Indiana Jones and the Mind-numbing Sequel
May 28, 2008
Right before we left for the movie theater Sunday, my son The Wachamacallit hit me with an astounding piece of analysis. “Oh no!” he exclaimed. “I just realized this movie is going to be really bad. Remember what happened the last time George Lucas had to wait 20 years to make a sequel?”
Sarah Warn of AfterEllen.com asks the question, “‘Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull:’ Bad sequel, or worst sequel ever? ” And, well, I found it more tolerable than The Phantom Menace, so I guess I’d say it doesn’t rise (fall?) to the level of worst ever. (I could nitpick myself here and remember that Phantom Menace was a prequel, but where’s the fun in that?) Here’s a snippet from her review:
. . . when I set off to see Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull this weekend, I had high hopes. Malinda and Sarah P liked it, and so did Lori (who is in Seattle this week). Sure, my mom told me she and my sister walked out of the theater half-way through because they were so bored, but I figured, how bad could it be?
Apparently, really bad. So bad it makes Snakes on a Plane look good. Come to think of it, maybe this movie should have been called Snakes on Indiana Jones, since it’s basically a parody of the Indiana Jones movies, except that someone forgot to tell the actors. And the audience.
Ouch. But well-deserved.
The Wachamacallit, by the way, actually tried a Whatchamacallit candy bar for the first time ever recently. He is not one to keep his opinions to himself, so he’s reviewed it in his blog.
Entry Filed under: Disney, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, movie reviews, movies. .
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1. Three summer blockbusters = 2 good movies « Collateral Damage | May 29, 2008 at 11:08 am
[...] A debate is raging as to whether Indy vs. The AARP is the worst sequel ever. No. It isn’t even the worst George Lucas sequel ever. That honor goes to the last three Star Wars movies. While you can make a plausible case for Phantom Menace being one of the worst sequels ever — the only thing worse than the writing and direct is the racial stereotyping — for me that honor goes to Godfather III. The Star Wars movies were fun but nothing else, so disfiguring the brand really was no great wrong. Godfather III was — and I don’t use this word lightly — a desecration. Indy isn’t even in the same category of bad as either the Star Wars mistakes or or GF III. Actually cut out 30 minutes and its a pleasant action movie. Sadly at two hours all the flaws become more evident and boredom really set in. That said, Collateral Damage Jr. loved it. He’s 11.9 which makes him the target demographic so his vote will count more than mine. [...]
2. Jeff W | May 29, 2008 at 11:54 pm
“I’ve Got A Bad Feeling About This.”
Good call on the bad Godfather III sequel. That was disappointing. Other bad sequels. Rocky 5 and Superman 3 on up. (ok 2 was poor too)
On another note. Is it just me or does anyone else find the whole digital set design thing makes everything look flat.
I mean what ever happened to a little thing photographers call “depth of field”
There where far too many scenes that obviously were done on a sound stage in front of the big green screen. And we all know Lucas is a big fan of digital set design. I find it distracting. An object 20 feet behind the actor should not have the same clarity of focus. I know, I know it’s an HD world and Blue Ray looks amazing but still, it gnaws at me.
I say bring back the epic film with over the top budgets and larger than life sets.
Of course all this is coming from a guy who still enjoys playing his 33 1/3 record albums. Albums like Jim Croce’s Greatest hits and Briefcase Full of Blues by the Blues Brothers.
3. Jennifer | May 30, 2008 at 3:25 pm
Jeff, I totally hear you about that weird focus. One of the early scenes in the desert had this weird, flat lighting and focus, almost as if they were spoofing old war films.
BTW, the “Collateral Damage Jr” that the first comment refers to is in fact AKA Broke Hoedown Jr, aka The Watchamacallit. He likes the movie an awful lot more than his parents did! His review is online too.
4. What I believe « The Ministry of Culture | December 11, 2008 at 11:36 pm
[...] now I have to pick five folks. First is easy: Jennifer. Then … hmmm … Andrew, Rob, Churbuck and Forbes. Have at it [...]