INDY'S DARKEST HOURS AT "THE TEMPLE OF DOOM"

The Bridge too far! Indiana Jones fights for survival in INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM.

"I'm not gonna have anything nice to say about this place when I get back!"  - Willie Scott.

Time has sadly not been kind to INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM. Critics have often
stated that it didn't live up to the success or sequel promise of RAIDERS, and both Lucas and Spielberg themselves have kinda regretted making it over time, citing it as too dark and intense in places (indicative of the dark times they too were then having in their personal lives and relationships), but I personally like it a lot. Remember that little dark and intense film called THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK that followed STAR WARS. Nothing wrong with that one, eh? This was just following in the same vein. Granted, it doesn't have the first films verve, but there are some terrific moments of action and comedy worthy of merit (many of which were originally derived for RAIDERS but had to be eliminated for time and money reasons, leading them to be held over for this sequel), and it does have some adrenaline ride moments like the action in and outside the Club Obi-Wan, and, later, in the minefield chase, and the baddies, a different foe from the Nazis, really are nasty and scary. Plus, there's spooky voodoo like possession (even Indy gets captured in this one!), dark caves, human sacrifices and lots of heroics not only from our Fedora hatted adventurer, but also his likable companion Short Round (Ke Huy Quan). Plus Kate Capshaw, Mrs Spielberg to you and me!, is a fine, if loud, Indy babe! And how can we not mention that great musical number at the films beginning, which would make the legendary choreographer Busby Berkeley proud!

Night club singer Willie Scott (Kate Capshaw) and the dancing girls- a part of the opening musical number that didn't make the final cut of INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM.

I remember seeing this film twice at the cinema, first at the local ODEON Streatham (where I first saw STAR WARS in January 1978) with my family (and we all thoroughly enjoyed seeing Indy again!), and then with some school friends at the Streatham ABC a few months later. I also remember there was a big premiere at the London West End EMPIRE Leicester Square with the cast and crew, and I think it was a Royal Premiere (with Princess Diana), but I wasn't aware of it until after the fact.

Here's the films original trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4zD6Nm_ce4

TEMPLE, the first Lucas Prequel, is being shown in the UK in glorious full HD widescreen on the BBC tonight, though most likely it will be the edited version of the movie which I despise (on its original release, the scene where Mola Ram removes the heart from one of his sacrificial victims, a part of said victims burning, and Short Round's whipping from the young Maharajah were ordered cut from the film by the then very nervous people at the British Board of Film Censors, so as to get a family audience viewing certificate (all of these scenes, however, remain intact in the US versions on DVD and laserdisc)). These same cuts have continued over the years with subsequent releases in different formats in the UK, and no doubt the eventual UK release on Blu-ray will suffer the same fate unless the movies certificate is upped to a 15 level, which we doubt that LUCASFILM/PARAMOUNT will want to do, as it may disrupt family audience sales of their box sets. To be honest, though, looking back at those TEMPLE scenes they now seem pretty tame to me: the violence and gore I've seen in some of today's modern family viewing is often far worse!

UPDATE: 13/1/2010. Once again, and as expected, the cut UK version of the film was shown.

CANDID CARRIE!

Carrie Fisher. Image: CarrieFisher.com

A good friend/contributor to STAR WARS AFICIONADO, Robin Haggett has kindly sent me a link to a fun Carrie Fisher interview from the UK's CLIVE JAMES ON TV show for the BBC circa 1992 which he's put on YOUTUBE. There's no talk of STAR WARS, bar a mention in the introduction, but the writer/actress looks great and is on fine witty form, and its worth a look.

Cheers, Robin!

Here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tEQwHVS0ls

RETURNING TO "THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL"

Always in trouble, Indiana Jones is older but never any wiser! Image: LUCASFILM/PARAMOUNT



The UK's BBC 1 channel (and HD) sees in the New Year's Day at 5.35 pm with a healthy dollop of fun and action with Harrison Ford, who, if adventure had a name, continues to be known as Indiana Jones, as he and his new "family", wayward youth Mutt Williams (Shia LaBeouf) and still feisty after all these years Marion Ravenwood (a fine return for Karen Allen), enter the legendary Kingdom of the Crystal Skull to unearth its possibly alien secrets, followed by a fine Russian villainess, Irina Spalko (the chameleon-like actress Cate Blanchett) and her army of dedicated soldiers, determined to conquer the world with the secrets they can steal. 

Harrison Ford, despite criticisms of his advancing years, has aged well as the iconic hero and carries the film well-looking good at a time of life when most people can barely climb on board a bus! Perhaps the adventure overall could have had a little bit more depth towards the end story and character-wise, and Indy himself could have have had perhaps one more major action sequence in which to shine, but I feel that KINGDOM is a much under-rated film and far better than most people give it credit. Ultimately, though, none of the Indy sequels, despite all their great and highly memorable moments of drama, action and comedy, have ultimately topped or fully matched the strong story or break neck, pitched to perfection pace of the original RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK-that film is still the best and remains unbeatable as one of the all defining action movies ever- but KINGDOM certainly holds up well alongside an Indy sequel like THE LAST CRUSADE in many places and, if there is no new film on the horizon next year for our archaeologist hero, proves to be an acceptable and generally satisfying conclusion to it all.

Remember this original trailer, and how the world was excited to see Indy return after such a long absence from our screens?:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5bvLbl-Ul0