Remembering Raiders Of The Lost Ark: The Making Of Indiana Jones
2. It’s Not The Years, Honey, It’s The Mileage
The
band got back together for Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom a few years
later, though Lawrence Kasdan notably opted out and has since described the
movie as “very ugly and mean-spirited”.
The prequel would see Indy in India, simultaneously trying to save the Sankara stones and the village children stolen away from their families by a mysterious cult. The second and darkest of the Indiana Jones films, as these things often go, received mixed reviews on release but still grossed $333 million to become one of 1984’s biggest movies.
And Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade arrived in 1989, with Sean Connery coming aboard as Henry Jones Sr. and the Nazis the bad guys once again, one and all in pursuit of the literal Holy Grail. The Last Crusade bears comparison with Raiders and is many a fan’s franchise favourite; something that is rarely, if ever, said of Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull.
But regardless of how you feel about Indy’s fourth adventure, it trailed only The Dark Knight as 2008’s most successful movie, which tells you something about the depth of feeling for the franchise in general and main character in particular. With Ford still willing and just about able and Spielberg in tow, we may as well be optimistic about the prospect of Indy 5.
Just no Shia, please.