Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

I went to see this last night with little man, my brother and his girlfriend. We bought the tickets early anticipating crowds - which weren't really there. Eventually the theatre filled up but it wasn't filled by any stretch of the imagination.

The lights eventually darkened and up goes the vintage-looking Paramount logo and dissolves and suddenly we're in Nevada, 1957, and immediately the feel of that era is felt as Elvis Presley's "Hound Dog" blasts through the speakers.

The next two hours are set in motion and you're off on a rollicking, if somewhat familiar adventure. Harrison Ford is back as Indiana Jones, and although his hair is now iron-gray and the jawline perhaps not as firm, it's still the same Indy we all knew and loved from the original trilogy back in the 80's. He doesn't look like he's ever really left the role, and just seems to carry himself differently as Indiana Jones. He's great in an otherwise not-quite-as good-as-you-want-it-to-be film. Even someone who I find annoying - Shia LeBeouf - isn't bad as greaser kid Mutt Williams. All the characters here are well fleshed out and actually get great introductions save perhaps Karen Allen, who returns as Marion Ravenwood; she seems to have little to do, but what little she's given is pretty good.

Indy this time is embroiled in the midst of an adventure with his friend Mac (Ray Winstone) and a group of Russian soldiers and KGB agents led by nasty Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett). The Russians want Indy to find them something in a warehouse but not what they want it for, and the whole of the movie involves what happens next. It's hardly a secret to say what the object is as it's right there in the movie title, but what is it really? What's it for? What does it do? And why do the Russians want it so bad?

That's what the next two hours play out as and it's a lot of fun at first to watch it unfold. This is by no means Raiders of the Lost Ark; that I think was lightning in a bottle. However this fits in with the other two films which most people think aren't quite as good as Raiders. (I am not among them; I consistently list Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom as one of my all-time favorites.)

The movie itself is an odd one. Obviously there is some part of me that felt nostalgic going in and hearing the Raiders March playing on the big screen for the first time in 19 years, but can the movie itself live up to the hype in my head?

The answer is more complex than the question; yes and no. I think honestly for the first two-thirds of the film it's great. Lots of fun, plenty of action and humor to keep everything moving along. Spielberg is an old pro at this by now and it shows. There are lots of nods to the previous films and even one to the Young Indiana Jones Chronicles which is great if you watched that. All of that stuff is great too - and very nice to see. There are lots of action setpieces too - from the motorcycle chase with Indy and Mutt through the college campus to the sequences in temple ruins to the final battles - all great, great sequences. However it's the story that lets it down; the climax ends up sort of limp and what the crystal skulls are doesn't really feel like it belongs in an Indiana Jones movie. Of course it goes without saying that the soundtrack is a huge part of the film here too - John Williams does what he does and it's great here and doesn't feel too formulaic. I love his stuff and there's some great new themes, especially the haunting one for the Crystal Skull itself. Can't wait to have the soundtrack.

There are also a couple of corny moments that are really corny, so be prepared. You'll know them when you see them, and I did actually groan audibly at one point. In fact these points were enough to kill the film for my brother; he didn't really like it much at all because of them. I disagree; I think there is on the whole more good than bad, but as usual, your mileage may vary.

Jackson jumped up and down during the movie he was so excited; he said it was AWESOME and even wore my old Indiana Jones hat to the theatre if you can believe that! I had hesitated to take him since he's only 5, but then again my parents took us to see films like that when we were little and Patrick and I turned out okay. Plus he would have KILLED me had I left him at home - he's been DYING to see the movie ever since he saw bits of Raiders on TV and the action figures came out in stores. That unbridled enthusiasm was great to see in my son since it made me far more excited to see it than the trailers did!

It's pretty bloodless if you do have kids, but the smaller ones might be frightened by the a few scary scenes in a temple and some others with insects. There's lots of fighting and gunplay (well it IS Indiana Jones!) but it's not anything ultra-gory or violent, as you'd expect from Lucas and Spielberg.

Overall I enjoyed it despite its rather uneven ending and the 50's era Sci-Fi cold war stuff surprisingly works well in the early going. I give it a solid B+; not great but there's enough good here to warrant repeat viewings. In fact I may go and see it again this weekend!

Go Speed Racer Go!

Wow.

I took Jackson to see Speed Racer this past Saturday, and as of today I still don't really know what to make of it.

In one sentence, I can sum it up as "Racing parts good, non-racing parts…not so much."

First of all let me clarify by saying I have never really cared for the Wachowski Brothers at all. I hated The Matrix and its increasingly poor sequels, and I don't care for Bound either. V for Vendetta is brilliant but of course so was the source material and thankfully they didn't direct it.

Speed Racer is a feature film based on the original Japanese cartoon from the late 1960s. It was the first anime to be successful in the USA, and it features a young boy, Speed Racer, and his family, Pops Racer, Mom, younger brother Spritle and pet monkey Chim-Chim, girlfriend Trixie and the crazy racing adventures they have. Pretty much every story is centered around the Mach 5 race car and a race that Speed is going to enter. Speed also has an older brother, Rex, who supposedly died in a horrible crash - but he believes that the mysterious race car driver Racer X is his in fact his long-lost brother. That's really all you need to know going in to see this, as all of the elements of the cartoon are present and nearly unaltered from the cartoon - Speed even still wears an ascot!

For all the flash and spectacle and innovation this movie is supposed to have it does end up being really extraordinarily mediocre. It is clearly made for fans of the original cartoon, but I am not sure that the people in marketing really understood what they had once they saw a reasonably finished product. None of the trailers I saw beforehand really made it seem like a kid's movie, and it certainly didn't really seem like one for adults either. It seems more like a live-action video game that you're not playing; the CGI and camera movements, colors, track design and racing are so far over the top that it can't help being cartoony.

The dialogue and plot are remarkably similar to the sixties cartoon, which makes people (like me) have a sense of nostalgia - everything I loved as a tiny kid is present in the new movie, from the crazy car stunts to the letter buttons on the steering wheel to the noise the car makes when it jumps - but it all feels really hollow and lifeless. The best comparison I can think of is how Warren Beatty's Dick Tracy feels; it's like they spent all this time and effort on making it just like the original that they forgot to actually make a good story. It's all flash and no substance, and it's such a barrage of sight, sound and color you nearly come out of the theatre gasping. Oddly I don't really have a negative feeling about it though; the casting was all pretty good, especially Christina Ricci as Speed's girlfriend Trixie and Matthew Fox as Jack - I mean Racer X. The fight scenes were corny and kiddie and there's even one scene where the Mach 5 comes to a stop and Speed jumps out of the car and mimics - perfectly - the opening credits of the original cartoon, and I actually said "oh no way!" when they did it that. So ultimately while I enjoyed the trip down memory lane I can't really say it was a good movie, and I certainly don't think it will do well. Is that a shame? Probably, because I believe in the hands of more capable filmmakers it might have been a hit - or at least a fun family summer film. Sadly, it ends up short on both accounts.

Of course all this really means is that my 5-year old LOVED it. He immediately wanted to see it again, but I expected that since he loves the old Speed Racer cartoons and he plays with the cars constantly. That really made the difference for me as a moviegoer; watching him watch it was far more entertaining than anything the Wachowskis could ever have come up with.

I am Iron Man!

Patrick and I went to see this yesterday, and I have to say I was REALLY pleasantly surprised. It was a great movie!

Robert Downey Jr. was superb as Tony Stark, and it was really cool to see a guy using just his own ingenuity and know-how to BUILD his super-powers. Downey is spot-on and is clearly a pompous, wisecracking ass in the beginning of the movie; what happens to him then allows him to really grow and shine as a character and actor. In fact, I think the casting was uniformly excellent and Marvel has really done it right. If they can handle all their franchises like this then us longtime comic fans are in for a heck of a ride.

Jeff Bridges is great as friend and mentor Obadiah Stane; it's interesting how over the course of the film he is slowly revealed to be something else. He looks completely different than he has in the past with a shaved head and full beard, and it works great for his character. Gwyneth Paltrow is great and vulnerable and lovely as Pepper Potts, Tony's secretary. She brings a much-needed warmth to pompous jerk Tony, and lets him know that he may not be entirely as shallow as he lets on. She's excellent in the part and they even hint at a future for them. Look out for a bit part by director Jon Favreau as Tony's driver; he gets one funny line. Terrence Howard is also on board as his friend James "Rhodey" Rhodes, and there is a great nod to Rhodey's possible future as someone who might also wear the suit.

Overall just a great comic book movie, a perfect start to the summer blockbuster season and one I highly recommend for everyone. One word of warning - it has a PG-13 rating for a good reason. Little kids might be scared by the violence (and there is a lot of killing) plus there are some sexual innuendos that might not be appropriate.


MAKE SURE YOU STAY UNTIL THE END CREDITS ARE OVER.