What was your experience seeing KOTCS in the theater like?

kongisking

Active member
Henry W Jones said:
Went opening day, first showing. So I'm watching the movie, I'm digging the fact Indy's on the screen again. Mutt a Indy are on the motorcycle being chased, Indy punches the guy thru the car window, and I hear behind me "OHHHH". And from there on this lady chose to make loud noises and talk to the screen anytime something happened. Finally when Indy says " I get it, three times it drops. One,Two" . Before Indy could says it she said " and thats three!!!!!!" I got upset and told her I waited nearly twenty years to see this movie and paid good money to see Indy say the lines not her. If I want commentary I would wait for the DVD. I'm pretty sure I p*ssed her off. But she shut her face and hopefully next time she goes to the movies she will remember she not at home and should let people enjoy the movie that they paid top dollar to go see.

This is off-topic, but your story reminds me of when I saw Thor last weekend. A bunch of dim-witted teenagers sat right behind me: sniggered at every dramatic moment, roared at every joke, and mocked the film all the way through. It came dangerously close to ruining the film for me. In fact, now that I think about it, they sorta did, because I'm pretty sure that if they had not been cackling during the dramatic scenes, I might have actually been genuinely touched by the drama. Ugh.
 

michael

Well-known member
I had a dull, small crowd. Went on a Sunday evening, so it was expected I guess. Would've loved to have a full crowd though. I should've gone by myself to see it again though when it was much later in it's theatrical run, something I still regret not doing.

I remember sitting in my seat during Doom Town and when the siren went off, it was truly the first time I actually worried for Indy. I had no clue how he was going to get the hell out of there. I also believe I fist pumped to myself when he grabbed the hat from Mutt at the end. If the movie tickets cost $100 it still would've been worth it just to see that.
 

Indy's brother

New member
I mentioned this in another thread when it came out, but since I can't find it, I'll say it again here. I first saw the movie at the AMC 30 in Naperville, IL. It had been out for a few weeks already (hey, I kept trying to get fans to go with me and plans kept falling through). This is not some cozy small-town old-fashioned theater. This is a multiplex with stadium seating. The reason I'm giving these details is because as the credits rolled I witnessed something I had never seen in a theater before.....A STANDING OVATION. I saw it again at that theater a few days later, completely different crowd, SAME THING!

And conventional "wisdom" states that everyone hated it. psssh.
 

michael

Well-known member
Indy's brother said:
I mentioned this in another thread when it came out, but since I can't find it, I'll say it again here. I first saw the movie at the AMC 30 in Naperville, IL. It had been out for a few weeks already (hey, I kept trying to get fans to go with me and plans kept falling through). This is not some cozy small-town old-fashioned theater. This is a multiplex with stadium seating. The reason I'm giving these details is because as the credits rolled I witnessed something I had never seen in a theater before.....A STANDING OVATION. I saw it again at that theater a few days later, completely different crowd, SAME THING!

And conventional "wisdom" states that everyone hated it. psssh.
I probably would've teared if there was a standing ovation.

I may sound like I'm gushing over KOTCS, that's hardly the case, it was just the whole ambience and feeling to actually see a NEW Indiana Jones movie in the theater. Being too young to ever see any of the original trilogy on screen really made me appreciate KOTCS on screen (and I say on screen again, because there's such a big difference between the movie going experience and popping in the dvd at home, especially for a series/character you truly care about) And the fact that it was most likely going to be the last one. Better take it all in, even it's flaws, was my thinking. But the high points were high enough.

I still remember driving downtown before I had seen the movie a few days prior, it was at night and traffic was stopped because of all the people coming out of the theater to cross the streets. They were all talking to eachother, I wanted to know EVERYONE'S opinion and I envied them all for that minute or two.
 

IndyJones5183

New member
I saw the movie a couple weeks after the release date.There was an older woman sitting to my left, who freaked out during some scenes of the movie.
I loved the opening scene when they were drag racing,so cool.
 

Raiders90

Well-known member
Despite the fact that I praised the film on here (even though my heart told me it wasn't all that great, I felt this stupid sense of Indy loyalty), when I walked out of the theater on May 22nd 2008, I felt like someone punched me in the gut. To this day, I still cannot explain the feeling exactly. Like just this empty sort of funeral-esque feeling that a piece of my childhood had died onscreen. Just a sort of sighing disappointment. But I buried it, and went on here and defended the film to everyone because I felt I had to as a good fan. I don't hate the film or think it's horrible, but I re-watch it very rarely compared to the other films.

What about you? What was your experience like?
 

IndyBuff

Well-known member
I saw it five times in theaters and each time the reaction was positive. People applauded after a couple of the screenings and it seemed like the atmosphere was positive throughout---people gasped, laughed, and cheered at the appropriate moments.

Maybe I was just lucky but overall it received positive feedback from the screenings I went to. My friends and family enjoyed it too.:)
 
New York City, opening night. I man dressed as Indiana Jones, hat and all, stood up at some point (can't remember) and walked out. I remember seeing his "Indy silhouette" against the screen as he was walking out. That was disheartening.

There was an awkward silence most of the time. I enjoyed it but most seemed to cringe at the gopher and at the UFO. People were lukewarm on the way out. I went back and saw it maybe six times and still enjoy the movie to this day, despite it's flaws. It got better with each viewing and I watch it as much as I watch the other Indy films.

The nuke fridge did not phase me. It felt Indiana Jones to me, but I get the arguments and hope they don't go that over the top again.

Walking out, I was excited for a follow up that I thought would happen right away... Still waiting for it.
 

Stoo

Well-known member
Raiders112390 said:
What was your experience like?

My expectations for "Skull" were very, very low so the film turned out to be better than I'd anticipated (plus I already knew about the fridge). I saw it opening day and then 2 more times at the theatre after that. The audiences were fairly quiet at all 3 screenings.
 
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Forbidden Eye

Well-known member
Raiders112390 said:
Despite the fact that I praised the film on here (even though my heart told me it wasn't all that great, I felt this stupid sense of Indy loyalty), when I walked out of the theater on May 22nd 2008, I felt like someone punched me in the gut. To this day, I still cannot explain the feeling exactly. Like just this empty sort of funeral-esque feeling that a piece of my childhood had died onscreen. Just a sort of sighing disappointment.

Quite a weird motivation to have, though, to go online and praise a film if you didn't genuinely enjoy it. Yeah, you love the Indiana Jones character, grew up with the original trilogy etc. but wouldn't that have motivated you to be more vocal about your disappointment since Day 1? A more accurate interpretation of hindsight memories would be you did enjoy it, but after rewatching it, reading negative criticism, looking back and analyzing it that you starting seeing more problems and enjoyed it less as time went on.

I already discussed this in one of the threads Stoo posted, but there was a very positive reaction from my opening day experience. Granted, I saw it in a theater that opened that day(and to celebrate they only played Kingdom for the opening 24 hours) so the community was very happy to have a new theater, but my audience was very receptive, there was a huge laugh with the "Why didn't you make him finish school?" line, and there was applause at the end.

Combining my personal experience with the high score on RottenTomatoes.com and the applause this got at the Cannes Film Festival, I can't help but think there's some revisionist history with people's negative criticism of the film.
 
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IndyBuff

Well-known member
Forbidden Eye said:
Combining my personal experience with the high score on RottenTomatoes.com and the applause this got at the Cannes Film Festival, I can't help but think there's some revisionist history with people's negative criticism of the film.

I think general audiences had a lot of fun with it and the reaction seemed way more positive than the Star Wars prequels. I remember watching quite a few people buying the DVD the day it was released; I think hardcore fans and critics are more cynical about it than the average viewer.
 

Udvarnoky

Well-known member
My audiences were fairly quiet, especially as the film went on and squandered its goodwill. It was a very interesting movie to watch with an audience because you can tell everyone was open-minded and in the tank for it at the beginning, and you could feel the room's slow realization that it wasn't getting any better.

To isolate the positive, I do remember "You gotta stay out of the library!" and "Why didn't you make him finish school?" being the lines that got the biggest laughs, and the manipulated greaser/college brawl (definitely one of the movie's better gags) got a good response as well.

During one screening I heard an older gentleman's robust (and non-mocking) laugh when Indy rolls out of the fridge unharmed and I loved that because it shows that at least one person appreciated the gag on the level which Spielberg intended it.
 

Randy_Flagg

Well-known member
I don't think I ever posted in this thread, but I still remember the experience pretty well.

First of all, I went on opening day. As I was standing on line, there was a guy yelling at all of us, "It SUCKS!!!! Save your money!!! It SUCKS!!!!" over and over. I just laughed and thought to myself, "Wow, I thought guys like him only existed on internet message boards."

When I got into the theater, there were several people in costume (I was not one of them.)

When the Lucasfilm logo appeared, the guy behind me said, "Lucas... why did it have to be Lucas?", which made me laugh.

Throughout the movie, there was kind of a rock concert atmosphere to it all, which made it a lot of fun. People applauded, cheered, etc, at all the right times.

About midway through the movie, though, I found myself thinking, "Hmm... this isn't as good as I'd hoped." But I still hung on to hope that my opinion would soon change.

At the end of the movie, the reaction was mixed. There was a lot of applause during the closing credits, but I also heard plenty of people complaining that it wasn't nearly as a good as the previous three films.
 

Kai Hagen

New member
I went on the opening day.
The movie started out very well. I thought that the movie would be more about those racers being together. And I was expecting more Rock 'n' Roll culture. Plus, the sunny scene and the background gave that part a more happy feeling to it. It reminded me of the years when I lived in Arizona (although I never raced anyone there). I'm not saying that it was wrong to not continue in that direction, but I'm really curious on what it would've been like if the movie did. And then move to a different region with those girls and soldiers with the feeling of danger increasing. Indiana Jones would be helping and saving them. The atomic test part was a good addition.

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British Raider

Well-known member
Midnight screening.

I was young and had high expectations, so naturally it disappointed. I remember as the second half unfolded I felt emotionally disconnected. And the wedding scene was an eye roller for me. Anyway, didn’t stop me seeing it again. The next audience was in an afternoon and it was packed with families. This was a better experience overall, more audience reaction, and the second half didn’t disappoint quite as much because my expectations weren’t high.
 
So good. I enjoyed all of it. I was surprised and amazed, also in a good mood with all the criticism after seeing it, memes of the time were funny, but I enjoy a lot in cinema. I enjoy two times in different cinemas. I love the atomic bomb sequence and I am a proud fan of the alien thematic in the indy universe. For me, its a treasure for sci fi movies fans made with love, directly from george lucas and spielberg.
 

Nerdpants

Well-known member
When I went to the cinema, had my family with me. Reviews had already come out attacking the film, and some friends had also already seen it and were saying it was not very good.

My expectation was lowered because of this but was pleasantly surprised when I saw the start of the film. Thought the fridge scene was ridiculous but crossed my fingers that would be the only bad part. Things were going well until got to the waterfall scene. Never really buyed that scene, though there have been quite a few Indiana Jones moment in other films that would be just as unsurvivable.

Started getting a hit bored by about then. Never really picked up and aliens and UFO really was the last straw. I also personally was not a big fan of the wedding ending and thought it was a soft way to end the movie and potentially the series. Very different to the end of TOD and LC which ended with Indy still in costume and on his adventure.
 
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