I’ve never known why, but the Star Wars and Indiana Jones movies where never a central part of my childhood. I mean yes, I did have a ton of Star Wars action figures and I did think Indy was cool but I doubt I ever watched any of the movies in either franchise more than once. Thankfully that spared me of the massive disappointment felt by most Star Wars fans who watched the new trilogy and honestly I didn’t expect anything more from a revived Indiana Jones franchise.
On the other hand, I honestly think that I might have been the only person who was not critical of seeing a senior citizen version of Indiana Jones on the big screen. In my case it made perfect sense, reminding me of the old and wise archeologists and scholars from H. P. Lovecraft and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle novellas. But Harrison Ford is old in the way Jackie Chan is old, in other words with some good choreography and wire work he can still kick ass with the best action stars.
The movie begins in the middle of Indy’s most recent adventure where he has been captured by Russian spies who are looking for a mysterious artifact. After using a combination of cunning and implausible physics Indy leads the spies to the object they are after, and then seizes the moment to escape. I was happy to see some great stunts and punches so soon after the opening credits, all of which culminates in a nuclear explosion that only Indy and maybe a few cockroaches survive.
After the radioactive dust has settled the movie begins in earnest. Indiana Jones is now a well respected college professor whose career is in jeopardy due to his unwilling involvement with the aforementioned spies. These very same spies start to follow him around town and soon he finds himself on the run accompanied by a Marlon Brando inspired sidekick named Mutt (Shia LaBeouf). Along the way you find out that Mutt’s mother is in fact Marion Ravenwood (reprised by Kathy Allen) who was involved with Indy back in Raiders of the Lost Ark. The trio keeps getting in and out of trouble, although the excessive amounts of comedic relief saps away any sense of danger the audience might get tricked into feeling. Still all three play their characters with tons of enthusiasm, matched only by Cate Blanchett, the cartoonish villain with a wonderfully unauthentic Russian accent.
Fans of the series know what to expect of course: ancient puzzles, treacherous traps and flirtations with the supernatural. The only unwelcome guest at this party is the excessive amounts of computer generated imagery. Normally I like to play devil’s advocate and contradict those who hate CGI in all forms, but in this case I think the constant barrage of digital effects detract from the nostalgia value. That’s a shame too; the cinematography, acting and costumes are extremely close to the source material. Still, for those looking for an action packed adventure movie this summer you can do a lot worse than sitting down in front of this speeding car chase down memory lane.