I love Indiana Jones, but there's always been some nagging thought that something wasn't right about them. Why did people reject Kingdom of the Crystal Skull? It wasn't a bad movie, and certainly no more over-the-top than any other Indiana Jones movie had been before. I think the reason why Crystal Skull annoyed audiences was because of that niggling doubt — the suspicion that we've seen this movie before.
What an enjoyable read. These films, Crystal Skull excluded, were such big parts of my childhood. George Lucas is a masterful marketer and he certainly knows the value of making kids feel like they're part of the film. In Temple of Doom, he uses the Short-Round character to do this. When you are a little kid and you see that another little kid can save Indiana Jone's life and can essentially be the hero (let's not forget it's Short-Round that burns the young-king back in to consciousness) of the entire movie, well that's pretty empowering stuff. I would agree that as an adult the Short-Round character is a bit annoying, but nowhere near as annoying as Willie. But every story needs a romantic interest, right? And while the vast majority of people agree that Willie was horrible, there's at least one guy that liked her. Great observation regarding Jone's "saving the day," only in Temple of Doom, I'd never thought of it this way, but you're right. The other 3 all have essentially the same ending. Wonderful review of the franchise imo. What are your thoughts on whether or not they should continue to make more? I have to say, I found the character of Marion Ravenwood to be as annoying as Willie and wish they'd not have resurrected her character. Also, did he have to name the future of the franchise Mutt?
I feel bad taking a swing at the movies because they are such great adventures. They were a part of my childhood too, and I never get tired of watching them as an adult. I'd never thought about kids associating with Short Round, but you might be right. He certainly gets stuff to do in that movie — both Willie and Short Round save Jones' life at some point, which is a big deal. It validates their characters and means they actually change the outcome of the movie. Also, it's hilarious that Spielberg wound up marrying Willie! Do we think they got married at the Obi Wan Club? I don't find Marion annoying, but it's disappointing that she's consistently useless. Like Jones, she doesn't really do much to change the outcome of the movies. She's just there to argue with Jones and be a bit saucy — which she's great at, but it doesn't give her much to do as a character. Mutt is an interesting point. "Mutt" is supposed to be a bit like Indiana's own nickname, which he took from the name of the family dog. The problem is, Indiana is a sexy name and Mutt isn't. Mutt isn't a bad concept for a character, but Indiana Jones is Harrison Ford. I'll watch any number of Indiana Jones movies starring Ford, but they can't keep making the movies without him. Would you accept Indiana Jones being like James Bond, with a dozen people playing him over time? Also, this is completely wonderful. A few months ago the University of Chicago (where Jones is supposed to teach) received a mysterious package for Henry Walton Jones, Jr.…
http://news.uchicago.edu/article/2012/12/19/indiana-jones-ma...