Plot
The movie opens in a South American jungle. A man in a rumpled fedora leads a couple of men into a cave. It has ancient markings, and inside is a golden idol. The man in the hat is Indiana Jones. He gets the idol, is nearly double-crossed by one of his men, but he gets his. On the outside of the cave, after being nearly crushed by a giant boulder, his idol is stolen by his rival, Beloq. Indy escapes, just barely.
The main movie deals with Indy being asked by the government to find the lost Ark of the Covenent before the Nazi's do. An old colleague of Indy's has the key to finding the Ark. He goes after the man's daughter, Marion, and old flame. After an encounter with the Nazi's which destroys her bar, they go off to Egypt.
They join up with Sallah, an Egyptian digger. He tells them that they are close to finding the Ark. They also learn that Beloq is leading the team of Nazi's to find the Ark. They do find it, Indy does before the baddies, but Marion is kidnapped. They find her and escpae, but the Ark is taken by the Nazi's.
In the end, the Nazi's open it. Inside, there is nothing but dust, then a power is unleashed. It seems good, but in the end, it destroys all those who look at it.
My Thoughts
This is one of those action movies that is flawless. It created the legend of Indiana Jones and Harrison Ford. There is everything in this movie. Action, love, suspense, comedy. It moves at just the right pace, and is proof that when two great minds get together, they can create good. Lucas and Spielberg are probably the most recognizable people in geek history. And this collaboration, although made years before their legends were cemented, it was a history making event. And they made two more!
The Temple of Doom
Indiana Jones: Harrison Ford
Willy Scott: Kate Capshaw
Short Round: Ke Huy Quan
Released: 1984. Story by: George Lucas. Screenplay by: Willard Huyck & Gloria Katz. Directed by: Steven Speilberg. My Rating: ****
Plot
After narrowly escaping a double-cross in Shanghai, Indy, a lounge singer named Willy, and Indy's pint-sized companion Short Round, are stranded in India. There, they discover an evil plot to bring back a bad god named Cali.
They are asked by a village whose children have been stolen to stop this evil from spreading. After a chillingly disgusting dinner at the new palace, the trio get taken into the depths of the cult. Willy is made for scarifice, Short Round is put to work in the mines, and Indy gets truned into a cult member. Short Round releases Indy in time to save Willy, and they free the children and kill the cult leaders.
My Thoughts
Even though this was the darkest of the three, it still had its merits. It had just a little more comedy than the first, despite the darkness of it. It had so many good sequences, like the dinner, and the mine cart chase. And the suspension bridge sequence is classic. Each performance is great, from Ford's indellible and perfect Indy, to Capshaw's screaming heroine, to Quan's hilarious squeaky-voiced Short Round. It always makes me laugh when I hear him say "You call him Dr. Jones!". This was a pretty enjoyable movie, although it was slightly out-of-place with the other two.
The Last Crusade
Cast
Indiana Jones: Harrison Ford
Dr. Schneider: Alison Doody
Brody: Denholm Elliot
Sallah: John Rhys-Davies
Donavon: Julian Glover
Young Indy: River Pheonix
Henry Jones: Sean Connery
Released: 1989. Story by: Geroge Lucas & Menno Meyjes. Screenplay by: Jeffery Boam. Directed by: Stephen Speilberg. My Rating: *****.
Plot
The movie opens in the desert, long before Indy is a man. As a boy scout, he and a friend happen upon a crooked archeaologist stealing treasure. Indy steals the treasure from him, and makes a daring escape. In the end, a businessman takes the artifact back. Skip ahead to the older Indy, and he's taking the artifact for himself. And, he smites the businessman who screwed him earlier.
When he gets back, he is approached by another wealthy man, a Mr. Donavon, who is after the Holy Grail. His lead expert has dissapeared, and his expert is Indy's father, Henry. Indy takes Brody along with him, and they meet his father's partner, Elsa Schneider, in Italy. With the help of Henry's diary, which was sent to Indy earlier, they find a clue which will lead them to the location of the Grail.
That's when everything starts to go wrong. They find that Henry is being held by Nazi's in Austria, and Indy sends Brody to get Sallah and prepare for an expedition. Indy goes after Henry, and in the process, learns that Elsa and Donavon are both working for the Nazi's. Henry's Diary is taken to Berlin, and after the Joneses escape, they retrieve it. There was a map in the diary, but Indy removed them and gave them to Brody. However, Brody is captured, and the Nazi's charge to the Grail.
Indy, Henry and Sallah catch up, regain Brody, and follow the Nazi's to the grail. Once there, Donavon shoots Henry, and forces Indy to get the Grail. he passes three tests, and with Donavon and Elsa right behind, he finds the grail chamber. A knight, who has been there for nearly two thousand years, instructs them to choose a cup. Lining the walls of the chamber are many cups, each a little different. Elsa chooses one and gives it to Donavon. He drinks, and dies a horrible death. Indy picks one, a simple wooden cup, and lives. The knight warns that the cup cannot be removed from the area. They leave to save Henry.
In the end, Elsa tries to take the Grail, and the whole place falls apart. The only ones who make it out are our heros: Indy, Henry, Brody and Sallah.
My Thoughts
This one returned to what the first one was about. Indy is recruited to find a religious artifact and uses the help of his old friends. The chemistry between Ford and Connery is pretty amazing, and makes this movie roll with surprising speed. After the first two, the formula is a winner and it looks flawless. The opening sequence with the late River Pheonix sets the tone for not only the movie, but the fairly successful TV series chronicaling Indy's early years. It has all the elements of the perfect action adventure movie. And, it caps off the trilogy perfectly. Well, that being said, we'll wait for #4. It should be out sometime this decade.
