Bigger, better and more breathtaking

What happened with Star Wars episodes one to three, has made movie-goers wary of sequels, prequels or whatever else being made out of movies they had come to love. That one was a case of why fix something if it ain’t broke... People still came to watch but then wondered, what was that for?

What for indeed! That is now the same question being asked whenever we get news of a prequel, sequel or whatever to a popular series. Do you think a Pirates prequel would work? You know maybe, the life of young Jack Sparrow. The last one did not do very well so do you think they would attempt another Matrix?

But let’s face it, moviemaking is big business it is always safer to take an old established title, like Spider-Man or Superman, rather than risk big bucks on an unknown. Besides, even those people who do not need the money, like Steven Spielberg or George Lucas or Harrison Ford, can do with that rush of good feeling that reliving past glories can bring.

One past glory for these three cinema greats was a trilogy about the adventures of the archeologist Indiana Jones. It was inspired by the cliff-hanging matinee serials of the silent film era. It had an old-fashioned premise but with Ford as their star, producer and writer Lucas and director Spielberg, effectively combined new technology and solid filmmaking values.

 They not only came up with three box-office hits. Indiana Jones became one of the most successful franchise titles in movie history. That is why, although it has been 20 years later, they still had to do Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Let us backtrack a bit. Raiders of the Lost Ark came first in 1981. It was so good and made so much money that Spielberg and Lucas came up Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom three years later.

That was the first film to have Indiana Jones in the title. I guess this was because Ford who was in between Star Wars flicks then, had become a huge box-office star. Temple was followed by the third and what we thought was of the trio, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade in 1989.

There was constant talk about Indiana Jones coming out in a fourth film after that. Nothing happened. Those involved like Ford, Spielberg and Lucas went on to other things. But it turned out they had been working on it all along. After a long 27 years since Raiders and nearly 20 years after the Last Crusade, these guys finally got their act together and brought Indy back.

The title is the longest ever in Indy history. It takes ages to memorize but I cannot think of another that is more evocative of what the film has to offer. Its very mention conjures up definite images. Hair-raising escapes, breathtaking chases, lush wooded jungles, mysterious artifacts, exotic animals, leering villains and lots of fun, fun, dangerous fun. Spielberg and his team were out to play and their game is one wild ride.

Indy is introduced with the familiar hat and those distinctive four notes of the theme created by John Williams, tan-ta-ran-tan... Now teaching at Marshall College, he is somewhat geezered. Remember it has been 20 years. But he is still nimble. He still wears his old hat, his language remains snappy and the crooked smile is as sexy as ever.

Ford looks good and ready for action and Spielberg takes him out of the academe early on to get as much of these as possible. The time is 1957 and Russia and the US are in the midst of the Cold War. It is a close brush with Soviet agents in the Nevada desert that sets off the story to an exciting start.

The tale takes Indy across the Nevada desert, close to a nuclear explosion and to the depths of the Amazon jungle in search of the Crystal Skull. And why is that skull so special? It has secrets that can help its owner dominate the world. That is why the Soviets are looking for it and that is why Indy makes it his business to stop them.

We all know though that the skull is merely the story’s reason for being. What the film is really about is the thrills and Spielberg and his team really cracked their brains to come up with ideas that are bigger, better and more breathtaking than those in the last three pictures.

They threw in everything. Almost. Did I miss it or is there really no rolling boulder? But there is spectacle throughout, lots of amazing stunts, a battle of two ATVs, a plunge through not one but three waterfalls, a sword fight on a running jeep, awesome underground caves, a golden city, pesky monkeys, large red ants, Indy’s hated snake, even UFOs and village of dummies.

Indy refuses to get involved with the latter but admit it, Spielberg has opened a door and I will not be surprised if we soon hear that Indy will soon be getting into the X-Files mode. The better for someone who will not be as agile on his feet three years from now.

Ford is the best thing going for this franchise. He has the credibility to be both a quiet scholar and a devil-may-care adventurer. The fact that he played Indy in various ages makes it difficult to imagine anybody else in the role.

Not Shia La Beouf. He has the looks and gives an earnest performance as a ‘50s teenager trying to be cool, but a swashbuckling action star he is not. No way he should inherit the Indy mantle in the future just in case he is being groomed for that.

Another thing that fails to work is that bickering between Indy and old Raiders flame Marion played by Karen Allen. It borders on irritating. If Spielberg was going for erotic tension, he should have looked elsewhere. Maybe between Indy and the Soviet agent Irina as played by a stunning Cate Blanchett. Perhaps they should resurrect her in a future adventure.

But I really hope not. The protagonists are now long in tooth and it is showing. I admit Crystal Cave is a success. It is everything one hopes an Indy film should be. But maybe because it set out to be a better film than the first three or of rip-offs like National Treasure, it lacks the spontaneity, the spirit of unadulterated mischief that felt so contagious in the early films.

Fun memories like those can make you forgive anything and those were what kept me from wincing impatiently over some long drawn-out sequences. Explain? Rationalize? What for? All I wanted was a fun ride.