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Topic: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
WetWired
Posts: 3566
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
This entire thread is spoiler zone so don't read any further if you don't want it ruined.


















So we just got back from a 10am screening this morning, first impressions are "it's ok"

There's some good things to be found in indy 4, but for every good thing there's a bad thing, it seems like george lucas's hand in the bad one. Over the top stunts mainly (vine swinging, surviving 3 huge waterfalls, UFO)

John Hurt's character (Ox?) was all but useless expect for when the story needed moving forward. He'd spout some random crap which would cause everyone to move onto the next action piece, I don't know if I was alone in this but I found the character to be annoying. Marion was a nice addition but she seemed wasted and her presence didn't seem to carry as much weight as it should.

Shia la Bouf's character isn't as bad as I expected and considering the use of "son of the hero" storys in other movies, they've actually done a pretty good job of it.

I didn't mind aliens being the mythology element, but I think they should have stuck to the less is more rule and shown less at the end, leave more to the imagination and leave an aura of doubt in the air. But the flying saucer and CGI alien at the end leave nothing to the imagination. As cool as the effects of saucer ripping up the ground and being flooded was, it was over the top.

There seemed to be less puzzle figuring in this too, at least letting the audience have a chance at figure them out, everything was handed to the viewer on a platter with a big sign pointing to it. The scene where ox holds the crystal skull up to the heirogyph's and says "omg it's the same" was a clear example of this. It's an alien head, no s***, you've already made this clear earlier in the movie and made no room for doubt (which would have made it far more intriguing)

Despite the fact Spielberg claimed they were using mainly practical effects there is an abundance of CGI, to the detriment of tension and reality in many scenes. Although I did like the nuke sequence, surviving that explosion in a flying fridge is a bit beyond belief.

I'll have to leave it to dwell, but at the moment, it's probably sitting slightly in front of temple of doom (being the worst) of the series, which is by no means bad, a crap indiana jones movie is infinately better than most action movies.

3 1/2 out of 5 stars

system
--
parabol
Posts: 4305
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
over the top stunts (vine swinging, surviving 3 huge waterfalls, UFO)

Agreed
Shia la Bouf's character isn't as bad as I expected

Again, agreed. He was terrible in Transformers, but I think that was probably mostly the s*** script.

Also during the pre-movie ad for Eagle Eye, some guy said to his friend "hey that's the dude from transformers!". There was a slight pause and his friend informed him "umm .. yeah, he's in this movie [Indiana Jones] too". *face-palm*
Although I did like the nuke sequence, surviving that explosion in a flying fridge is a bit beyond belief.

Yeah they always stuff up nuke scenes in movies. They make it such that if you survive the actual primary explosion, then you're right. Nevermind the airborne radioactive-infested particles that would kill you.

In summary: I think it was enjoyable and worth the money. I would have enjoyed it more if there weren't an army of sick f***tards continuously coughing, spluttering, sniffing, clearing throats all through-out the movie.
DM
Posts: 606
Location: Gold Coast, Queensland
Just came back from seeing the movie and did enjoy it. However there were things wrong with it that should have been fixed given the time they apparantly worked on it. Just small things that didn't make much sence to me but was a good movie none the less. Glad I payed to see it
Midda
Posts: 2074
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I liked.

Vine swinging was lame.

Transformers kid wasn't annoying.

That is all.
Damo
Posts: 3062
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
It's getting alot of good and bad reviews..

As much as everyone wanted a fourth indy, i still think it should have finished with the last crusade and them riding off into the sunset.
mission
Posts: 3749
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
While I haven't seen the new one, I agree with Damo.

I just heard on the radio that Harrison is 64!
Damo
Posts: 3063
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
64..damn, he looks bloody good for his age..
eK
Posts: 10407
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
in like flynn

http://i27.tinypic.com/a48w7.gif
JohnnieD
Posts: 1456
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I agree with the first two posts pretty much. Plenty of bulls***, and they tried so hard for laughs. Which was insanely annoying as I had this old couple behind us and the woman laughed at the slighest f***ing thing. Vines thing was bulls***. Him not dying in the fridge was bulls*** and not having any radiation, except for a scrub down. The waterfalls. No s*** the alien skull matches all the paintings on the wall. Alan Dale and Janitor from scrubs was gay too in their scenes. Karen Allen was pretty sad I reckon, like her character didn't have that oomph she did originally. And you could spot things so far in advance like it was his kid, and Ray Winstone was gonna turn around on him again. And one other thing I can think of is his dad died, but he was immortal right? Unless he got his head cut off.

Despite all of the s*** above, it was an ok movie. But not better than any of the originals. I think it's just opening the door for a new IJ such as his son for the future.

Temple of Doom was the poorest out of the orig trilogy but was still class. The dinner scene, the mines, the whole start, come on. Harrison Ford just didn't have his spark in this one.
Spock
Posts: 784
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
best jock/greaser fight scene
darkjedi
Posts: 1227
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I thought it was fantastic - No real complaints from me, even with the UFO at the end.

The star wars fanatic in me went nuts when Harrison sprouted the "I've got a bad feeling about this" line.. Then the UFO popped up and disbelief was had - Agree with WW here that more subtly there would've made the scene significantly better.. Have the skeletons merge, but cut back to russian bitch without actually showing what they become (then have her evaporate). Or something along those lines anyway.

Guess it's to be expected, what with Lucas involved with it & all. The man should never be allowed near a script or movie again. Full stop. Let him fund and put his name to things, but let people with actual talent do the real work!

4/5 for me
JohnnieD
Posts: 1457
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
By the way when you rewatch all the other movies you can spot flaws aplenty also but they just seem fine maybe because you grew up with them and also because pretty much everything was done on site i.e. with stuntmen/props. But that whole vine chase was absolute crap. He manages to get ahead Tarzan style? Also, wasn't Indy/Ox chasing Blanchett yet when he catches up they've swapped and she's chasing them? Maybe my mistake.

Edit:

Fave bits: hot rod opening, fight in the cafe, Indian cycle and chase through the old buildings (great era background as usual) and the bit just before the nuclear bomb went off.

Worst bits: vine scene and Harrison Ford saying "Nucular" and "Libary." Also, the whole ant scene from like The Mummy and that fight he has with the Russian guy where they smash the absolute s*** out of each other and no blood is spilt til right at the end. And the ants avoided them both, not just ox.

Those good scenes make up for the bad ones.

last edited by JohnnieD at 22:59:00 22/May/08
exo
Posts: 8015
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
Wasn't sold on it hey. There just weren't enough elements to the film to make it distinctly Indy. Indy's not supposed to settle down with a family and son, he's a womaniser like Bond - every film a different girl, and no mention of the previous. The score was a bit average, and there was too much CGI. Too many storyline pieces were slapped in the face, like the revealing of the Ark in the broken box "just incase the stupid viewer didn't recognise the warehouse". Honestly, the way the film was made it could have survived in any other adventure franchise by changing a few names. Its a good movie on its own, but didn't deserve to be part of the Indy series.
deadlyf
Posts: 72
Location: Queensland
I thought it missed on way to many levels to be considered a decent film. I can't call it bad, it was to pretty and to well acted to be bad but the story was just plain out of place in an Indiana film with aliens and such.

Also I hate to say it but Cate Blanchett was not very convincing as a villain. I think they actually needed a worse actor for the job, someone who would show less emotion and be more of the cold bitch a good villain should be. Possibly that was what they were going for since they don't want to scare the kiddies. I kept looking for Jar-Jar to walk on screen it seemed that tamed down.
Midda
Posts: 2084
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I think they actually needed a worse actor for the job,

One of the dumbest sounding things I've read on QGL for a while. Well done.
Reverend Evil™
Posts: 15692
Location: Wynnum, Queensland
Haven't seen this yet but I like Cate Blanchett. Not only is she gorgeous but she's an awesome actor. Still deciding whether to go see this at the cinema or wait for a DVD release.
Midda
Posts: 2086
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
See it at the cinema, it's definitely worth it. If you're still not sure, just got to South Bank, $7.90 is pretty cheap.
JohnnieD
Posts: 1458
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I think they actually needed a worse actor for the job
I agree with this in the sense that unknown actors would have been better than some semi-known actors due to them not delivering a superb performance but were more of a distraction. However, if the script was a bit different, maybe they could have had some good character actors in there.
DirtyApe
Posts: 413
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
They should have left it at the last one and stop trying bring back something that had it's time and place. To me it screamed of trying to relive the old days and those days are long gone. Harrison Ford is an old man trying desperately to seem young still.
parabol
Posts: 4307
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
Also I hate to say it but Cate Blanchett was not very convincing as a villain.

True, but I loved her accent.
3x0dus
Posts: 1012
Location: Townsville, Queensland

thought it was good, as some have said some of the stunts/visualcgi just looks too unrealistic,sorta pulled away from orignal indy films where although not everyday stuff it felt real and gritty =].

one thing i couldn't shake the entire film was it was just building up to a sequel and to perpetuate the indy films for a further few years, which seemed sorta confirmed in the the last few mins.
sLaps_Forehead
Posts: 3511
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
and there was too much CGI


hmm yes thats a common problem with most films nowerdays.
Idol
Posts: 2519
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
the skeletons merge and become a live alien? get the f*** out
partyhat
Posts: 1162
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
3x0dus, the last scene was a joke from spielberg/lucas. when mutt went to pickup the hat I started to go "noooo, no don't make a sequal without harrison", but I loved that indy picked it up. Best ending I could have hoped for.
If Lucas has his way we'll see some spin-off with Mutt, but even the movie acknowledges (at the end) that there's only one Indiana Jones and it's Harrison.

I grew up LOVING these films, and went in and was still quite happy. Spielberg is the still the best action director out there and I liked the little Lucas'isms. Indy is always a bit cheeky and fun and unbelievable, so don't take it so seriously and just enjoy the ride :)

Spielberg has always said this movie was for the fans, it's ALL fan service, don't you get why there were so many direct references to Raiders of the Lost Ark, American Graffiti, Tarzan, Star Wars and Kubrick's movies.

And for those bitching about "unbelievable things", in ToD Indy jumps out of a plane in a blow up boat and lands safely on a mountain, then he falls 5,000 feet down a waterfall and remains in the boat. Also there were 2 other people in the boat. And if the Ark of The Covenant can melt peoples' faces, a man can pull out another man's heart while he still lives, and Indiana Jones can find an immortal knight who protects the Holy Grail, why can't there be aliens?



last edited by partyhat at 00:24:35 24/May/08

last edited by partyhat at 00:28:52 24/May/08
sc00bs
Posts: 2888
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
pretty poor dialogue and i was not a huge fan of nuke- fridge scene either. especially how he just pops the door open with ease after he has just been projected through the air and bouncing around on the ground without the door opening.

also with the scene at the begining how he uses his whip to try and get onto the back of a truck and misses and magically crushes the front of a truck and its windscreen and lands perfectly, sitting down next to the bad guys, just in time to say some gay ass one-liner and knock them out with a single blow to the face.

i didnt like this one anywhere nearly as much as the previous idiana jones'

last edited by sc00bs at 12:51:32 24/May/08
BeZZaR
Posts: 24
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I was embarrassed that i talked it up so much to the gf before we went to see it. I really felt it was s*** house/lame. Good job resurrecting an awesome franchise and f***ing it up.
ccl
Posts: 157
Location: Sydney, New South Wales
The "Get that greaser!" scene was the best setup for a fight in a movie ever.

Nuke scene didn't bother me. The contrast of Indy walking around these perfect 50's family homes was a trip, but a fun one, and a good setup. In fact the whole opening half hour was great.

Agreed about the CGI. Give me sketchy looking models and backdrops anyday.

Also glad I'm not the only one who thought the "wow the skull matches" scene was odd. I mean wtf, talk about stating the obvious.

A bit too fantastic towards the end. Felt a bit meh afterwards, but I'm still glad I went.
Lunch
Posts: 956
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
Good to see Lucas wasn't content with f***ing up the Star Wars films and had to progress on to another old favourite and give them a good f***ing over too. I had a permanent cringe on my face throughout the movie.
Midda
Posts: 2094
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I'm really not sure what everyone here thinks was so horrible and out of place in this film compared to the originals. After watching the originals over the past few nights, there really isn't anything in the latest that's any more corny or "cringe-worthy" than what all of the others contain. It's all silly over-the-top adventure.
IncrEdible_vEgetable
Posts: 1195
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
Let me preface this by saying I have been a big Indy fan since seeing I first saw Raiders many years ago. I think that what has made this series so popular is first and foremost the element of storytelling. Sure there's some corny lines and some far fetched escapes but Indiana Jones is so damn likable and the story is so well realised that we can forgive a few Hollywood-isms here and there.
I think that Raiders in particular stands up today as a great adventure movie in the same way Star Wars and ET are examples of great storytelling.

And then there's The Crystal Skull.

Now I know there's a big difference between seeing a movie at ten years old and seeing a similar one at thirty (+) and appreciating them for what they are. It's hard to see something like this with fresh eyes and not judge it on what the original meant at the time.

But since Steven Spielberg insisted that this movie was made "for the fans", he has in my opinion failed and failed miserably. My biggest issue was the complete lack of 3 dimensional characters and story.

Here are my "ten things about The Crystal Skull that made it worth walking out on":

1. Cate Blanchett - Worst.Accent.Ever. And horribly overacted. Not scary or threatening in any way whatsoever. Watch Ronald Lacey's chilling Major Arnold Toht, the sadistic German officer from Raiders and then tell me Cate did a good job.

2. The sets - I am sorry but that opening set at Area 51 when Indy is dragged out of the car was just rubbish. I expected a lot better considering the amount of money that is thrown at such movies these days. Oh that's right it was all spent on an ALIEN SPACESHIP. But I am getting ahead of myself.

3. THE ALIEN SPACESHIP - What the hell was what all about??? Was I watching Independence Day? No. Signs? No. It Came From Outer Space? Pretty sure I wasn't. Ancient myths and legends are all fine and well, but the fact that the picture ended with a flying saucer taking off was just too much. The implied mysticism of Raiders and Temple was enough, the hint of something greater than science at work. What next? Indiana Jones battling Klingons while wielding a light sabre and escaping via a jetpack? Pul-lease.

4. The whole "the audience-is-so-dumb-we-have-to-spoon-feed-them-this-crap-that-a-retarded-peanut-
could-understand" business. Yes we get it, they are aliens.

5. Where was the story??? - So lemme get this straight. The whole point of the second half of the movie (roughly speaking) is that they have to return this crystal skull. ok. So given that they didn't know it was gonna turn into Alien Resurrection once they planted the skull, wouldn't the Russians just have waltzed in and said thank you very much and taken the skull right back? So what was the point? The story had no steam, no impetus. It's not just a plot hole, it's the whole reason for the story.

6. Indy helps the Russians - Since when was Indiana fricken Jones such a douche? What just because they threatened Marion he was gonna just roll over and help them not once but several times? Not the Indy I know.

7. The whole nuclear bomb thing at the start - Clearly a narrative device, and a horribly ill conceived one at that, the whole nuclear bomb testing site was just awful. I mean I am prepared to suspend disbelief and all that but it has to be kinda plausible, I mean c'mon. And that speech that Indy gives the FBI agents was just so tacked on and contrived I wanted to cry into my popcorn.

8. Twists - Umm (cue sounds of crickets). Oh that's right, that one guy was a double agent. No wait he is our side. No wait... Seriously, if you can't do better than that Mr Kasdan, please kill yourself now.

9. The Artefact - Ok in Raiders it was the Ark. We see Indy all glazed over just describing it to his colleagues. Bingo, we're on board. Temple. Aww, all those skinny little emaciated Indian kiddies. Tug on the heart strings, we're there. Hell, even Last Crusade had a promise of immortality. But the crystal skull? Oh yeah it's this skull...and it's crystal. No one knows what it does. But care about it. Err yeah ok, sure if you say so.

10. That bitch talking throughout the movie sitting one row back. Every. f***ing. Time. SHUT THE f*** UP! You are in a cinema not the local hairdressing salon. I swear to god she is lucky the movie was s*** and I was beyond caring because so help me if it was halfway decent I would have considered suffocating her with the plastic bag that came with my popcorn. As it was her comments such as "(snort) As if..." and "Aww that's so fake" were simply adding insult to injury and I simply did not care enough about the experience to warrant an all out popcorn battering.


So in conclusion, yeah it sucked and I came out thinking that I had once again been duped out of eight bucks only to have another childhood memory torn asunder (I am looking at you Lucas).

Seriously though the ending was one of the saddest moments in my cinema going life and I must say that complete and utter disappointment does not begin to sum up my feeling towards Spielberg and Lucas, the butchers of dreams and the serial killers of fond memories.

Goodbye Indy.
Zylox
Posts: 698
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
i expected more... and i fell asleep towards the end ... i think Last Crusade is still the best
r_mazing
Posts: 1253
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
Some enjoyable parts but the whole premise/plot was wishy washy wtfbbq no nothing.

Pros:
Harrison Ford
Transformers’ kid was decent
Nuke
Masked graveyard kids
Ants
Waterfall

Cons:
Alien
Marion
Vines
Wedding
UFO
Seriously WTF fail wedding
parabol
Posts: 4314
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
f*** that, this is how weddings should be done:


WetWired
Posts: 3576
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
8. Twists - Umm (cue sounds of crickets). Oh that's right, that one guy was a double agent. No wait he is our side. No wait... Seriously, if you can't do better than that Mr Kasdan, please kill yourself now.


Kasdan? this one was "written" by David Koepp, Lawerence Kasdan wrote the first Raiders

Seriously though the ending was one of the saddest moments in my cinema going life and I must say that complete and utter disappointment does not begin to sum up my feeling towards Spielberg and Lucas, the butchers of dreams and the serial killers of fond memories.


I know what you mean, I didn't hate it per se but for the rest of the day I felt kinda depressed about it.
Martz
tubby
Posts: 1534
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
it was a s*** movie end of story..
Metrix
Posts: 142
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I enjoyed it
teq
Posts: 1374
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I dont understand why people cant just sit back, watch a movie and enjoy themselves these days
the idea is to just turn your brain off for a bit and relax, not analyse individual roles and ask questions about who/what/when/where/why about every nook and cranny
IncrEdible_vEgetable
Posts: 1196
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
Different people like different things I guess.

Some people like entertainment that challenges them, makes them think, stimulates their senses and mind, confirms or subverts their take on the world, opens up their mind to new possibilities or portrays a subject in an intellectually interesting way provoking discussion and the free exchange of ideas.

Other people like moronic crap that allows them to blank out their otherwise mundane existence for an hour or two.





Metrix
Posts: 145
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
Some people like entertainment that challenges them, makes them think, stimulates their senses and mind, confirms or subverts their take on the world, opens up their mind to new possibilities or portrays a subject in an intellectually interesting way provoking discussion and the free exchange of ideas.


I like these sorta movies/documentaries myself, but I would never go to a Indiana Jones movie hoping for this. IJ is a switch off and enjoy the ride sorta movie, which I did, and was quite satisfied afterwards. Was a fun ride. To expect any more then this from an IJ would be, well... a little stupid

I am no IJ expect either, I only vaguely remember the first 3 movies, apart from the memory of enjoying the ride :) so that makes it 4 from 4 in my book :)
teq
Posts: 1376
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
exactly, IJ never pretended to be a thriller, it is what it is and should be enjoyed for that
you ruin the movie for yourself if you try to critisise every little aspect of it
IncrEdible_vEgetable
Posts: 1197
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
You missed the point. I wasn't expecting the movie to be all of the above, just pointing out that entertainment can be other things than simply escapism.

Having said that, often the best escapism relies on some semblance of "truth" in that what you see has to make sense for this type of movie to work. If halfway through Indy was captured by a band of ninja badgers and forced to join their rodent army, it would kinda break the continuity a little.

As in, there's suspension of disbelief in order to allow the movie to work ie. vine swinging, car-to-car swordfight etc, and then there's just plain stupidity ie. some alien-merging spaceship bulls*** that quite frankly has no place in the world of Indiana Jones.

It was like Spielberg thought "oh well I made some sci-fi flicks that did ok and the first 3 Indy movies did ok so if I put the two together I gotta at least double the awesome."

No, Steven. What you did was wrong. So very wrong.
trog
AGN Admin
Posts: 24015
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
Well I saw this last week. I didn't come out hating it, but was thoroughly disappointed that it wasn't as good as it could have been. It was a far cry from the old Indys and would have been better as a standalone action flick that just happened to have Harrison Ford. Actually they could have replaced Ford with Jolie and called it "Tomb Raider: Aliens" or something.
you ruin the movie for yourself if you try to critisise every little aspect of it
The thing is, this is always going to happen with cult movies. The problem we're facing at the moment is Hollywood is clearly right the f*** out of new ideas. We're in rehash-ville until everyone f***ing figures it out and stops going to pay for bad movies. While this wasn't a "bad movie" per se, it _was_ a bad INDY movie, when measured up to the standards of the previous movies.
ravn0s
Posts: 6513
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
i saw it yesterday. it was good, but it didnt feel like an indy movie imo.
B.Hardball
Posts: 8121
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
1. Cate Blanchett - Worst.Accent.Ever. And horribly overacted. Not scary or threatening in any way whatsoever. Watch Ronald Lacey's chilling Major Arnold Toht, the sadistic German officer from Raiders and then tell me Cate did a good job.

LOL wat.

1. You're comparing how well an actress does a Russian accent to someone who does a German accent. gg

2. I saw this with my Russian gf last night. Not only did I think Cate did a good job, but my gf said she was expecting much worse.

2. The sets - I am sorry but that opening set at Area 51 when Indy is dragged out of the car was just rubbish. I expected a lot better considering the amount of money that is thrown at such movies these days. Oh that's right it was all spent on an ALIEN SPACESHIP. But I am getting ahead of myself.

LOL wat.

1. What would have been "a lot better"?

2. The minute they opened the doors and showed all the boxes I immediately thought back to the end of Raiders, which was f***ing awesome (and then they kinda ruined it by actually showing the ark for the little kids who didn't put two and two together. The problem here is that a whole bunch of people will be saying "I knew it was the same place as Raiders!" even though they didn't actually realise it until it was shoved in their faces, or worse, until they just read what I wrote. Admit it, I'm talking about you.)

Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to defend the whole movie. Those two things sounded like you were raving because you didn't really know what you were talking about. I really enjoyed the movie right up until the very end.

I actually agree with pretty much all your other comments (except for the fact that I don't really believe you know what the artifact was in Temple of Doom... now you can think about it and justify your words to "prove" you actually do know. But, too late for you - you already lost credibility of being a real IJ fan:p)


last edited by B.Hardball at 11:46:00 10/Jun/08
trog
AGN Admin
Posts: 24019
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
1. What would have been "a lot better"?
how about Nazis?
The minute they opened the doors and showed all the boxes I immediately thought back to the end of Raiders, which was f***ing awesome (and then they kinda ruined it by actually showing the ark for the little kids who didn't put two and two together.
Yeh, me too - but I thought it was totally lame.

That scene at the end of Raiders was, I felt, a neat sort of ironic twist at the end - despite all of Indy's efforts and the amazing battle against the Nazis, the net result of him finding one of the greatest treasures of mankind was that it would be lost to the ages, buried by government bureaucratic slaw and never to be seen again.

So when you see it as just some random government shed in the middle of the desert that anyone with a couple of guns can walk into and get access to it's a little lame and really seemed to defeat that whole point. I like tips of the hat to previous movies but this was I thought was sort of lame and takes away some of the awesomeness of that depressing ending of Raiders.
B.Hardball
Posts: 8122
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
1. What would have been "a lot better"?

how about Nazis?

I was specifically referring to the comment about the set design of area 51.

Yeh, me too - but I thought it was totally lame.

That scene at the end of Raiders was, I felt, a neat sort of ironic twist at the end - despite all of Indy's efforts and the amazing battle against the Nazis, the net result of him finding one of the greatest treasures of mankind was that it would be lost to the ages, buried by government bureaucratic slaw and never to be seen again.

So when you see it as just some random government shed in the middle of the desert that anyone with a couple of guns can walk into and get access to it's a little lame and really seemed to defeat that whole point. I like tips of the hat to previous movies but this was I thought was sort of lame and takes away some of the awesomeness of that depressing ending of Raiders.

Um... I think in a way you're agreeing with my point. At the start of the movie they need indy because all the treasures are unlabeled in boxes, and the cluey fan knows this applies to the ark as well. And it wasn't just a random shed man, it was area 51!
B.Hardball
Posts: 8123
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
Actually, pretending they didn't actually show the ark like they did, it would have made it even cooler - the Russians are concerned with some f***ing alien mummy, while the ark of the convenant is in the same f***ing room!!! IDIOT COMMUNISTS!##!!
Saint
Cainer
Posts: 2084
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
While I thought the movie was still kinda fun from an entertainment point of view, as soon as you start to analyse it in any way it becomes gay very quickly. The worst part about this whole movie was the whole sci-fi aspect. It was dumb, and they should have stuck to your typical religion/history type of story.
B.Hardball
Posts: 8124
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
Nah I still really enjoyed the first bit. It was really entertaining and fun... just the ending was gay.

As an less important aside, I thought it was really dumb when Indy was verbalising his thought processes of finding the skull and decrypting the clues and stuff. I was just thinking "wtf is he talking about this makes no sense oh i see he was just trying to sound clever when he oculd have just said the skull is in the jungle"
infi
Posts: 8908
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I'm sorry but her accent was terrible. I sank into my seat cringing every time she opened her mouth.

edit: lol

last edited by infi at 13:52:58 10/Jun/08
B.Hardball
Posts: 8137
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
infi, read what I wrote before :O
infi
Posts: 8920
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
1. You're comparing how well an actress does a Russian accent to someone who does a German accent. gg

2. I saw this with my Russian gf last night. Not only did I think Cate did a good job, but my gf said she was expecting much worse.


This part? I don't get how that is acknowledging it is a terrible accent. Her accent in no way resembled Russian and in fact she sounded distinctly Pommy most of the time.
B.Hardball
Posts: 8141
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
ok, so my next question would be, who are you to judge a good Russian accent?
infi
Posts: 8922
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I have played STALKER.

"STALKER, I have some information which may be of use to you."

It gets no better than that.
trog
AGN Admin
Posts: 24029
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
It doesn't have to BE a russian accent. It just has to SOUND like what people think Russians would sound like if they spoke english. I assume that is his point; whether it is valid or not is up to the reader. I thought she sounded OK but it was still lame she wasn't a nazi
B.Hardball
Posts: 8142
Location: Brisbane, Queensland

So you're saying that, when people are saying the accent was terrible, they actually would prefer an accent that sounds LESS like an actual Russian accent? Makes perfect sense!
infi
Posts: 8923
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
look, watch Eastern Promises and their beautiful russian accents, then come back here to me and i dare you to say blanchett's effort wasn't pathetic.
B.Hardball
Posts: 8143
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
haha ..|.,
parabol
Posts: 4417
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
The more I read this thread, the more I dislike the movie.

I don't like how in the latest movies/remakes/whatever they keep adding characters so that the movie appeals to as many people as possible. Well, at least there wasn't Jar Jar.

Also, lack of nazis was a let-down. It just doesn't feel the same. They could have at least been fighting a pocket of underground nazis who kept the movement going well after WWII. But no .. we have to appeal to as many people/countries as possible.

(p.s. Billy read your emails from last week!)
IncrEdible_vEgetable
Posts: 1208
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I thought the sets looked like sets. To me it looked like the backlot of Warner Brothers Movieworld (the scene at Area 51 I mean).

I guess for me Cate Blanchett's character was tainted by her lack of power or depth as Indy's "nemesis". What I was comparing wasn't so much the accents (to the German in Raiders) but rather the menace and hatred we feel for the enemy. I wasn't convinced she was going to do anything other than prance about and handle her sword. The fact that INdy virtually colludes with her at every opportunity and makes no real effort to resist made the whole thing kind of soft.

As for the Russian thing, it kind of loses it's power now that we have witnessed the whole fall of Communism etc. The fact that Nazis actually fought against the West gives them an "evil superpower" status, whereas the Russians have kind of a "potentially badass but never really got their genocide going" feel. Ok so that's maybe a little facetious but the fact is Nazis are where it's at if you wanna talk historical baddies. At least the Nazis have a kind of infamy in history. The Russians aren't really threatening in the same way and so they don't have the same dramatic tension.

Still I don't think a whole assload of Nazis could have saved this movie.



And yes I forgot to put in the words 'Sankara Stones'. Well spotted.
sLaps_Forehead
Posts: 3536
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
Seriously though the ending was one of the saddest moments in my cinema going life and I must say that complete and utter disappointment does not begin to sum up my feeling towards Spielberg and Lucas, the butchers of dreams and the serial killers of fond memories.


This is without a doubt one of the most profound things ever posted on this forum.
trog
AGN Admin
Posts: 24123
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
abridged script

edit: spot on, as expected

last edited by trog at 10:22:00 18/Jun/08
parabol
Posts: 4465
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
SHIA LABEOUF

Pick up MAP. Use MAP on HARRISON FORD. Walk To TOMB.

lulz @ SCUMM reference.
sLaps_Forehead
Posts: 3548
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
CATE BLANCHETT: Pryvet, Harrison. I am evil Soviet. You vill help me find Moose and Squirrel, yes?


omg that was probably the best editing room script Ive ever read!

Pure Gold!

infi
Posts: 8999
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I actually liked that one with the video game references... lol

and yes the monkeys and vines made me groan.
sLaps_Forehead
Posts: 3550
Location: Brisbane, Queensland


last edited by sLaps_Forehead at 23:54:17 18/Jun/08
Creepy
Posts: 978
Location: USA
Haha, nerds getting upset over a movie.
Reverend Evil™
Posts: 15736
Location: Wynnum, Queensland
Went and saw it today and I agree with most of you guys saying it sucked. It just didn't feel like an Indiana Jones movie at all. Area 51 being guarded by about 10 men, the fridge and nuclear explosion, boring car chase thru the city, swinging thru the jungle on vines, car going over the waterfalls and the UFO at the end just didn't work well for me at all. Not once in the movie did I feel like anything thrilling or dangerous was happening.

I'm glad I saw it but it just doesn't feel or fit in with the Indiana Jones universe.
ravn0s
Posts: 6576
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
omg you actually went to the cinemas?
Reverend Evil™
Posts: 15737
Location: Wynnum, Queensland
LOL

I got given 2 free movie tickets. I prolly should have seen The Hulk instead.

8-)
ravn0s
Posts: 6581
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
I prolly should have seen The Hulk instead.


hulk was a s***load better than indy
system
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