All sorts of hype is being given to the upcoming Indiana Jones movie at this point, and the set photos that are being doled out between sites are showing old man Indy at this point in his customary outfit, looking like he’s ready to head to the retirement home. There’s one reason why it’s not easy to get too excited about this movie any longer and it has a lot to do with the fact that Harrison Ford is well into the latter part of his 70s and heading on to his 80s, meaning that his days of being the adventuring archaeologist are pretty much behind him. Even back in 2008 one had to wonder just how believable it was going to be that someone in their 60s would still be able to do the type of things he’s known for doing without risking serious bodily injury. As of now, Indy really needs to retire, but it’s the hope of many that he’ll have one good movie left in him before he gets to finally head off into the sunset for good. After that, if the franchise finds a worthy successor, well, it still might not be enough.
The current movie that’s being made is going to bring up the Nazis again, only this time a Nazi scientist is going to be recruited by NASA of all places to help with the Space Race that America was heavily invested in decades ago. There’s also supposed to be a female antagonist once again, but there isn’t a lot of detail on this just yet. Quite a few people are just happy to see Ford back in the fedora and looking ready to take on the enemy again in this next movie, but it really needs to be asked if this is going to be the end of it or if someone is going to have the idea to keep going and going since the franchise is still popular and blah, blah, blah. Sometimes an idea needs to stop at some point so that it can breathe and possibly be picked up years down the line if anyone is interested in bringing it back.
Legacy movies are a lot of fun if they’re done right, but this particular legacy, while it has been sitting for a while, really needs a longer break since the development hell that the last movie went through and that this one has experience is the kind of struggle that should make people wonder whether it’s worth it at the end. A lot of fans could easily say that no, with the Crystal Skull movie it wasn’t quite as worth it since even with the return of Karen Allen the inclusion of Shia LaBeouf was kind of a letdown for a lot of people and the main villains were pretty bland to be honest. Normally there’s an upside to be found in just about any story, and the Crystal Skull tale wasn’t the worst that’s ever been penned, but it was pretty far from being worth the inclusion into the Indiana Jones franchise. Plus, the fact that Steven Spielberg and George Lucas won’t have much of anything to do with this movie isn’t instilling a lot of confidence in some folks, since the two directors helped to really bring the earlier movies to life.
Is there a chance that this movie will be something special? Possibly, but it depends on how the story is set up and how the director sets everything in motion. It would be kind of regrettable to see the last Indiana Jones movie become one of the worst simply because it should have been done and over with a while ago. But people are psyched to see it, to at least see what’s in store and what has become of Indy and those around him. It might sound cynical but it’s honest, this movie franchise should have packed up after the third one and called it a day since they literally rode into the sunset, which would have been a perfect end to a great story.
But somehow, someway, people were convinced that another movie was needed, just as it stands now. Hopefully this will turn out to be a good idea and a worthwhile end to a franchise that a lot of us grew up with and took to idolizing after a while since Indiana Jones is pretty cool and the adventures he goes on are a lot of fun to witness. But it’s time to lay the story aside for a while and let it rest if only to make certain that it doesn’t get dragged through the muck any further. Somehow though, it does feel as though a bit more muck-raking is going to happen, and by the time all is said and done the franchise will still be there, but the sour note it could end on might sting a bit to the fans. I hope I’m wrong, to be honest.
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