The Indy 4 trailer

The trailer for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull has been released. I think the news first broke on Yahoo yesterday, then quickly made it's way onto IMDb and YouTube. And now here it is, for all to see.



I have to confess, even after watching this trailer, I'm still not entirely convinced. Harrison Ford's age is clearly showing, and some of the special effects look a little too modern and go against the serialized look we fondly remember from Raiders of the Lost Ark. I want in the worst way to think this'll be a good movie, but given that it's almost 20 years since the last installment . . . I just don't want this to turn into another Godfather III experience.

An Indy movie by any other name . . .

It's official: Indiana Jones 4 has a name, and it's Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

To be honest, I'm not really sure I like it, because to me it doesn't have that unique Indiana Jones quality to it that drew me to the other movies. Temple of Doom, Last Crusade, Raiders of the Lost Ark—those all had something original, something catchy. Kingdom of the Crystal Skull? It just doesn't grab my attention and make me think, "Indiana Jones!" Plus, part of me is remembering the titles to all the Star Wars prequels that equally didn't live up to the power of the original titles (i.e., Attack of the Clones vs. Return of the Jedi).

Personally, I liked one of the other names previous considered: Indiana Jones and the City of Gods.

No Connery for Indy 4

It's official: Sean Connery will not be returning for Indy 4. Connery made the announcement himself recently, but still remained enthusiatic about the newest Indy installment. I will admit, it would have been fun to see Sir Sean team up with Harrison Ford again, because the two made an amazing and quite enjoyable father/son pair in The Last Crusade, but it actually makes good sense that Connery not reprise his role—simply because, if the story takes place in, say, the late 1940s, his character Henry Jones, Sr. will be pretty damn old! And bear in mind, Harrison Ford himself is no spring chicken, either.

But in the final analysis, I'm content to simply revisit The Last Crusade to see Harrison Ford and Sean Connery in action together.

More casting for Indy 4

I just saw an article on IndianaJones.com stating that young actor Shia LaBeouf, currently starring in Disturbia, will be cast in Indiana Jones 4. Obviously he's very excited about it, though I find myself wondering what kind of character he'll play. My first thoughts were actually of Short Round from Temple of Doom, but alternatively I wondered if he may play Indy's son (presuming he has one, of course). Time will tell, though.

Casting notes on Indy 4

According to IMDb, a few casting choices have been made for the fourth installment in the Indiana Jones saga—chief among them Ray Winstone, who I've only come to know through The Departed when he played Jack Nicholson's sidekick Mr. French. The IMDb article also notes that Cate Blanchett will be in the film, which was actually news to me.

I'm still not entirely convinced that Indy 4 is a good idea, though I'd very much like for my doubts to be proven wrong, much like they were for Rocky Balboa. I'm actually rather eager to hear some info on the plot for Indy 4! I believe a script has already been finalized, though I'm not 100% on that.

In the meantime, I'm just keeping my fingers crossed.

2008: will it be a very good year?

According to an IMDb article, the fourth installment of the Indiana Jones series has scored itself a release date: May 22, 2008.

By coincidence, the new ballpark for the Nats (if all goes well) is going to open for business in April of 2008.

Hmm, can I handle all this back-to-back excitement?

More and more of Indy 4

So it seems that the road for Indiana Jones 4 hasn't been an easy one to travel. According to an article in Premiere Magazine, it's been nothing short of what they call "development hell" as the script went through numerous drafts and rewrites by multiple scriptwriters. Let's just hope the finished product isn't the spoiled broth of too many cooks.

Coming soon: Indiana Jones 4!

Word on the street is that filming for the fourth Indiana Jones movie is going to start this year, with a planned release date of May 2008. I must confess, I have many doubts about this. Let me just state here and now, I absolutely love the Indiana Jones movies! I can remember many a lazy Sunday where I was crashing on the couch to watch Indy chase down the Nazi bad guys in Raiders of the Lost Ark, and at the conclusion of Last Crusade, where Indy and his father ride off into the sunset with Marcus Brody, I felt that that was truly the greatest end to a franchise that both George Lucas and Steven Spielberg could give. Why? Because it perfectly fit the genre and the moment preceding it!

But that was in 1989, when Harrison Ford was not only much younger but long before George Lucas attempted to resurrect another popular franchise . . . with notoriously disastrous results. Obviously, I don't want that to be the case with Indiana Jones. Naturally, the Lucas team is expressing great optimism for Indy 4, as is Harrison Ford himself. They're quoted in the Post article above as saying that it will be a character piece, but still very exciting—perhaps the most exciting yet. I don't mean to sound cynical, but I don't know of any other way to say this: I'll believe it when I see it. Because for one thing, Mr. Ford isn't quite the agile young man he used to be, so neither will the character of Indiana Jones. Which leaves me to wonder, just what kind of action story can be written for a 64-year-old action hero? Further to that, is there anybody younger than 25 years old who will even remember an action hero that was popular in the '80s?

Basically, my fear is that this franchise that I love will be given an installment that doesn't exist anywhere near the level of greatness that the first three movies did. Take a look at some of the sequels that didn't pass the grade: The Godfather Part III, any of the Star Wars prequels, Star Trek V, Rocky V. I don't doubt the good intentions of Lucas/Spielberg/Ford, but given the precedent that's been set for good sequels turned bad . . . I'm afraid I just can't shake my doubts. Let me say this much, though: when filming commences for Indy 4, my hope is that the dignity of the first three films can be preserved, and that the proper respect is given to the character and franchise that so many of us have come to know and love. That's my wish for Indiana Jones 4.