Lucas ponders Indy 5
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Darth Vile
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agentsands77 said:
Agree with your post.
IMHO, KOTCS was definitely more old school than new school. So in that sense, it?s probably more aligned to Spielberg and Ford?s sensibilities than Lucas?. If there is anything fundamentally flawed with the movie, it has to be levelled at the director and not the producer/writer. I think most agree that we didn?t have to see the living alien and the spaceship, but the inclusion of aliens/higher beings was not a bad idea
per se? and ultimately the living alien and spaceship equate to about 5 minutes of screen time.
I know I?ve stated this many time before but? KOTCS, if anything, is too similar to the first 3 Indy movies. Action/adventure movies have moved on. If Raiders, TOD or LC were released today, they would be viewed as passé, slow; behind the times? and in some ways KOTCS suffers for these similarities.
Personally - I think they should have been more progressive with KOTCS and done something a little more radical. E.g. a lot darker in tone, wall-to-wall special effects, a lot more gritty and ?real world?? but that would have definitely taken them away from the old school style ?boys own adventures? of the first 3. Not sure if it would have made for a better Indy movie, but it would have been different.
Zorg
New member
So here's what needs to happen. George, lock yourself to the attic of Skywalker Ranch with some good books until you can come up with a MacGuffin for Indy V. Don't really care what it actually is ? in the end, it's just a plot vehicle.
I'm guessing Ford and Spielberg don't care that much about the actual MacGuffin either. It's the finalized script that matters. So bring in a screenwriter with a tested love for the genre, someone with experience, someone who knows the character of Indiana Jones and can come up with a great script about his adventures at this point of his life. I have a name for you; Lawrence Kasdan, remember the guy who wrote Raiders?
Maybe it's just me being too optimistic, but I'm pretty confident Kasdan could write a script all of you would like. And all of us. You know, smart, funny, fast and at the same time conscious about the past and all the influences. I know, even he probably can't match Raiders anymore, but that isn't necessary. Just a great Indy film, the characters swan song. Indy going out with a bang. Something big, epic and personal, something Skull fell a little short from.
Do this within the next, say, two or three years, and we'll be there.
Won't we?
I'm guessing Ford and Spielberg don't care that much about the actual MacGuffin either. It's the finalized script that matters. So bring in a screenwriter with a tested love for the genre, someone with experience, someone who knows the character of Indiana Jones and can come up with a great script about his adventures at this point of his life. I have a name for you; Lawrence Kasdan, remember the guy who wrote Raiders?
Maybe it's just me being too optimistic, but I'm pretty confident Kasdan could write a script all of you would like. And all of us. You know, smart, funny, fast and at the same time conscious about the past and all the influences. I know, even he probably can't match Raiders anymore, but that isn't necessary. Just a great Indy film, the characters swan song. Indy going out with a bang. Something big, epic and personal, something Skull fell a little short from.
Do this within the next, say, two or three years, and we'll be there.
Won't we?
Crusade>Raiders
New member
it's not just another one of those Mummy/Lara Croft things, it's got a lot more going on.''
LOL rip-offs
LOL rip-offs
HovitosKing
Well-known member
Zorg said:
*crickets chirping*
DarthMickey
New member
Can't love, must Hate this Crap! Must commit suicide if Indy 5 appears! 
HovitosKing
Well-known member
Lucas isn't done messing with (i.e., tearing down) the Indiana Jones franchise, or the fans, yet. Trust me.
I do agree with Lucas that Indy can't just go after a random artifact. There needs to be some underlying subtext. One logical extension from KOTCS would be to have Indy and Marion go on a quest together. If Indy 4 suggested he was turning into Henry Sr., Indy 5 could threaten to transform him into Abner.
But the real key will be for Lucas to find some aspect that interests him- rather than the Macguffin itself. I think he should continue to mine the 50s B movie concept, and explore some other avenues of that genre. There's also some stuff in the "Monkey King" script that could probably be recycled- namely the idea of a big African adventure.
I'm not really sure what to make of his "future/past" comments. Then again, I'm still not certain what his "too connected" quote referred to either. There are times when Lucas is a little too cryptic for his own good. He says this stuff which could be interpreted a number of ways, and everyone automatically assumes the worst.
My guess is that he's just referring to the old digital filmmaking argument. One look at the amount of f/x in the SW prequels clearly illustrates the style Lucas favors. And since he's always been intent on pushing the technological envelope, it's hard to fault him. Ironically, he's now condemned for the things which once garnered him praise.
But the real key will be for Lucas to find some aspect that interests him- rather than the Macguffin itself. I think he should continue to mine the 50s B movie concept, and explore some other avenues of that genre. There's also some stuff in the "Monkey King" script that could probably be recycled- namely the idea of a big African adventure.
I'm not really sure what to make of his "future/past" comments. Then again, I'm still not certain what his "too connected" quote referred to either. There are times when Lucas is a little too cryptic for his own good. He says this stuff which could be interpreted a number of ways, and everyone automatically assumes the worst.
My guess is that he's just referring to the old digital filmmaking argument. One look at the amount of f/x in the SW prequels clearly illustrates the style Lucas favors. And since he's always been intent on pushing the technological envelope, it's hard to fault him. Ironically, he's now condemned for the things which once garnered him praise.
IndyFan89 said:
Why would you think that? If anything, it probably means we'll never see aliens again.
If he's not referring to digital filmmaking, he's likely talking about new territory for the character. If Spielberg wants to remain fairly close to what the originals did, Lucas seems intent on finding new ground to cover.
They've done Nazis, religious artifacts, and 1930s serials. They've also explored 1950s B movies, and veered closer into the sci-fi genre. Where else could they take the character?
I suspect that when Lucas talks about finding a Macguffin, this is what he's really talking about. Anybody can just come up with a random artifact. But when he hits on something he feels is unique that would be fun to explore, we'll probably get an Indy 5.
Of all the problems I had with Indy4, the aliens weren't one of them. Yes, the movie definitely took the series to new territory with the alien 1950s B-movie stuff, but Spielberg still kept it to some extent grounded in a 1930s serial style as well. There were people jumping from moving cars onto another, there was vine swinging, there was running away from killer natives... the Republic serial stuff is still a big part of Indy4. And the Marshall college chase was wonderful, traditional, classic Indy.
If anything, the strife between Lucas and Spielberg is a healthy thing for the series, because it ends in compromise that's (theoretically) good for the audience. Lucas got his wish to bring the series to a new place, while Spielberg balanced things out by putting enough "vintage" stuff to keep it distinctly Indiana Jones even if thematically it stands out from the others. I would imagine that would continue with any Indy5, and I'm all for that.
The problems with Indy4 (and there were many) were entirely screenplay related, not story related. It feels like they spent so many years trying to agree on a story, that they just signed off on the first script that met all their personal needs in terms of plot (Lucas got his aliens, and Spielberg/Ford got crystal skull/conquistador stuff to tie it enough into archeology that they could get over flying saucers). Once Koepp's script pleased everyone from a story perspective, they should have refined it until the storytelling was top notch. It wouldn't surprise me at all if the Writers Strike kept Indy4 from having a script that was as good as it should have been. Wasn't Koepp redrafting screenplays during shooting? When they kept reiterating for the past 19 years that they were "waiting for the perfect script," what they really meant was that they were waiting for a script that had enough alien stuff to please George but enough traditional stuff to please everyone else. That has nothing to do with structure, dialog, characterizations, and all the other things that Kingdom of the Crystal Skull fell really short on and ultimately made it the disappointment that most people consider it to be (to varying extents).
My two requests for Indy5 would be: a better screenplay, and telling Kaminski to back the hell off on his overbearing lighting style. If you're going to run the movie through a DI and make it look all digital, hazy and artificial, what's the point of shooting it on film in the first place? "Approximate Slocombe's style" my ass. In terms of the shot compositions, the cinematography was decently reminiscent of the original trilogy and stands out as old fashioned among modern blockbusters (in a good way), but the color and overall look of the film was agonizing.
If anything, the strife between Lucas and Spielberg is a healthy thing for the series, because it ends in compromise that's (theoretically) good for the audience. Lucas got his wish to bring the series to a new place, while Spielberg balanced things out by putting enough "vintage" stuff to keep it distinctly Indiana Jones even if thematically it stands out from the others. I would imagine that would continue with any Indy5, and I'm all for that.
The problems with Indy4 (and there were many) were entirely screenplay related, not story related. It feels like they spent so many years trying to agree on a story, that they just signed off on the first script that met all their personal needs in terms of plot (Lucas got his aliens, and Spielberg/Ford got crystal skull/conquistador stuff to tie it enough into archeology that they could get over flying saucers). Once Koepp's script pleased everyone from a story perspective, they should have refined it until the storytelling was top notch. It wouldn't surprise me at all if the Writers Strike kept Indy4 from having a script that was as good as it should have been. Wasn't Koepp redrafting screenplays during shooting? When they kept reiterating for the past 19 years that they were "waiting for the perfect script," what they really meant was that they were waiting for a script that had enough alien stuff to please George but enough traditional stuff to please everyone else. That has nothing to do with structure, dialog, characterizations, and all the other things that Kingdom of the Crystal Skull fell really short on and ultimately made it the disappointment that most people consider it to be (to varying extents).
My two requests for Indy5 would be: a better screenplay, and telling Kaminski to back the hell off on his overbearing lighting style. If you're going to run the movie through a DI and make it look all digital, hazy and artificial, what's the point of shooting it on film in the first place? "Approximate Slocombe's style" my ass. In terms of the shot compositions, the cinematography was decently reminiscent of the original trilogy and stands out as old fashioned among modern blockbusters (in a good way), but the color and overall look of the film was agonizing.
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No Ticket
New member
The Man said:
I will NOT see that movie. I'll go see Indiana Jones V if it still STARS Harrison Ford as INDIANA JONES!!!! No matter what they do to it I know I'll still go see it. (No Lucas, that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to make it as awesome as possible - I've read that IGN Interview! I know what you're thinking!)
But if Lucas thinks I'll pay $8 to go see Mutt Williams he can forget it. I am not interested in his character. That isn't Indy. That's Mutt. If they do that I'll wait and watch it on DVD or something at a friends house. I just can't support that idea with my money. That's how against that I am.
And it has nothing to do with being a whiney childhood-raped fan or whatever. Don't hit me with one of those "That's just fine! More Indy for us!" lines because guess what. It wouldn't be Indy. It'd be Mutt.
As a great man* once said,
"No spank you."
*Well, Ace Ventura.