0806 June 2008

KOTCS doesn't look or behave like the 1980s Indy movies, but maybe it doesn't have to. Because this takes place twelve years after WWII, we're left wondering what Henry Jones, Jr. has been up to in the intervening years. (In fact, we're teased with a throwaway line about "Colonel" Jones' many missions while serving in the U.S. Army.) So it's only natural that a post-War adventure should take on a new look and feel. If it doesn't quite fit together with the original trilogy, it's because there's a gap, and it actually falls into place better when you balance it with the Young Indiana Jones Adventures. In those stories, Indy crossed paths with numerous historical figures and played a part in world events. Given that as a continuing theme, the circumstances of KOTSC aren't so unusual.

In terms of character, I liked how Indy has become more like his old man, with several moments that recalled Connery's character in Last Crusade. Could they be setting up more movies with Shia LeBouf as the hero? You better believe it.

As much fun as it is, there's plenty of eye-rolling corny stuff. I don't mind the stylized acting (remember, the template is the serialized action shorts of the 30s) but I could do without animated monkeys and prairie dogs. The climax was big and loud, but not emotionally satisfying.

Still, I'm thinking of going again before it leaves theaters.

Saw it in the theater, then liked it enough to buy the DVD, although it's been sitting on my shelf for years unwatched. It took this summer's sequel/reboot to inspire me to revisit it.

For what could have been a big dumb smash-em-up movie, the story is unusually adult and internal. It's all about repressed emotions and memories. The two main characters, Bruce and Betty, each have issues with their fathers that must be worked out. Each father, in turn, has made mistakes, but you can see why they acted the way they did.

I loved Danny Elfman's music, which brought to mind Darkman and Spiderman while introducing new Arabian elements. And this is a movie that should have won an oscar for editing. I have never seen cinema cut like this. It uses spatial and visual linking in ways only done in comics until now. Watch for the "crossing the line" moments to see how breaking that rule can work on occasion.

Oh, and the Hulk can smash tanks real good.

I found a perverse pleasure in watching this as a free download from Hulu, sponsored by the Air Force of all things. Imagine a scene in a scuzzy underground Paris bar, where the nihilistic bank robber sociopath Eric has just snorted heroin with his friends and extolled the virtues of bombing local cafes, and then cutting to an advert featuring U.S. military drones that keep the free world safe from terrorists. When NBC & Fox (the owneers of Hulu.com) sold this ad time, did they tell the Air Force what a subversive piece of art cinema they'd be supporting?

Eric Stoltz plays the milquetoast safecracker who goes along with whatever ringleader Eric says and does. He's willing to forgive reckless behavior, copious drug-taking, sadism, and even murder, but he finally takes a stand to defend his new love Zoe.

Writer/director Avary's direction is terrific fun, as are the dialogue and acting. I hadn't seen this movie since college, and I remember now how my friends and I loved quoting some of the film's more outrageous lines.

One final comment about Hulu.com. I love the concept, but the technology isn't there yet. The frame rate is way too choppy, especially in scenes where the camera is moving.

So bad it's good. Lots of big explosions, crazy chases, and fight scenes for such a low budget movie, but the plot, dialogue, and acting are ridiculous. Brandon Lee channels Bruce Campbell at his cheesiest as a mercenary trying to save German scientist Ernest Borgnine, who is kidnapped in Cuba by an evil Austrian and his Russian henchmen who then go to Namibia to mine for diamonds to use in a laser power source that will take over the world by starting WWIII.... you get the idea. Hysterical.