Indiana Jones et le Temple maudit

For a long time, this was the only one of the three Indiana Jones films I did not like. Then, when it was part of the DVD package that came out over five years ago, I had to buy it if I wanted the other two, so I gave it a third look. Wow, all of sudden I liked it.

For the first time, the woman (Kate Capshaw) and the young boy (Ke Huy Quan) weren't as annoying as I had remembered them. The stupid kid really had rubbed me the wrong way, but this time only Kate was annoying....and she was fine once she calmed down and got rid of the hysterics.

The action in this film is mostly at the beginning and at the end. It is so Rambo-ish (bad guys never hit the target but good guys always do) it is ludicrous. It also has dumb dialog in a number of spots, paying homage to voodooism, spells and other nonsense.

Yet, despite these criticisms, it's entertaining start-to-finish and has some fantastic visuals. The photography in here is beautiful: the best of the three Jones adventures. I particularly liked the opening dance number which reminded me of a Busby Berkeley extravaganza. This whole film looks spectacular on DVD.

An indication of the personal termoil that Spielberg and Lucas were experiencing at the time, this is a darker, more ominous installment in the franchise although still a rip roaring adventure despite some of the political incorrectness that often dates older films. Not as charming as the original but a solid action adventure movie which stands on its own.

Temple of Doom may not be as good as Raiders, but it doesn't deserve all this negative flak. The story is a little darker but that doesn't take anything away from the film. It makes the situation that much more dire. John Williams' score infuses the sacrifice sequence with a sense of building dread. The chanting, the heavy drums all building into a wild climax of heart burning and lava filled mayhem. The mine car chase is wild fun and Indy's bridge manuver is one hell of a climax. Still don't know why everyone's so down on this movie.

The Cult of Thuggees seek to plunder, Sankara Stones and all their wonder, an archaeologist will resist, using whips and guns and fist, in a treasure of a film packed with adventure.

There are puzzles to be solved and riddles broken, the dialogue's a joy, beautifully spoken, action packed from start to end, returns a massive dividend, engaging all the way and thought provoking.

Some people say Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom is the worst movie of the franchise so far. To me, the worst is basically Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull. This movie is not perfect, but it's still good.

Set before the events of Raiders Of The Lost Ark, Indiana Jones is tasked by a village to help them after he escapes a Triad group after a deal gone wrong. Joined by singer Willie and young sidekick Short Round, Indy goes to Pankot Palace, where he discovers a hidden temple where a Thuggee cult, led by Mola Ram, has the stones the village asked him to return, and has even enslaved the kids of said village to mine for the last two.

Yeah, this movie is very violent, as it has some scenes that at the time, would be so brutal, some parents complained the movie should have been rated R. This, alongside the outrage of how violent first Gremlins movie was, would influence Steven Spielberg, who was involved with both movies, to suggest the PG-13 rating as an in-between rating. Also, the film is controversial for how it portrayed the country of India, causing the film to be banned from the country temporarily.

Despite those controversies, the film is interesting. It has the same exciting action as the first movie (like the famous mine cart chase scene), and even some goofy moments, making Temple of Doom one of my favorite films.