Chris Luckett

21. INDIANA JONES AND
THE KINGDOM OF
THE CRYSTAL SKULL (2008)

Release Date: May 22, 2008

Chronology: Three years off after War of the Worlds and Munich, three years before The Adventures of Tintin and War Horse

Box Office: $317 million ($349 million, adjusted for inflation)

Oscars: 0 nominations

Premise: Nearly two decades after he discovered the Holy Grail in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Indy (Harrison Ford) returned to the big screen in an homage to ‘50s serial films that involved the return of love interest Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen), a drifting greaser (Shia LaBeouf), and the truth behind the mythic Mitchell-Hedges crystal skulls.

Over two hours?: Just

John Williams Score?: Yes

Father Issues?: Indiana Jones finds out he has a son. Enough said.

War?: Not really

Aliens?: Yep, and looking like leftovers from A.I.: Artificial Intelligence

Special Appearances: Cate Blanchett, Ray Winstone, John Hurt, Jim Broadbent, and Neil Flynn

Best Line: “We seem to have reached the age where life stops giving us things and starts taking them away.”

Best Scene: 

Verdict: A flawed movie, to be certain, but better than many gave it credit for in 2008. Whereas the ‘80s movies reflected the artefact-hunting serials of the 1930s, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (taking place two decades later) tackled the flying saucers and spacemen of ‘50s serial films. Sure, it has the worst scene in any of the four Indiana Jones movies (*cough* fridge *cough*), but it also has a few of the best action sequences of the archaeology professor and treasure hunter’s tetralogy.

Rating: 3½ stars / 5