Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

If you take along your suspension of disbelief and an attitude that you'll allow yourself to be entertained, you will enjoy Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Obviously, there are things in the movie that don't jive with the time periods of the other movies. So what. I didn't find it all that much of a stumbling block; however, I see movies as just that, movies. I don't get caught up in the nit-picking.

The dialogue was o.k., and there was plenty of humor and banter. I think our desire for realism interferes with our enjoyment of fictional pieces of work. Examples: How many times can a guy get hit in the jewels while stradling vehicles during a sword fight, without crumpling to the ground in pain? Or, during the most dire of moments, one-liners leap out of the mouths of the characters. It's o.k. That's part of the fantastical element. The characters are fictional, as are their lives and adventures. Why not have fun and go with it?

Personally, I'd like to know when people stopped having fun and started expecting so much realism. I like when movies are escapes from the everyday.

I read somewhere, on several sites, that Shia LeBeouf is no Marlon Brando. I don't think he is supposed to be one. He has to be larger than life and against the grain. How his character represents himself is proof of that, not to mention, the whole "good guy" wrapped in the security blanket of the bad-ass. I thought the representation (physically) did two things: 1. It provided a little giggle, and 2. It gave a nod to the aforementioned bad-ass syndrome. I seem to remember seeing pictures of a few of my relatives (back in the day) dressed almost exactly like LeBeouf's character. Didn't every guy want to be Brando? Just sayin'. (The heroes of today's kids are "bad-asses" that can't seem to pull up their drawers, but that's a discussion for another time.)

Btw., if you see this movie, you will not believe Cate Blanchett is the character she is. I didn't know it was her until I looked up the spelling of Shia LeBeouf's name on IMDB.

Overall, I liked it. I give it 12 crystal skulls out of 13. Why? You'll see why.

5 comments:

John DuMond said...

I saw it last Friday and liked it too. Not a great movie, but definitely a good one. Iron Man was better (saw that one twice), but Indy was more than worth the price of a ticket.

Sezme said...

I agree. :)

I'm looking forward to seeing Hancock. Seems funny. I especially cannot wait for Dark Knight!

Anonymous said...

I agree why the nit picking? it is just a movie. Have fun with it. The only time I become a critic is when the movie is supposed to be historically accurate.

Dionne said...

Thanks for the review, I just heard someone else say yesterday that they didn't like it but I was still wanting to go see it.

Sezme said...

Fuzzys Dad
I agree. Indiana Jones isn't a movie that you're supposed to analyze and pick apart. It is fun and campy.

Dee
Don't take it or yourself too seriously and you'll have fun. It really is kind of campy.