Saddle up, Indy fans. A mere 19 years after the final part in the original Indiana Jones trilogy was released upon moviegoers, everyone's favourite archaeologist-slash-rollicking adventurer is back on the big screen.
And he shouldn't disappoint.
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull reunites director Steven Spielberg, producer George Lucas, a considerably greyer haired Harrison Ford, and original sidekick Karen Allen (who played Indy's lover Marion Ravenwood in Raiders of the Lost Ark).
This time we're in 1957, at the height of the Cold War, and an older, wiser Indy is thrust into the heart of the action when an old colleague, Harold Oxley (John Hurt) uncovers a legendary crystal skull in the heart of South America.
This, of course, is of interest to a person or persons of a rather unsavoury character - this time KGB agent Irina Spalko, who hungers to harness the power of the world's treasures for the benefit of the Soviet Union.
So with the help of Marion and her son Mutt (Shia LaBeouf), Indy is once again thrust into the mile a minute, high octane action fun of another adventure on the search for El Dorado. And would we really have it any other way?One of the good things about Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is that although it's lead character is 19 years older, it is still packed with rollicking good action which Harrison Ford seems to enjoy being in the thick of. Ford is 65 years old, and I think it's to the movie's credit that they don't shy away from his inevitable ageing. How come seeing him in sword fights and leaping off waterfalls seems awesome, when seeing a 61-year-old Sylvester Stallone as Rambo just seems weird? But I digress.
They certainly haven't shied away from the action sequences and this is one of those cool films where you can tell that everything hasn't been CGI-ed up the wazoo - and it's the better for it.
After almost 20 years between drinks in the Indy movie series I would have thought the powers that be could have come up with a sharper storyline than this. Don't get me wrong, it's thoroughly enjoyable, but I've a couple of quibbles with developments towards the end of the story which I won't mention, lest I ruin it for the rest of you. They are minor, and it certainly doesn't take away from the rest of the flick.
The cast, as you'd imagine, is top notch. Indy, despite the obvious physical advancement, hasn't aged a day in terms of attitude and his adventurous spirit and that's all down to Ford, who seems to be having a ball on screen. The unstoppable Cate Blanchett (is there any role this woman can't play?) is a fantastic villain and Shia LaBeouf's star keeps rising with his solid and spunky performance (Attitude-wise! Although he's not unpleasant to look at). A more than impressive supporting cast includes John Hurt, Ray Winstone and Jim Broadbent.
If you grew up loving the Indiana Jones trilogy, you will like this film. If you didn't, you won't. But if you want to know if the movie is right up there with the three before it, I would say not quite, but almost. And worth a watch if you're keen for two hours of action adventure, and a new view of that famous hat.
