Anyone seen the new Indiana Jones film yet?

If anyone enjoyed it then I’m honestly happy for them, but I just couldn’t. It’s not “bad” per se, just flat and uninteresting, and showing very little of the razor sharp craftsmanship and ingenuity that made the original 80s trilogy so enjoyable.

But why do I care? I really shouldn’t, should I? Indiana Jones was a big part of my childhood, and I unashamedly loved the films much as I would love a rollercoaster ride or a set of Star Wars figures. Then as I got older and my taste in films became more sophisticated (the jury is out on that one), I started to really appreciate them on rewatching, and seeing the skill and care that went into them. I admire them massively as just fantastically creative things, with a whole team of cutting edge people working at the very edge of their technique. As popcorn entertainment goes, they are unbeatable.

Did I ever expect a revival thirty years later would be any good? Not really. So why does it bother me so much? Is it the inevitable, depressing link to my own mortality, the sense that I’ll never experience that » Continue Reading.