What did KOTCS get right? I think almost pretty much everything up to Chauchilla Cemetery scene (which is also classic Indy, I loved it).
After that something happens that I quite can't explain even after repeated viewings. Sure, the scenes at the Russian camp aren't that bad, and meeting (and particularly of course, fighting with) Marion is brilliant, but apart from that the last hour or so doesn't hold up, because...
– There are too many people around. They should've gotten rid of Mac already. Also it could've been a good idea to split the gang. Now it feels like there are 10 people in a bunch trying to get to prize.
– The pacing is lazy. The sense of danger is gone. Even from the jungle chase. Partly it's because of editing. And the digital jungle doesn't look very convincing, although I'm sure a lot of work went into it. Everyone is just remembering the chase from Raiders, and this just doesn't compare. It's a good effort, but not enough, not enough at all.
– When they finally reach Akator, everything just happens. It shouldn't be that easy to get to the main chamber, not even for Indy. The should be more mishaps and mistakes (just look at Last Crusade; I bet they were trying to recreate that in a way, but no, it fails far short).
– The death of Spalko. Not climactic enough, because there hasn't been enough danger before it to survive. (Compare to Last Crusade: Donovan just shot Henry Sr, and he's dying. Now, we love to see Donovan drinking from the wrong cup and die, don't we?)
Many of these faults, I'm sure, would've been corrected if only they had a stronger writer. There were so many ideas and script drafts and everything floating around, the writer(s) lost touch with the material. It feels like every damn idea was just thrown in, there's no clarity.