[grady]

Originally Posted by negative1

grady , care to be more specific?

I can start getting into more specifics, I was hesitant too initially as no one else had replied to thread just yet but here we go. (Side note, I've been trying to use the color tags method stimpee describes in the sticky post in the forum and it's been non-responsive for me, so I just added a bunch of space)



















(I'm just going to start writing and putting this together very similar to an email I wrote to a friend in Boston today who really enjoyed the film. I went through in a cursory overview of the points in the film that didn't work for me.)


Story/plot/structure

For starters, my overall impression was that the film was just too cluttered for it's own good. This seems to be a contribution from a multitude of sources, but the primary one being the appeasement of the fanbase. The film just seem to have too much going on and was juggling too much for it's own good.

I'm referring specifically to the amount of secondary characters and story lines. It's been widely known that Lucas has worked with a plethora of talented writers over the years brainstorming and trying out potential ideas and scenarios for another film. This film just seemed like a hodgepodge of all the different ideas produced over the years selectively culled together into one large blob-like thing and haphazardly stitched together.

There was no definite through line for the story. It seemed very scattered from the involvement of the Russian element/red scare, to Mutt and Marion, to Ray Winstone and John Hurt, and then all the nods to previous films, and the mythical supernatural element present in the previous three films. This film had all of these elements but the balance and fine tuning of it seemed all off.

I could go into more detail if you would prefer, but I just think back to that conclusion of The Last Crusade and how wonderful that final shot is in it's simplicity but also it's effectiveness. There was none of that type of simplicity in this film. Everything is too over complicated and over explained.

Look/feel/design/CG/Other

Perhaps the first jarring element was the production design, cinematography and visual presentation. Prior to and during the film's production, Spielberg's go to DP for the past decade, janusz kaminski had been mentioned in the press as trying to replicate the visual look of the previous three films shot by Douglas Slocombe. I was always worried about Kaminski's approach to the film as with most film's he's shot for spielberg, they tend to be bathed in this white, over lit glow that becomes a bit repetitive.

Now with this new Indy film, it does have a certain look and visual feel that is reminiscent of the three prior films, but doesn't fit into the visual look. Part of this I feel was due to the over abundance of CG used throughout the film, both in large visual effects sequences, but also in small adjustments to the background of shots like matte paintings and set extensions.

It all has that soft, fuzzy feel that looks very flat.

What was with the monkey/tarzan sequence? honestly? How could you not roll your eyes at that nonsense? When the hell did the film enter the board game film Jumanji?!

Cast

Harrison Ford is great as Indy and it's nice to see him do something where it seems he's enjoying himself and the capable hands of a good director. I didn't mind that he's aged a bit. It worked and he could still trade blows with the baddies and jump into hairy situations with the greatest of ease.

Shia Lebeof seemed entirely unnecessary for the film.

I wish there was a more fleshed out role for Ray Winstone. He's always such a damn pleasure to watch.

Kate Blanchett seemed like she was having fun.

Directing/action/pacing

Maybe Spielberg's becoming lazy, but the action sequences in this film paled in comparison to a couple of his previous films. I'm thinking specifically of sequences like the electronic spiders in Minority Report going through the building, Aliens on the rampage in New Jersey in War of the Worlds, or Avner planting the bomb in the hotel room in Munich.

I'd heard about some great action sequences in this film and there were about two, and they occurred in the first 3 reels, the first one being reel one of the film at the Air Base and the second one being the motorcycle chase on the college campus.

The remainder of the action throughout the film felt really forced and tired and uninspired. I couldn't see past the fact that these were nothing more than sets built on stages throughout the greater Hollywood area last summer. I felt like The Mummy 4 and National Treasure 3 would soon be cannibalizing these sets for their productions.

None of the other film's in the series had this feeling.