"Indiana Jones" review

So, May 22nd has come and gone. The 19 years of waiting is over. I have now seen "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull", and the question is: was it any good? You bet your ass it was!

The reviews I have read are pretty divided, some love it, some dispise it, some just felt it was a mediocre attempt at reviving an old franchise. My personal view was I enjoyed all 2 hours of it. It looked and felt like an Indiana Jones movie, and Harrison Ford finally reminds us how great he can really be on screen. You could tell everyone was just having sheer fun working on this movie, and I felt like the end result was a good one. 

It took me a little while to get used to the time period (1957), since I was so used to Indy being in the 1930's, it was weird at first to see the opening title sequence feature Elvis'  "Hound Dog" and drag racing. But after the first 20 minutes of the movie, I was along for the ride. It had everything I wanted from a Indiana Jones movie. Great action sequences, one liners, creatures (holy shit the ants were awesome!), and good old fashioned over the top pulp. I can honestly say it lived up to my expectations. Also, be ready to laugh since it is the most comedic of all the Indy movies, just wait until you see the first snake that makes an appearance!

Alot of people have complained about the "Crystal Skull" plotline, thats its too far fetched. Not really any more far fetched than any of the other artifacts Indy has gone after in the previous films. I did some research on crystal skulls awhile back, and I find them very interesting. The Indy 4 plot is steeped in actual legend if you bothor to do the research. Its not just something Lucas pulled out of his ass, like people seem to think. My only gripe was one moment in the film where even I kinda groaned "You gotta be kidding me?".  Just think vines, and Tarzan. You will know it when you see it.  

The other question is: How was Shia? I actually liked him as a greaser in this movie. I am not going to go as far as to say he was channeling James Dean or Brando, but he wasnt a waste of space either. I actually enjoyed his back and forth with Indy, I thought he brought alot to the movie. (Jed you may disagree since we know you have no love for Shia, but give him a chance in this) And any silly ideas that Shia is being set up as Indy's replacement in future movies  is put to rest in the final shot of the film. (There is only one Indiana Jones, and dont you forget it)

This movie is worth the ticket price for the opening 20 minutes alone.  But there is alot to like in this movie, and in my opinion it's a very worthy addition to the Indiana Jones franchise. So I hope you guys go see it, and I truly hope you have as much fun as I did watching it. I felt like I was 10 years old again.  I just cant wait to go watch it again.