What are Indiana Jones fans to make of this? It’s George Lucas, talking to Empire Magazine about the long-awaited (bordering on quasi-mythical) Indiana Jones 4: "We’re basically going to do The Phantom Menace … “
Holy Grail! Imagine what that might mean! Kid-Indy, youthful midichlorians raging, enters a big whip competition! Sallah delivers massively elliptical speeches about destiny! Indy falling in with a prat-falling Nazi officer named Gestapo Binks (Ahmed Best)! But wait, wait, don’t seethe yourself into a coma just yet, Joe Indy-fan, there’s more:
“We’re basically going to do The Phantom Menace … People’s expectations are way higher than you can deliver. You could just get killed for the whole thing… We would do it for fun and just take the hit with the critics and the fans… But nobody wants to get into it unless they are really happy with it."
OK, you could take this one of two ways: Either it’s a bold, damn-the-torpedoes approach to the pure fun of the Indy franchise… or it’s a man who’s been so richly rewarded for sucking, he’s decided sucking ain’t so bad.
Let’s go tentatively with the former, and parse some of George’s other comments. He cites a creative disagreement as one cause of Indy 4’s long delay. Apparently, George’s idea for a new quest objective — the Ark in Raiders, the Grail in Last Crusade, the, uh, Short Round in Temple (what was the goal there again? Those glowy egg things?) — wasn’t a hit with Spielberg or Harrison Ford. Seems like the difference of opinion on this “area of the supernatural” was enough to derail the project for years.
Two questions, PopWatchers: What’s your favorite McGuffin? The briefcase in Kiss Me Deadly? The briefcase in Pulp Fiction? The briefcase in any of those other get-the-briefcase movies?
More intriguingly, I ask you this: What potentially radioactive “area of the supernatural” do you think George is talking about? The sacred black stone (possibly a meteorite) in the Kaaba of Mecca? Yeah, we might not want Indy to go poking around that particular religious relic at the particular moment.
Or, much more likely, it’s a vintage L. Ron Hubbard-shaped paperweight kept in a vault on the 13th floor of the Scientology Celebrity Center. But I could be completely wrong: Maybe Indy’s after Madonnah’s Kabbalah bracelet. (Hint: Only the penitent man shall pass.)
So let the speculation begin. It’s all we have for now. But maybe someday, we’ll know if George chose wisely, or… poorly.
Comments (1-26) of 26 Add your comment
Well from the looks of the star wars movies (episodes 1-3) I’m glad spielberg and ford stopped the script. George needs to take a bread and just let spielberg take over anyway, or give it to peter jackson.
Best McGuffin: the Rocket pack in the Rocketeer. I dare you to watch that film, it is really good after all these years and it’s MORE Indiana jones then the new one will be.
Favorite McGuffin: the briefcase in Repo Man!
Christopher, you took the words right out of my mouth! The Pulp Fiction briefcase was an homage to Repo Man. If you read the commentary on the Pulp Fiction DVD, there’s a quote from Tarrantino about it.
As for Indy 4, why bother? The idea sounded solid wayyy back in 1991, but now Harrison Ford’s seven years older than when he was old enough to play the president. He’s so old, the man’s old enough to be an X-President. I mean, dude, an action star old enough to be retired? Why doesn’t Eon just make Roger Moore the NEW James Bond to keep up with the Jones’s?
Please, no Indy 4. Isn’t it bad enough that ANOTHER Rocky movie is coming out? Let Indy sail into the sunset while the character still has his dignity.
Don’t forget the briefcase in Ronin– a classic briefcase movie.
LEAVE WELL ENOUGH ALONE FOR PETE’S SAKE!
I adore Indy. In fact, I have a huge crush on Indy, and I’m not afraid to admit it. But a sequel? No, please, no. We’ve already seen what Lucas does his “classics,” and the results ain’t too pretty (although Episode III was decent).
MAYBE if Ford and Spielberg are happily on board, it might be okay. But that’s a big “maybe.” Please, guys, think of my undying love for Indy! Don’t ruin it for me!
I get giddy at the thought of a new entry to the movies that inspired my career choice. I’m quite curious as to what was so “offending” that they need to work around it.
Considering the age of the star, the only thing to go in search for is the Fountain of Youth.
But, really there does not have to be a four. Just keep Lucas out of it.
Raiders and Last Crusade are my favorite movies ever, and despite Lucas’s former genius, the man is obviously insane. He should not touch Indy ever again. He should have learned the first time. But hey James, great idea to give it to Peter Jackson!
What happened to Nathan Fillion as a young indy? HFord should pass the hat and whip…
Lucas should be kept away from any screenplay — Indy or otherwise. But Spielberg hasn’t exactly been firing on all cylinders lately, when it comes to his popcorn movies (i.e. the D.O.A. War of the Worlds). As far as Peter Jackson goes (and I realize it wasn’t a truly serious suggestion), I have to say that his handling of the action and characters on Skull Island in King Kong left a lot to be desired. Who IS the best popcorn director these days, anyway? Not Gore Verbinski. Bryan Singer…?
I totally agree – LEAVE WELL ENOUGH ALONE!!! At this point, Harrison Ford would have to play grandfather to Henry (Indy) Jones, IV.
Nathan Fillion would be a great Indy. He’s got a great sense of humour, and he’s handsome and athletic. Time for a new Indy.
I love Indy, and for that reason I am hesitant to add any more movies to the franchise. If they do, they ought to bring back Marion, the best damn girl they ever had(not a Nazi). THe best McGuffin has to be the letters of transit in Casablanca. They are completly unimportant, especially considering that Bogie later has to use a gun to keep the plane from being grounded. So much for “they can’t even be questioned.” Again, stupid Nazis. If we see Indy 4, they need to do an artifact not Judeo-Christian. While those were the best two movies, the artifacts are not responsible for that. What was nice about the three before was that each artifact was a different sect and kind of denied a fidelity to any particular creed. GO Indy, eh?
If Lucas is worried aboout taking a “hit with critics AND fans” then ummmmmm who is the movie suppsed to be liked by?
I really dig that idea of Nathan Fillion as Indy. River Phoenix (God rest his soul) would have grown well into the role, but that option is no longer available.
Thinking about it though, another serial style action thriller with our fave archeologist (take that, lousy Leakey family) with plenty of snakes, exotic locales, hot independent women and plenty of Nazi beat em up scenes (please, lots of these) may be what the Dr. ordered. But IMHO, Harrison Ford’s got to be out of the picture for it to work. I dug him as Han Solo and loved him as Dekkerd, but it’s time dude started accepting his older guy roles a little more.
The best McGuffin? The brief case in Dumb and Dumber. Double stamp it. And you can’t triple stamp a double stamp.
Wait, wouldn’t Spielberg be in charge, anyway? I assume he’s directing this film as he directed the first three. My major problem with Lucas’s Star Wars sequels was the bad acting, and Spielberg tends not to have that problem in the slightest.
The possibility of a weak script is a problem, but then again, were the scripts for the first three movies all that great? In my opinion, the fun thing about Indiana Jones (and by the way, they’ve been my favorite movies since I was seven and allowed to see them), really lies in the direction and how the conflict is played out. If you think back to all the memorable moments in them–the giant rock chasing Indy, the final shot in Raiders, the first ten minutes of Temple, etc. etc.–I’m betting Spielberg had more to do with them than Lucas.
And actually, if a fourth movie has to be made, I think I can trust him. I disagree about Spielberg’s recent popcorn films: War of the Worlds was a great film with a weak ending, Minority Report is nearly a perfect sci-fi flick, and Catch Me If You Can was highly entertaining. I will concede that The Terminal was a piece of crap, but, then again, Tom Hanks wasn’t whipping people in it, which I am quite certain would have made it a much more enjoyable 128 minutes of my life. Besides, that movie’s totally redeemed by Munich, which, now that the buzz from Brokeback Mountain has died down a bit, just might have deserved to win Best Picture at the Oscars last year. At the very least, it was a more deserving film than what actually won, but let’s not get into that again.
Count me in the Nathan Fillian camp. He was a great Han Solo type in Firefly/Serenity, and could do an equally good job with Harrison Ford’s other most famous role. Ford’s best stunt days are far behind him (just see Firewall – I do give him credit for trying, though!), and going back to a 30 or 40-something explorer hero seems the best answer, especially in a post-Da Vinci Code world.
I understand Uncle George’s comments. Indy 4 is going to be built up soooo much that it can’t possibly top Raiders or Last Crusade.
Indy 4 should’ve been made about 10 years ago.
What was the briefcase movie where you never actually found out what the heck was in the briefcase? Was that Ronin? That movie really irked me…..
Hands down, the briefcase in Ronin! A great movie with a great cast (DeNiro, Jean Reno, Sean Bean, etc), but we never found out what was in the friggin briefcase!!!
Okay, if you’re going to say Nathan Fillion as Indy, then that means you want to overhaul the whole franchise. If that’s the case, have Joss Whedon wrtie the script. He knows how to break a story and he has the wit to revive the series with coolness and humor. And keep Lucas in a galaxy far away.
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