Movie review: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a long title, but the first two words pretty much was enough to sell me, as well as many others, a ticket to this movie. And they sure can't be accused of rushing this one! It has been a while since we had the pleasure of seeing Indiana Jones on the big screen, but it was worth the wait.

Harrison Ford is getting older, but he still can hold is own in this action movie. Coming out of the movie, I was thinking it could have used a bit more action, but I think I was just being picky. It has plenty of it. We get to see familiar faces in this story, as well as new ones. Shia LaBeouf is one of these new characters and I have a feeling we'll get to see more of him in other Indiana Jones movies, should they decide to keep the franchise alive... If not, well, he still has Transformers 2 in the work (which I am looking forward to as well).

Crystal Skull follows the usual type of story that previous I.J. movies offered us, with a twist that reminds us who the director is. It's Steven Spielberg, in case you didn't know. We have action, stunts, chases, humour and mystery. It all adds up very well and makes this a very enjoyable movie. I do hope they make more of them...

Upcoming Movie: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

When I went to see Jumper this week-end, I was treated to a movie preview I was looking forward to see on the big screen: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull! Long title, but I would go see it even if it was called Indiana Jones reads the phone book. Probably... But such is not the case.

I know I'm not the only one who just can't wait to see this movie. Harrison Ford is older, sure, but he's still "The Man"! The trailer, more of a teaser, is very promising. You can check it out at the official site by clicking the title of this blog entry above. Other links goes to IMDB. Other nice things to see on the site too, including a countdown to opening day. 85 days to go as of this writing, which makes it May 22, 2008. Hmm, that looks like a Star Wars date... George Lucas must have something to do with that. Is it too early to go wait in line? I'm sure my boss would think so! ;-)

Are you excited to go see this movie? By now, you know I am! Let's all go see it on day 1, OK? See you there!

Movie review: The Spiderwick Chronicles

I saw The Spiderwick Chronicles earlier this evening and I really liked it. It's another movie aimed at a young crowd, but that did not stop me from going, obviously. It's got a good story, great visuals and a very good cast. One thing I did not realize until I saw the credits is that the two brothers are played by the same actor, Freddie Highmore! This is a great feat for both the young actor and for the special effects. The later are handled by ILM and Tippet Studios, amongst others.

This movie was filmed in the city I live in, Montreal, but I did not recognized any landscape and is not meant to be happening in Montreal. Actually, most of the story is taking place in a "middle of nowhere" type of place, in the woods. The fact that it has "Chronicles" in it's name makes me think there could be sequels, but the end does not set it up for such a possibility. Unlike Golden Compass, it actually has an end, but this doesn't mean they can't start a new one.

I saw the Imax version and there was not a single trailer before the movie, just the standard Imax introduction, which I have seen several times. This means no Indiana Jones trailer, which is attached to this movie and which I was looking forward to see on a big screen, but I guess this screen was just too big... :-( But I don't regret seeing this version, as it looked spectacular!

If you like fantasy movies, you should treat yourself to this one. While it is aimed at the young ones, the youngest ones could be scared by some scenes, since we are dealing with an ogre and nasty goblins, who inflicts a few wounds to other characters and get some of their owns.