Search for a film:

June 21, 2008

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

By Michael

Objectively speaking, I don't mind CGI. Honestly I don't. I've seen it used incredibly skillfully such as in the Pixar movies and incorporated with live-action so seamlessly that it becomes an integral part, like in Sin City or Sky Captain. Unfortunately, CGI can sometimes be so in-your-face and downright obnoxious that it becomes like an annoying extra character that you wish would just go away. The ultimate embodiment of this phenomenon is Jar Jar Binks. I'm sure George Lucas had the best intentions for Jar Jar. He's amiable and family-friendly, but unfortunately for all involved he was also little more than an annoying distraction. He's a prime example of how CGI is more beautiful as the background and the ambiance than it is as the attraction. I start out with this rant because Steven Spielberg and, yes, George Lucas have crafted just a wonderfully entertaining and exciting movie in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull but they go and tarnish the effort with increasingly distracting CGI setpieces and ridiculous props.

This new Indiana Jones starts out with the same smile-inducing, manic action, thrilling stunts and improbable, deus-ex-machina escapes as the other films. Dr. Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford, still at it) is still a college professor during the week and international tomb raider in his private time. It's the 1950s and the Nazis are no longer viable enemies. This time it's the Russians and they coerce Indiana Jones into helping find an artifact that will provide them with great power...or knowledge...or treasure or mind control or...it was sort of unclear and to be perfectly honest it's not terribly important. The wonderful thing about Indiana Jones movies is that the plot is semi-believable as a starting point, but the movies are mostly about wild chase scenes and people dying in strange and inventive ways. This movie does not disappoint in that front, for the most part.

Still, while this movie is by no means the worst in the series (I would argue that Temple of Doom is one of the worst movies I have ever seen), it is very apparent that it is nowhere near as good as Raiders of the Lost Ark and I believe that the reason is the overuse of CGI. CGI really doesn't do much for suspension of disbelief which is, of course, essential in films like these. There's a chase scene in Raiders where Indiana Jones tracks down Nazis who have stole the Ark of the Covenant and proceeds to steal it back form them. He climbs all over their trucks and slides under one, managing to be dragged from it for a good distance. This scene continues to impress me because Harrison Ford (as legend has it) actually performed that stunt and broke a couple ribs in the process. There is a similar chase scene in Crystal Skull that is almost as exciting, but watching Shia LaBeouf swing from CGI vines in a fake CGI jungle, knowing that he just did it in a room with a green screen in Hollywood, really robs something from the experience. The thought takes you out of the movie just long enough for the moment to be dulled. You want to admire cinematography but you know that it only exists on an expensive computer somewhere. The whole movie is full of moments like that from the first scene to the unabashedly ridiculous climax.

Skillful human performances, like in the aforementioned Sin City, are needed to make CGI setpieces really work. Crystal Skull presents us with sort of a mixed bag. To my great surprise, Shia LaBeouf was actually a wonderful addition to the series and he was a joy to watch in every scene he was in. And Cate Blanchett's character was also a lot of fun as, basically, an evil bitch. It's a kind of a role that is deceptively difficult to play and she pulls it off well. That's the good news. The bad news lies in the efforts put forth by series veterans. Karen Allen was a tremendous disappointment. She reprises her role from Raiders of the Lost Ark as Marion Ravenwood, Dr. Jones' love interest. She was always the strongest and most entertaining female character in the series and it was disappointing how out of place she seemed in this film. She just never seemed to have the chemistry with Harrison Ford that they had 27 years ago. I guess it could be expected but it was sure disappointing. And Harrison Ford himself looked like he could barely hide a bemused smile half the time, like "I'm really doing this again?" Yes, Harrison, you are and horrifyingly it's still the best thing you've done in over a decade.

But people don't see movies like this for acting. They go to be entertained by thrilling chases and death-defying chases. And if that's what you're looking for, you probably won't be disappointed. However, the Indiana Jones movies always strived to be more than eye candy. And if you're craving something more than eye candy, you will leave this film still hungry. Starved as a matter of fact.

Back to Top