robocop 2 (1990) between two mechanical metallic characters.
Iron Man's storyline is as formulaic and predictable as most every other origin story from Marvel Comics that’s been brought to the big screen to date. The life change Iron Man’s billionaire military industrialist playboy Tony Stark goes through, as played enjoyably by Robert Downey Jr. is not much different from the venomous spider bite that gave Tobey Maguire’s Peter Parker the ability to spin webs, crawl alongside skyscrapers and fly through the air swinging from web to web like he is Tarzan.
“I should be dead already,” Stark says upon his near-death experience in Afghanistan after escaping from terrorists who want him to build a missile. “It must be for a reason. I just finally know what I have to do.”
That line reminded me of the one Uncle Ben told Peter Parker in Spider-Man (2002).
“With great power comes great responsibility,” he said.
As for making the villains into challenging adversaries for the hero and whether or not they prevail, I am reminded of the comment Peter Finch’s “Mad Prophet of the Airwaves” Howard Beale said in Network (1976).
“No matter how much trouble the hero is in, don't worry: just look at your watch -- at the end of the hour, he's going to win,” Beale said.
You can practically set your watch with these superhero movies, in particular the ones from Marvel Comics’ publications, and know that one, it’s a good bet the franchise’s creator Stan Lee will make a cameo appearance (no longer a surprise) and two, in the final ten minutes or so, the hero will emerge victorious. The same applies to Iron Man.
What makes the film work, much like the Spider-Man and X-Men movies before it is the lead character, thanks in part largely to Downey who looks as though he hasn’t had this much fun making a film in years. Of course, it helps when you are a fan of the character you are playing. Downey is and has openly admitted that if given the chance, he’d make 15 Iron Man movies. It also helps when the director, in this case Jon Favreau, and the screenwriters are in favor of staying faithful to the original source material.
I wouldn’t be surprised if this series lasted beyond the possible planned installments of two or three. If the James Bond franchise can continue for forty years with no end in sight, then why not have ten or more Iron Man movies?
Downey’s Stark is like a 21st century James Bond who drives around in fast cars, is always seen at public events impeccably dressed and sleeps with several women he meets but can’t quite remember their names afterwards. When it comes to designing military fighting technology, in particular, his own suit of armor, he doesn’t need a weapons expert like the one Bond had named Q. Of course, not all the weapons Q and his department designed passed the test stage. By comparison, it takes Stark several tries to get his suit of armor working correctly, at times damaging some of his most expensive sports cars and taking out a few floors of his personal home and laboratory.
“Sometimes you gotta run before you can walk,” Stark says.
He is James Bond and Q rolled into one.
As for making the villains into challenging adversaries for the hero and whether or not they prevail, I am reminded of the comment Peter Finch’s “Mad Prophet of the Airwaves” Howard Beale said in Network (1976).
“No matter how much trouble the hero is in, don't worry: just look at your watch -- at the end of the hour, he's going to win,” Beale said.
You can practically set your watch with these superhero movies, in particular the ones from Marvel Comics’ publications, and know that one, it’s a good bet the franchise’s creator Stan Lee will make a cameo appearance (no longer a surprise) and two, in the final ten minutes or so, the hero will emerge victorious. The same applies to Iron Man.
What makes the film work, much like the Spider-Man and X-Men movies before it is the lead character, thanks in part largely to Downey who looks as though he hasn’t had this much fun making a film in years. Of course, it helps when you are a fan of the character you are playing. Downey is and has openly admitted that if given the chance, he’d make 15 Iron Man movies. It also helps when the director, in this case Jon Favreau, and the screenwriters are in favor of staying faithful to the original source material.
I wouldn’t be surprised if this series lasted beyond the possible planned installments of two or three. If the James Bond franchise can continue for forty years with no end in sight, then why not have ten or more Iron Man movies?
Downey’s Stark is like a 21st century James Bond who drives around in fast cars, is always seen at public events impeccably dressed and sleeps with several women he meets but can’t quite remember their names afterwards. When it comes to designing military fighting technology, in particular, his own suit of armor, he doesn’t need a weapons expert like the one Bond had named Q. Of course, not all the weapons Q and his department designed passed the test stage. By comparison, it takes Stark several tries to get his suit of armor working correctly, at times damaging some of his most expensive sports cars and taking out a few floors of his personal home and laboratory.
“Sometimes you gotta run before you can walk,” Stark says.
He is James Bond and Q rolled into one.
Whereas Bond had a secretary, Stark has his own Miss Moneypenny in the form of Gwyneth Paltrow’s leggy high heeled Virginia “Pepper” Potts, who does everything for her employer which includes in reference to the women Stark sleeps with, “taking out the trash.”
Iron Man is a good superhero movie, but not a great one. The best superhero films were the ones that didn’t feel like they were adaptations and made us believe they took place in real time like Superman: The Movie (1978) and Batman Begins (2005). What I want though from these adaptations is a psychotic villain who could almost successfully pull off defeating the hero the way Gene Hackman’s and Kevin Spacey’s Lex Luthor and the trio of super criminals in Superman II (1981) tried when they battled the Man of Steel.
Or have a psychological connection between the villain and the hero where something traumatic happens in both their lives that turns them into something else; one chooses to fight for good, the other evil. That notion was briefly explored in the first Batman film in 1989 between Michael Keaton’s Caped Crusader and Jack Nicholson’s Joker. I have a feeling that same relationship may even be further explored in The Dark Knight (2008) thanks to the late Heath Ledger’s final performance in his own twisted rendition of Nicholson’s classic character.
Iron Man at least takes that first step into making us realize the lead character is not as invulnerable as we’d like to think. After Paltrow’s Pepper pulls out a failing mechanical device from her employer’s chest that helps keep metallic shrapnel from entering his heart and replacing it with a new one, Stark says she is the only friend he has.
Downey’s Iron Man could go down as the first big screen superhero with a frail vulnerable side; a flying, walking, talking, weapons firing technological tin man with a heart.
©5/7/08
Iron Man is a good superhero movie, but not a great one. The best superhero films were the ones that didn’t feel like they were adaptations and made us believe they took place in real time like Superman: The Movie (1978) and Batman Begins (2005). What I want though from these adaptations is a psychotic villain who could almost successfully pull off defeating the hero the way Gene Hackman’s and Kevin Spacey’s Lex Luthor and the trio of super criminals in Superman II (1981) tried when they battled the Man of Steel.
Or have a psychological connection between the villain and the hero where something traumatic happens in both their lives that turns them into something else; one chooses to fight for good, the other evil. That notion was briefly explored in the first Batman film in 1989 between Michael Keaton’s Caped Crusader and Jack Nicholson’s Joker. I have a feeling that same relationship may even be further explored in The Dark Knight (2008) thanks to the late Heath Ledger’s final performance in his own twisted rendition of Nicholson’s classic character.
Iron Man at least takes that first step into making us realize the lead character is not as invulnerable as we’d like to think. After Paltrow’s Pepper pulls out a failing mechanical device from her employer’s chest that helps keep metallic shrapnel from entering his heart and replacing it with a new one, Stark says she is the only friend he has.
Downey’s Iron Man could go down as the first big screen superhero with a frail vulnerable side; a flying, walking, talking, weapons firing technological tin man with a heart.
©5/7/08
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)