Indiana Jones & The Kingdom of The Crystal Skull Discussion Thread (Spoilers)

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For what it's worth, I saw an interview on BBC news with Spielberg at Cannes and he said he wanted a more sci-fi edge than the other 2. So ya boo, you all suck 'cept me :monkey5

And I STILL loved the film and think some here are seriously over thinking this stuff...
 
If there's one thing I wish they'd done differently in the movie, it would be the alien itself. It was too modern, X-Files style. It would've been cool to see a really weird Paul Blaisdell type creature to fit with the 50's B vibe.
 
I remembered one more thing I liked. I really liked the you're going back to school line. After the whole do what makes you happy speech. Again I seen it coming a mile away but still was very funny.
 
For what it's worth, I saw an interview on BBC news with Spielberg at Cannes and he said he wanted a more sci-fi edge than the other 2. So ya boo, you all suck 'cept me :monkey5

And I STILL loved the film and think some here are seriously over thinking this stuff...

Good. I'm off the hook now. :lol Thanks Steven.

Now we can move on! :D Discuss, discuss...
 
If there's one thing I wish they'd done differently in the movie, it would be the alien itself. It was too modern, X-Files style. It would've been cool to see a really weird Paul Blaisdell type creature to fit with the 50's B vibe.

The Sci Fi stuff didnt bother me, I just wanted to see Indy use his trademark whip more than twice and not just in the first few minutes of the movie.
 
Just saw it and I was not disapointed one bit! I think it was awsome and seeing Indy come back it just the icing on the cake.(Janitor was a nice funny surprise:lol)
 
I hope this doesn't get lost in all the debate, but this is kinda bugging me.

What's with all the "Henry" business? IIRC, you could count the number of times he was called "Indy" on one hand. Did he drop the 'Indy' as a tribute to his father, or am I looking too deep into it?
 
I hope this doesn't get lost in all the debate, but this is kinda bugging me.

What's with all the "Henry" business? IIRC, you could count the number of times he was called "Indy" on one hand. Did he drop the 'Indy' as a tribute to his father, or am I looking too deep into it?

Well, I think Ox called him Henry and when it was a dire situation he was refered to as Henry.
 
When he was talking to Oxley the first time he started to call himself Indiana, then it was like he realized Oxley wouldn't know him by that and whispered Henry to him.

I don't remember Marion or Mutt calling him Henry.
 
I hope this doesn't get lost in all the debate, but this is kinda bugging me.

What's with all the "Henry" business? IIRC, you could count the number of times he was called "Indy" on one hand. Did he drop the 'Indy' as a tribute to his father, or am I looking too deep into it?

I think he started going by Henry instead of Indiana. I think it shows he...

1. reconciled his differences with his father
2. shoes how much he grew up over the years
3. doesn't really identify himself (at least at the beginning of the film) with the butt-kicking treasure hunter he used to be.
 
What are you talking about? I am no more saying I love this movie than you are saying you hate it (though I think the latter is closer to the truth than me loving it).

I think it's the free passes some people are giving it due to it having the 'Indiana Jones' brand that's getting under some peoples' skins... not 'hate' of a mediocre-at-best film. It's almost as if they/we feel tricked in a way. If this film did not have the Indy brand attached, many people 'defending' it would be tearing it to shreds - or simply ignoring it - similar to something like, say, 'The Mummy Returns' (yeah, I said it - another 'enjoyable film if you check your brain in at the door'):

1) The characterizations are really weak - I felt nothing for any of them, least of all any type of real suspense. With good/re-watchable films - I STILL feel suspense, no matter how many times I've seen them.

2) The simple adventure plot (something that stands out so prominently in other Indy films - and other good action flicks) has been bloated beyond recognition. See POTC3 for another overdone plot that takes away from the film as a whole.

3) It's filled with 'filler' CGI stunts that don't add anything to the story... nuclear blast, prairie dogs, vine swinging, etc. - which, if you really think back, most of the other Indy films don't have that filler - pretty much every stunt and effect - no matter how ludicrous - led to the ultimate goal, which is one of the reasons why they are so highly thought of, not only just for their 'fun' factor...they were tightly written and directed.

4) The dialog is stilted and unnatural for most of the film. Not to mention the lighting and sets.

I honestly believe that these are some of the reasons why the positive reviews are mostly lukewarm at best ("aaaawwww, it's Indy and Harrison, we can't be too mean!"), and the negative reviews are pretty darn negative.

Personally I LIKE the plot of interdimensional 'aliens' - it's different and cool. I DO NOT like how it was explained/shown and littered with way too much exposition. It's like they picked a plot that most people have no idea about, and realized halfway through that not many people in the audience would know the Crystal Skull myth, so they threw all kinds of stuff in there to 'strengthen' it. You don't have that problem when you pick a 'MacGuffin' (god I hate that word) that is more familiar, such as the Holy Grail. Even the magic stones from Temple of Doom were much more easily explained. And even then, part of the lure of past Indy films is the UNEXPLAINED. Don't beat the audience over the head with reasons and explanations - just do it, but make it good!

I also wish they had explored Area 51 more in-depth - love the whole conspiracy angle, which they really did nothing with, and I also wish that the whole opening segment had more to do with the plot as a whole. In essence, what the heck did they need that 'alien' body for anyway? It had absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the film! Same with the nuke.

BTW, I just watched the first half of TOD last night, which I also hadn't seen in at least 5 years (probably more like 10), and dang do I love that part when they're stuck in the room with the lowering ceiling and Indy's trying to get Willie to pull the lever and she's flipping out about all the bugs :lol "SHUT. UP." ... "NO, your OTHER right" ... and he sticks his fist through the hole at her. I was rolling :rotfl There was absolutely nothing like that in KotCS. The closest thing was the snake scene, but even then I couldn't laugh because all I was thinking about was, "Why doesn't he just use his whip?" I guess maybe he didn't HAVE his whip, but they how come he had it later to try to save Mac? :confused:

Anyway, I'm glad some people are enjoying it, which is the whole reason I didn't want to get into it before more people had seen it. But I just can't enjoy it :( Went in having read NO reviews, no spoilers, no nothing, with very low expectations, and when a film doesn't even reach those, well, there's nothing else I can do - I've already given it the best chance it's gonna get from me.

Dude if you actually work for Sideshow I wouldn't be bashing a movie your employer holds a merch license to.

Edit button. Quickly.

Why? Last time I checked this is a fan board, nothing official. If I'm not allowed to express my opinion as a 'fan', well now, that would really suck. I still love Indiana Jones right up there with the OT Star Wars. I still LOVE all the product we're getting, and I still respect and admire both Lucas and Spielberg - maybe not for creating a great film this time around, but definitely for creating the series as a whole and what they've been able to make out of it - CULTURAL ICON is a pretty awesome result!

(and... girl not dude ;))
 
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Thank goodness that I was never a huge Indy fan to begin with. I thoroughly enjoyed the film for what it is, and not what it should represent.

But I wished they had stuck closer to the actual Mitchell-Hedges skull. Didn't really like the alien dome design.
 
True that... It's just the way the human brain remembers things. We have an easier time remembering painful or horrible experiences than the good ones. That's why bootcamp is so effective, because of the use of negative reinforcement.

My Wife does that all the time, one bad thing happens, and she swears the world is coming apart around her, yet if a good thing happens.. she is just waiting for another bad thing.

See, I'm the exact opposite. I seriously think I only remember the good. I have a really hard time remembering bad things that have happened to me in my life. Like if you asked me right now what the worst thing is that's happened to me, I would have no idea. I KNOW bad things have happened (death, cancer, broken bones, crashed cars), but I can't really remember all the details about them because it's almost like I remember the positive instead of the negative. Maybe because I've made good choices and been optimistic and positive and open enough to have a lot of good things happen?

Similarly, if you asked me what the worst films I had ever seen were, I would have a hard time. But not hard at all when you ask my favorites!

For example, after a few days I will forget this film exists and go back to thinking of Indy as a trilogy - perhaps because I found no tremendous positives in KotCS to remember :monkey3
 
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The movie started falling off during the nighttime jungle scene with Indy in the tent (although I can see its relevance to the plot). Snake scene was funny as hell, though. Loved the action-packed jungle sequence with all its passenger switching and fist throwing glory (Harrison really shined here). Monkey scene was fine with me. HATED the ants (didn't give me a "cringe" feeling, at all). Ending was VERY anticlimactic and too grandiose for Indy (in my opinion). :eek:
 
Listen to Dusty, she is a wise woman. My main beef is that instead of stunt action shots, they went for lame CGI filler crap.
 
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