  Harrison Ford and Shia LaBeouf in "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull."
|
Nineteen years after his supposed final adventure, Indiana Jones quipped, scowled and crashed back onto the big screen yesterday. For a minute or two, anyway.
The trailer for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, opening May 22, debuted in front of The Spiderwick Chronicles as well as on Good Morning America and online at indianajones.com. Here's what we gleaned:
HOW DOES IT BEGIN? After the Lucasfilm logo materializes, fans and newcomers - i.e.: all the movie-going teens who weren't alive the last time Dr. Henry Jones Jr. was in multiplexes - receive a refresher course on his past adventures. Eventually Harrison Ford is seen in silhouette re-affixing his dust-mottled fedora before the hummable John Williams' theme agreeably kicks in.
DOES FORD SAY HE'S TOO OLD FOR THIS S--T? Not once. Indeed, except for a moment in which he falls short of a speeding truck ("Damn, I thought that was closer"), there's little indication he's aged much at all. The message? Just because he's collecting social security doesn't mean he can't still knock out all your front teeth.
HOW'S THAT KID FROM DISTURBIA? Can't say. Despite the fact producers have trumpeted Shia LaBeouf's involvement - hence, his appearance alongside Ford on the Vanity Fair cover - he receives scant screen-time here.
IS THERE MUCH ACTION? Nothing but. A blizzard of quick cuts reveals jungle-bound car chases, angry skull-worshipping tribesmen, treacherous temples, explosions, a pursuit through a warehouse that looks an awful lot like the one Raiders of the Lost Ark ended in, and many, many nameless Russian thugs being relentlessly abused. In other words, it's near-perfect.
DOES E.T. MAKE A CAMEO? Despite rumours of little green men from Mars figuring into the plot, there are no signs of flying saucers. Yet.
WHAT DOES CATE BLANCHETT LOOK LIKE AS A SOVIET OPERATIVE? Like Bob Dylan in a bad wig.
WHO ELSE IS IN THIS AGAIN? Beowulf's Ray Winstone as Ford's sidekick. Karen Allen, barely seen as feisty ex-flame Marion.
WHAT WORKS? The old-school violence, the cheerfully escapist atmosphere, the tongue-in-cheek humour. Even the shot composition indicates Steven Spielberg is channeling his younger, less-earnest self.
WHAT DOESN'T WORK? Given that it's been nearly two decades since Last Crusade, couldn't this have been a minute longer? And there is the matter of Blanchett's wig.
HOW DOES IT END? A confused LaBeouf asks: "You're a teacher?" to which Ford answers: "Part-time."
More Artists
