It took nineteen years, at least a dozen screenwriters and several false starts and stops, but it finally happened: the iconic professor-come-adventurer Indiana Jones made his long-awaited return to the silver screen. However, in the years since its release, 2008's Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull has become the franchise's black sheep, receiving a distinctly mixed reception from critics and moviegoers. But in this reviewer's eyes, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is far from the abject failure of the Star Wars prequels, and it's not far behind the quality of the previous Indiana Jones sequels. While the original trilogy homages old adventure serials of the 1930s, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull embodies the spirit of 1950s B-movies, resulting in a different type of Indiana Jones adventure that still retains familiar franchise elements. It's Indy 2.0 for the 21st Century, delivering a welcome amount of joyful action-adventure fun coordinated by one of the industry's finest filmmakers.

The year is 1957, and tensions between the United States and Russia are high. Still working as a professor of archaeology as he progresses into his autumnal years, Dr. Jones (Harrison Ford) is rustled out of his everyday routine by a group of Russian soldiers led by the ruthless Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett), who are seeking to uncover the location of an enigmatic crystal skull. Working to obtain the skull before the Commies get their hands on it, Indy is joined by young greaser Mutt Williams (Shia LaBeouf) as they globe-trot to South America, following the clues left behind by Indy's old colleague Harold Oxley (John Hurt).
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is structured like a classic Indiana Jones picture, opening with a large action set-piece before shifting into expositional territory as the relic hunt begins. Hell, Steven Spielberg and George Lucas even dust off the old Paramount Pictures logo and the trademark title font to match the mood left hanging in 1989, and they resurrect the traditional travel montages, with a map displaying the characters' journey. Furthermore, the film retains a warm, orangey colour palette reminiscent of the previous films, and each punch still sounds as thunderous as ever. Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is eager to provide light-hearted fun, a quality often lacking in modern action cinema. We get too many grim and ominous action pictures like the Bourne series or The Dark Knight, so it's refreshing to witness a buoyant action-adventure that is straight-up entertaining from start to finish. Personally, I'll take Spielberg's marvellously orchestrated action scenes - which eschew rapid-fire cutting and shaky-cam - over most of today's "grim and dark" action films. The film's playful sense of humour is welcome, too. Composer John Williams also deserves credit for his contributions. It has been decades since we first heard it, but the Indiana Jones theme remains as exhilarating as ever, and each action beat is all the more enjoyable when accompanied by those iconic trumpeted notes.

Screenwriter David Koepp takes full advantage of the picture's 1950s setting. On top of containing a handful of classic rock 'n' roll tunes, it's wonderful to watch the interactions between Mutt and Indy: the rebellious young rock 'n' roll type versus the more traditional sort of American. Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is goofy, but Indiana Jones has been goofy since its inception. (Seriously, re-watch Raiders of the Lost Ark - nostalgia may cloud your judgement, but the film is goofy as hell.) The only problem is that Crystal Skull is not quite as gritty as its predecessors - it's a bit too "clean," whereas the original trilogy possessed a veneer of '80s grit. This is due to the use of digital effects over the primitive but endearing special effects of yesteryear and the fact that Crystal Skull is not as violent as its forerunners. (Indy seems reluctant to kill people here, and he never fires his gun.) Admittedly, the CGI glaze is not a bother for the most part, but the film becomes far too cartoonish once it shifts to the jungles of Peru. Kingdom of the Crystal Skull fares better in its smaller set-pieces, including a giddily amusing brawl in a restaurant and an exciting motorcycle chase. When it goes bigger, it lacks the punch of the earlier pictures simply because it looks too much like the product of sets, green screens and computers, rather than the result of expansive location shooting and risky stuntwork. A handful of moments are much too ridiculous, as well, including Mutt swinging on vines like Tarzan. It also feels as if none of the heroes are actually at risk of being hurt.
Ford looks bored in many of his recent roles, but here, he seems to have that glimmer of delight back in his eyes. Ford plays the aging Indy with a low-key charm and never pushes the old man routine too hard, instead just playing a ripened version of the role with a sense of humour. Thankfully, Ford is joined by his old Raiders of the Lost Ark co-star Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood. Allen hasn't been in many films of late, so it's a thrill to see her onscreen again, and it's even better that she's as wonderful as ever. Inviting Allen back to the franchise was an ingenious idea, and it's great that she and Ford still have sizzling chemistry. Meanwhile, LeBeouf is surprisingly likable as Mutt, dialling down his irritating acting habits to portray a credible greaser and an effective side-kick. Blanchett is also deliciously villainous as Irina Spalko, and John Hurt is agreeably colourful as Oxley. Less successful, though, is Ray Winstone - he does what he can as Mac, but his character is ill-defined and pointless, a lazy conflict catalyst who could have been excised without any detriment to the narrative.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is definitely at its strongest during its first and second acts, with its dynamite character interactions, exciting globe-trotting, light-hearted spelunking, and gripping action scenes. Beyond that, the film is distinctly hit-and-miss, alternating between the shonky and the exciting. (The rainforest chase is too cartoonish, though a brawl between Indy and a Russian hulk is a true white-knuckle sequence.) Nevertheless, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull does not deserve the negative press it receives. Even in its silliest moments (FRIDGE!), the film is hugely entertaining, delivering an irresistible amount of matinee-style action that we rarely see these days. It's not on the same level as Raiders of the Lost Ark or The Last Crusade, but it's at least as good as - if not better than - The Temple of Doom.
7.7/10