O'Connell: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a notorious film for tacking one more attempt at greatness on to the already complete series, but to say one thing in its favor, it is definitely a work born of passion for the earlier films, especially Raiders of the Lost Ark. Packed with reference after homage after fedora tip, the film is a love letter to the earlier trilogy with countless tributes to the other films.



The scene taking place at Jones’ residence wherein Indiana has just learned of his “indefinite leave of absence” is especially packed with references. Structurally, it is the same as the scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark in which Dr. Marcus Brody shows up to tell Indy of the new mission and share a celebratory drink, however the drink he shares with Dean Charles Stanforth is a mournful one as the two men are both out of work. This time, Indy is not packing with eager anticipation, but with disheartened acceptance. Note how instead of first grabbing his trademark jacket and coiled leather whip, he first packs neatly folded shirts, underwear, socks, and a coiled leather belt, a sad image of the adventureless life that awaits him.

Similar to Indiana’s disillusionment with the government in the end of Raiders, there is a continued animosity towards the government in this film and this scene, as Charles states “I barely recognize this country anymore, the government’s got us seeing communists in our soup. When the hysteria reaches academia I guess it’s time to call it a career.” (Spielberg, Crystal Skull) After his run in with the government agents at the beginning of the film, Indy is no more thrilled with them than he was in ‘36. When the agents come to the university to search Indiana’s office, Charlie must to allow them, but is forced to resign as he defends Jones. During their conversation, Indy apologizes for having doubted Charlie’s loyalty, who then responds “no, you have reason to question your friends these days”, referencing both the betrayal of Mac in this film, and on a larger scale the constant betrayals of Jones’ many companions over the years.

This scene looks back in many ways, as Indiana is struggling with his own mortality. We learn that in the recent past, both Marcus Brody and Henry Jones, Sr. have passed away, leaving Indy with few companions, and he looks through an old journal that quickly flashes upon a picture of a youthful Indiana who has also gone the way of all things. Indiana has little to look forward to at this point, and instead both Indy and the audience are nostalgically remembering the glory of the past.

Lam: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull -- A Parody

               Surprisingly, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull had many parodies in the film that referenced back to both Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The references made to Raiders of the Lost Ark generally were related to Marion, while the references made to the Last Crusade were related to Henry Jones, Senior or the concept of the father. Among all of the references in the film, I feel the most prominent one is a mirror of a scene from the Last Crusade. During the scene when Indiana and Henry Senior escape the Nazis by motorcycle, Indiana laughs as they evade the Nazis, but Henry Senior scowls at him. This same scene is mirrored in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull when Mutt and Indiana evade the Russians on motorcycle again. Almost the exact same screenplay was used for that scene. However, it does include one major difference. This difference is the knowledge of the father figure. In Last Crusade, Indiana knew that Henry Senior was his father but chose to not to acknowledge him. Meanwhile, in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Indiana, at this point of the film, does not have the knowledge that he is anyone's, let alone Mutt's, father.

                This scene is a parody because it induces a mocking tone or pokes fun at a scene in a prior film and usually proves to be ironic. In this case, the situation is ironic because Henry Senior was a very serious and stout man who did not like Indiana's recklessness and his excitement and joy that came from the reckless behavior. Now, many years down the line, Indiana has aged and reached the age where "life stops giving you things and starts taking them away." After experiencing the loss of his father and Marcus Brody, Indiana finally becomes the father figure. This is partially what makes the scene so ironic. It is that Indiana has both become the father spiritually and physically with the introduction of Mutt's character. Mutt seems to be a more reckless version of young Indiana, perhaps due to the genes from both his mother Marion, a very fiery woman, and Indiana, an also very reckless man. In this scene, Mutt portrays the new reincarnated Indiana, but with even more vigor. Indiana does not exactly scowl at Mutt but instead gives him a glare. At the same time, you notice that it seems that Indiana even realizes that this was how he was when he was Mutt's age. The feeling did not seem to be one of contempt but one of reluctant acceptance that kids will be kids. Indiana takes this position until he learns that Mutt is actually his son. This parody almost seems as if the Indiana Jones franchise has run out of ideas with only the development of a son figure as the last chapter to Indiana Jones's life (Pfeiffer 176).