Rank The Indiana Jones Films — Page 3

captainsolo said:

4. The MacGregor novels I've read, and I'd really like to read more.

5. Fate of Atlantis

6. Young Indy

I didn't realize these were films. =P

The hostility at this site towards Kingdom of the Crystal Skull doesn't really surprise me, but the unfavorable comparisons to the Mummy movies does.  All the Mummy movies are extremely hokey in my mind, filled with cheesy humor and extremely unbelievable in many respects, even in its own suspension of disbelief.  I enjoy them, but they are not great movies, and in my mind inferior to Crystal Skull.  I don't think the latter is a great movie either, and I was really disappointed with how it turned out, but even critics and audiences agree with me that none of the Mummy films are as good as Crystal Skull.  Just check out Rotten Tomatoes.  Tomb of the Dragon Emperor did especially poorly, so I just don't see the comparison.

Alright, maybe I should have read better.  The critics for sure enjoyed KOTCS better.  Sorry for my mistake.  I'll eat some crow now.  Still, I'll never understand why.  I enjoy Indy far better.

darth_ender said:

The hostility at this site towards Kingdom of the Crystal Skull doesn't really surprise me, but the unfavorable comparisons to the Mummy movies does.  All the Mummy movies are extremely hokey in my mind, filled with cheesy humor and extremely unbelievable in many respects, even in its own suspension of disbelief.  I enjoy them, but they are not great movies, and in my mind inferior to Crystal Skull.  I don't think the latter is a great movie either, and I was really disappointed with how it turned out, but even critics and audiences agree with me that none of the Mummy films are as good as Crystal Skull.  Just check out Rotten Tomatoes.  Tomb of the Dragon Emperor did especially poorly, so I just don't see the comparison.

 Yep, yeah, this. Quoted for truth.

Ryan McAvoy said:

darth_ender said:

audiences agree with me that none of the Mummy films are as good as Crystal Skull.  Just check out Rotten Tomatoes

 I did check it out because I simply didn't believe you that people could enjoy KOTCS more and they don't:

The Mummy (1999) - 75% approval with audiences on RT (7.7 on metacritic)

The Mummy Returns - 64% approval with audiences on RT (6.5 on metacritic)

KOTCS - 54% approval with audiences on RT (5.2 on metacritic)

 For what it's worth, on IMDB.com, KOTCS and Mummy Returns are rated equally.  This discrepancy is clearly due to the unscientific methods of both.  People most likely to rate most movies online will be those most polarized by them.  And I can't help but think of how polarizing an entry the beloved Indiana Jones would be in comparison to the relatively less well known and (at the time of its release) unestablished Mummy.

Think about any movies you have voted for online at a site like RT or IMDB.  I imagine that, for the most part, you have only bothered to rate movies that you liked or disliked a great deal.  Few actually take the time for a movie unless they simply really loved or despised it or were prompted to do so in an actual poll (the latter being far more accurate and scientific).  A person unfamiliar with both franchises might like KOTCS better than someone who loved Indy movies already and was so let down by the latest entry, don't you think?

But again, with the data we have, I clearly was wrong about audience perception, so forgive me for that part of my statement.

darth_ender said:

movies you have voted for online

darth_ender said:

Think about any movies you have voted for online at a site like RT or IMDB. I imagine that, for the most part, you have only bothered to rate movies that you liked or disliked a great deal. Few actually take the time for a movie unless they simply really loved or despised it or were prompted to do so in an actual poll (the latter being far more accurate and scientific).

Actually, as soon as I'm finished watching a movie/short film/TV show/TV episode, I log into IMDb right away to give it a rating, regardless of how much or how little I liked it. For whatever reason, I like keeping track of everything I've seen and how much I valued it at the time I watched it.

Oh, and yes, Frink, you have my blessing to use that nerd gif on me, now; I've more than earned it.

Good for you, but I'm curious as to how you can rate something 6.7 on IMDB ;)

Round to the nearest whole number -- duh! =P

I agree.  Perhaps not wholeheartedly, as there is more going against the films than just that, but I am certain that they are more difficult to market based on that very quality.  Excellent point.

As for Mr. McAvoy, if you feel every frame of KOTCS is evidence of its low value, then clearly there are no redeeming qualities and even a fan edit couldn't save it.  Makes me feel bad for all those who took the time to do so, especially that TMTYC guy. ;)

I just noticed that your avatar is TMTYC but your FE name is TM2YC.

captainsolo said:

4. The MacGregor novels I've read, and I'd really like to read more.

5. Fate of Atlantis

6. Young Indy

 Well, you talked me into it.  I have obtained ebook copies of 11 of the 12 official Indy novels.  I would like to get the novelizations of the actual films, but have not yet.  Also still need to get Philosopher's Stone.  Hope to read through them all.  They seem very good.

I've also heard amazing things about the game Fate of Atlantis.  I doubt I'll ever get around to playing it.  However, apparently a fan went to great lengths to create a fan novel based on the game and comics, fleshing it out, getting high quality artwork, etc.  Readers have praised it extensively, so I will have to try that out as well.

Finally, Young Indy...I really want to try to get into this.  Only watched the first "movie".  I'm disappointed that the movies are really combinations of two TV episodes, as it really felt terribly disjointed that way.  It's made it hard to want to watch a second.  I would prefer to watch them with their Old Indy openings/closings, lame as eye patch, crusty Indy might be, just to get the episodes as singles coherent stories.  Too bad the many preservation discussed online have not yet come to be.  I'll probably watch some more.  Most shows take a while to get good anyway, so I imagine if I give it a little more time, it will pick up.

Raiders of the Lost Ark

Indiana Jones & the Last Crusade

Indiana Jones & the Temple of Doom (just barely beaten by Last Crusade, I just put Crusade above it because it has less of the obnoxious time expanding editing and less bad guys with distractingly terrible aim. I mean, come on, one of those arrows HAD to have hit Indy when he was climbing the bridge, they shot like 3 volleys!! Other than that I still love it though)

Crystal Skull failed in my opinion because it lacked any real grit. In fact, I don't think Indy actually kills anyone on screen (correct me if I'm wrong). It looked like a cartoon and the end with the aliens made no sense and was hysterical. Weird stuff happened with the Ark and the Grail, but it made sense: The ark killed Belock because he was evil and the wrath of God killed him, and the Grail killed Donovan because, "for the unrighteous the cup of life holds everlasting damnation". Why did the aliens take away the lady and all the Russians but leave the good guys? Why did the aliens combine themselves together? I could've enjoyed an alien artifact if the item was simply that, an artifact, and something that they had to track down from the past, I didn't even mind the whole brain washing thing, it just got way to silly and confusing at the end with putting the alien skull back on the body. I liked the villains, I liked the alien skull, I liked the 50's era, and I didn't mind Harrison Ford's age, it's just the execution where everything failed. I honestly didn't mind it until they got to the jungle, the first 45 minutes or so were actually very promising. 

On topic with the series, do you usually watch the films in release order or with TOD before Raiders, thus in chronological order? I prefer watching them in release order, I just feel TOD works better watched after Raiders.

1. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom