A new found fondness for KotCS as a film student and writer

gabbagabbahey

New member
I moved this over to the "Archeology" forum & started a new thread called; "How do we know anything is true?"

Looking forward to a lively discussion. : )
 

Finn

Moderator
Staff member
Mod note

No need to harp on the religious discussion, that one's moved on elsewhere - but I will ban somebody if I have to fix another mess of tags.
 

Crack that whip

New member
Pale Horse said:
Werner Heisenberg, Kurt Gödel, and Noam Chomsky walk into a bar. Heisenberg turns to the other two and says, "Clearly this is a joke, but how can we figure out if it's funny or not?" Gödel replies, "We can't know that because we're inside the joke." Chomsky says, "Of course it's funny. You're just telling it wrong."

Oh, that's lovely. I'm appropriating that, if I may. (y)
 

No Ticket

New member
I watched the movie for the first time in about 5 years the other day... and I enjoyed it more then I probably ever have. Maybe it's because I knew what to expect now, maybe it's because I'm older... maybe it's just because I've accepted it for what it is. But one thing is for certain, a fresh look at the film after 5 years made it easier for me to tell what I did and didn't like when in 2008 I wasn't really sure why this thing I wanted to love so much wasn't doing it for me.

I noticed things that many have already noticed, but they were more obvious this go 'round. Things like...

* Harrison Ford does a great job resurrecting the role of Indy

* His age really is irrelevant to the story, I couldn't even remember off the top of my head how old Harrison was in 2008 and I believed more so that Indy could be doing these things because of it

* The casting was great

* The elements of the 50s sci-fi genre in this film are not really it's problem

* Even the fridge scene really isn't the problem

* The lighting and direction was top notch

... the most glaring problems were...

* The writing, can't save good acting with bad dialogue that can make a character seem out of character from time to time... leading to the misconception that Harrison did not channel the character as perfectly this time.

* The plot, it at times doesn't make as much sense as it should and often doesn't give the characters enough to do. It's confusing and boring.


I think the worst part of the film is when Indy and Mutt go to the cell and then to retrieve the skull from the graveyard all the way through to the quicksand scene. Not much interesting happens between those two points. I know there is the revelation of Marion and that Mutt is Indy's son... but that could have been done in a more interesting way.

I think the actual "kingdom" scene at the end is too confusing. Why exactly is the obelisk the entrance to this flying saucer? Why do you have to figure out a puzzle to get in and the stairs suddenly retract? Who sets that thing back up afterwards, it's obviously been used before. Why is the saucer protected by this trap? How were you supposed to get there in the first place? I have never been that confused by the temple/whatever Indy had to enter before as I was there. It all seemed like a jumbled up mess.

The script/writing is obviously the biggest downfall of this film. I think everything else was pretty good. The alien premise could have worked. The whole opening scene at Area 51 is fantastic. I feel like it got a little boring after that and the scenes at the college.

Overall, I enjoyed it more then I think I ever have though. Which was nice for a change. I didn't spend the whole movie just wishing they'd done this or that. But upon reflection of my viewing of it, it's just more clear to me now where the ball was dropped.
 

Pale Horse

Moderator
Staff member
I realized just last night that KotCS is the same movie as Disney's 1975 Escape from Witch Mountain...
 

Joe Brody

Well-known member
Pale Horse said:
I realized just last night that KotCS is the same movie as Disney's 1975 Escape from Witch Mountain...

What? Star purse = Crystal Skull?

. . .but there's no bad guy's funky '70's era mansion in KotCS. . . .
 

Stoo

Well-known member
Joe Brody said:
What? Star purse = Crystal Skull?

. . .but there's no bad guy's funky '70's era mansion in KotCS. . . .
There's no flying Winnebago either. :)

One could argue that "Skull" is more akin to, "Return From Witch Mountain", the disappointing & goofy sequel.
 

AndyLGR

Active member
No Ticket said:
I watched the movie for the first time in about 5 years the other day... and I enjoyed it more then I probably ever have. Maybe it's because I knew what to expect now, maybe it's because I'm older... maybe it's just because I've accepted it for what it is. But one thing is for certain, a fresh look at the film after 5 years made it easier for me to tell what I did and didn't like when in 2008 I wasn't really sure why this thing I wanted to love so much wasn't doing it for me.

I noticed things that many have already noticed, but they were more obvious this go 'round. Things like...

* Harrison Ford does a great job resurrecting the role of Indy

* His age really is irrelevant to the story, I couldn't even remember off the top of my head how old Harrison was in 2008 and I believed more so that Indy could be doing these things because of it

* The casting was great

* The elements of the 50s sci-fi genre in this film are not really it's problem

* Even the fridge scene really isn't the problem

* The lighting and direction was top notch

... the most glaring problems were...

* The writing, can't save good acting with bad dialogue that can make a character seem out of character from time to time... leading to the misconception that Harrison did not channel the character as perfectly this time.

* The plot, it at times doesn't make as much sense as it should and often doesn't give the characters enough to do. It's confusing and boring.


I think the worst part of the film is when Indy and Mutt go to the cell and then to retrieve the skull from the graveyard all the way through to the quicksand scene. Not much interesting happens between those two points. I know there is the revelation of Marion and that Mutt is Indy's son... but that could have been done in a more interesting way.

I think the actual "kingdom" scene at the end is too confusing. Why exactly is the obelisk the entrance to this flying saucer? Why do you have to figure out a puzzle to get in and the stairs suddenly retract? Who sets that thing back up afterwards, it's obviously been used before. Why is the saucer protected by this trap? How were you supposed to get there in the first place? I have never been that confused by the temple/whatever Indy had to enter before as I was there. It all seemed like a jumbled up mess.

The script/writing is obviously the biggest downfall of this film. I think everything else was pretty good. The alien premise could have worked. The whole opening scene at Area 51 is fantastic. I feel like it got a little boring after that and the scenes at the college.

Overall, I enjoyed it more then I think I ever have though. Which was nice for a change. I didn't spend the whole movie just wishing they'd done this or that. But upon reflection of my viewing of it, it's just more clear to me now where the ball was dropped.
Nice post. Sums up my feelings on it too. I would also add the supporting characters don't hit the mark either as well as the macguffin and overall end goal of the film being confusing too.

The true test of this film is if you want to watch a repeat viewing. Is it a film you can put in the blu ray player on a day off. Is KOTCS one of those films that you can watch again and again like the OT? For me the answer is a no.
 

sheffsteve

New member
It suffers from a case of being overbaked by too many cooks! However, I do like it.

I do wonder how we would feel if Lucas had made 'Saucermen From Mars' though?

Maybe we actually got away somewhat lightly with KOTCS?
 

kongisking

Active member
sheffsteve said:
It suffers from a case of being overbaked by too many cooks! However, I do like it.

I do wonder how we would feel if Lucas had made 'Saucermen From Mars' though?

Maybe we actually got away somewhat lightly with KOTCS?

This may be the key to why I continue to defend and like KOTCS when there's endless evidence for it being a lame and underwhelming Indy movie. Because, in the grand scheme of things....this movie could have turned out so, so, so, so much worse. Keeping that in mind...it's a fun, endearing movie to me, warts and all. I'll gladly settle for an entertaining and good-natured bit of popcorn goofiness over a flat-out unbearable train wreck of abysmal quality.

Because, come on, people...there are a multitude of movies of its type infinitely worse than Crystal Skull. Let's keep some perspective! :p
 

jsarino

New member
kongisking said:
Because, come on, people...there are a multitude of movies of its type infinitely worse than Crystal Skull. Let's keep some perspective! :p

So true! That's the thing about being fans of a series, you nitpick on every little thing that you may find wrong on a sequel/prequel. You hear about it with the Star Wars prequels (and probably the sequels coming too), Star Trek, the Lord of the Rings prequels, and so on. Indiana Jones is no different. We place expectations so high that anything a little less than that, we consider it a bad movie. So, in the grand scheme of things, KOTCS is not THAT bad, people. :)
 

Pale Horse

Moderator
Staff member
Joe Brody said:
What? Star purse = Crystal Skull?

. . .but there's no bad guy's funky '70's era mansion in KotCS. . . .

Au contraire mon frere!

078.jpg
 

Mickiana

Well-known member
kongisking said:
This may be the key to why I continue to defend and like KOTCS when there's endless evidence for it being a lame and underwhelming Indy movie. Because, in the grand scheme of things....this movie could have turned out so, so, so, so much worse. Keeping that in mind...it's a fun, endearing movie to me, warts and all. I'll gladly settle for an entertaining and good-natured bit of popcorn goofiness over a flat-out unbearable train wreck of abysmal quality.

Because, come on, people...there are a multitude of movies of its type infinitely worse than Crystal Skull. Let's keep some perspective! :p

Interesting perspective, saying it's alright because it's not the worst movie around. I agree that it is not the worst movie around, but we all had high expectations of it. For me, it's main problem was being the inheritor of an excellent trilogy, or more precisely a descendent of Raiders; in that the standard had been established and should have been met or exceeded. I watch it every now and again enjoying little snippets of it throughout but also feeling some angst (lessening all the time) about the whole product.

But whatever my own disappointments in CS were, I hope for an Indy5 where my fondness might grow again.
 

Pale Horse

Moderator
Staff member
Mickiana said:
kongisking said:
This may be the key to why I continue to defend and like KOTCS when there's endless evidence for it being a lame and underwhelming Indy movie. Because, in the grand scheme of things....this movie could have turned out so, so, so, so much worse.
Interesting perspective, saying it's alright because it's not the worst movie around. I agree that it is not the worst movie around, but we all had high expectations of it...

Celebrating mediocrity. Mr. Incredible would be proud. :rolleyes:

I guess it's the american way now.
 

Dr. Gonzo

New member
Pale Horse said:
Celebrating mediocrity. Mr. Incredible would be proud. :rolleyes:

I guess it's the american way now.

Do they sell Kingdom of the Crystal Skull on the shelves at ikea?

<iframe width="853" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/4X2AvfSTi6Q?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 

DavesFedora

New member
All these comparisons to day old pizza!

I gotta say though, even though I love both KOTCS and day-old pizza equally, with one of 'em, I remove from fridge before nuking.

;)
 
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